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Topic ClosedWhich is the worst Dream Theater album ?

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Poll Question: Which is the worst Dream Theater album ?
Poll Choice Votes Poll Statistics
35 [25.18%]
4 [2.88%]
5 [3.60%]
20 [14.39%]
6 [4.32%]
6 [4.32%]
9 [6.47%]
15 [10.79%]
24 [17.27%]
15 [10.79%]
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progrules View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 15 2009 at 09:28
Originally posted by Epignosis Epignosis wrote:

What?  No votes for the angry mush of sound that is Train of Thought?

Well, let me cast the first groan...
 
Iīm with you Robert. Just not because itīs angry or loud but because itīs without structure (except for Stream of Consciousness) most of the album. TOT just beat the debut which is ok but no more.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 15 2009 at 09:34
Originally posted by Roj M30 Roj M30 wrote:

^ OK, I'll be the first then (runs for cover!) Wink.
 
Images And Words is my least favourite of the DT albums I've heard.  There, I've said it.  The only ones I don't know are the debut and Falling Into Infinity.
 
IAW is good and there are some great tracks on there but to me it just doesn't knock me out the way I expected from all the glowing reviews.  I was expecting something incredible, and that's just not how I see IAW.  Everybody seems to rave about IAW and it just hasn't hit me at all.  I have to say that Pull Me Under and Metropolis are superb though and easily my favourites from IAW. 
 
Testimony to DT's quality is I'd still give IAW 3 stars, not bad for a band's "worst album" Wink.
 
IMHO, after this album they improved greatly on Awake which is a much better album.  I easily prefer DT from SFAM onwards, that's by far my favourite DT era.  I do though appreciate I'm probably in the minority in this view........
 
Not quite. I agree with you at least partially on above stated. That is if you also like the underestimated Systematic Chaos Big smile. Images and Words is still a masterpiece despite the fact I understand what you mean. Itīs also about the breakthrough for prog metal, sort of a milestone in that sense.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 16 2009 at 06:50
Originally posted by progrules progrules wrote:

Originally posted by Roj M30 Roj M30 wrote:

^ OK, I'll be the first then (runs for cover!) Wink.
 
Images And Words is my least favourite of the DT albums I've heard.  There, I've said it.  The only ones I don't know are the debut and Falling Into Infinity.
 
IAW is good and there are some great tracks on there but to me it just doesn't knock me out the way I expected from all the glowing reviews.  I was expecting something incredible, and that's just not how I see IAW.  Everybody seems to rave about IAW and it just hasn't hit me at all.  I have to say that Pull Me Under and Metropolis are superb though and easily my favourites from IAW. 
 
Testimony to DT's quality is I'd still give IAW 3 stars, not bad for a band's "worst album" Wink.
 
IMHO, after this album they improved greatly on Awake which is a much better album.  I easily prefer DT from SFAM onwards, that's by far my favourite DT era.  I do though appreciate I'm probably in the minority in this view........
 
Not quite. I agree with you at least partially on above stated. That is if you also like the underestimated Systematic Chaos Big smile. Images and Words is still a masterpiece despite the fact I understand what you mean. Itīs also about the breakthrough for prog metal, sort of a milestone in that sense.
 
I think you know how highly I rate Systematic Chaos, Henk.  I know I'm very much in the minority, but I easily prefer SC to IAW!!  
 
One thing that really annoys me about IAW is that godawful drum sound.  The snare sounds like something out of Miami Vice, y'know Gloria Estefan or something.  There's some mighty fine tracks on IAW but I wish they'd recorded it about ten years later Wink
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 21 2009 at 20:01
I voted for When Dream and Day Unite. It's not a bad album, there is some real promise of what was to come there, and some good tracks, but it really isn't the same without LaBrie. Dominici tries awfully hard to be like Geoff Tate. The rest of the band play remarkably well, though. It's not bad, just not to the level of what came after. 

I'm surprised by some reactions here to IAW. That's one of those albums where I love every track on it. 

Falling Into Infinity is underrated. In fact, it may be their most underrated. I mean, sure, the record company wanted them to make it more commercial. But they managed to sneak some long, proggy songs on there under the label's nose. Trial of Tears, Peruvian Skies, New Millennium. I quite like FII, actually. 

Why all the hate for Six Degrees? I like it nearly as much as SFAM. And I'm one of those DT fans that thinks Octavarium is one of the best things they've ever done (that one is kind of controversial).

I don't think any of their albums are 'bad', actually. Some are lesser than others. But they all have their highlights. 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 21 2009 at 20:17
Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by J-Man J-Man wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by J-Man J-Man wrote:

Their debut is very good, just the production quality is laughable. Falling Into Infinity is their worst IMO.

-Jeff


Angry

Falling Into Infinity > Octavarium and Scenes attached

TAKE THAT YOU FOOL! Wink


Sorry Pablo, but you're not the typical DT fan. If you love Falling Into Infinity and hate Scenes From A Memory YOU'RE the foolWink


Of course I'm not, and always admitted thatWink

I might not even consider myself a DT fan, but Falling Into Infinity is really superb for me, also is Images & Words. Awake and A Change of Seasons come close.

Not a metal fan, probably explains the reason.

Yeah. Non metal fans probably should just avoid everything after Falling Into Infinity. In fact, I am surprised you got into Awake, considering some of it is very dark and heavy lyrically and musically. 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 21 2009 at 21:07
The last - BCASL - Dream Theater sound like any other heavy rock group out there - not a memorable album imo!!

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 12:35
I don't know why people keep saying WDADU is that bad, I think it 's a great debut for a band that later improved their sound a lot.
when I say they improved their sound a lot i'm not saying WDADU is crap, i'm saying there are better albums. WDADU is a mastetrpiece.
Changing subject, FII is DT's FORGETTABLE ALBUM. The label shouldn't have messed up with their music. Radio-friendly music is the enemy here, not debut albums.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 15:36
Originally posted by Blackwater Floyd Blackwater Floyd wrote:

I don't know why people keep saying WDADU is that bad, I think it 's a great debut for a band that later improved their sound a lot.
when I say they improved their sound a lot i'm not saying WDADU is crap, i'm saying there are better albums. WDADU is a mastetrpiece.
Changing subject, FII is DT's FORGETTABLE ALBUM. The label shouldn't have messed up with their music. Radio-friendly music is the enemy here, not debut albums.
 
Radio-friendly? What's radio-friendly about Trial of Tears? Lines in the Sand? Hell's Kitchen? New Millenium? Peruvian Skies? Just Let Me Breathe? Anna Lee?
 
You really need to listen to Falling Into Infinity well. Less heavy, that might be the word but not radio-friendly, that tag goes for Octavarium Wink
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 15:58
When Dream and Day Unite.  Probably like some of you, I like the music, but the singing just didn't work.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 19:02
WDADU was not bad per se, the musicians were great. Dominici's vocals let it down. Charlie Dominici isn't even a bad singer. He just didn't sound right for DT. He made them sound like any number of other 80s metal bands. In fact, didn't they get Labrie in order to get MORE mainstream exposure? (Well, it did work on one occasion) 

The songs on it are fine, because I always enjoy the WDADU numbers when the Labrie lineup plays them live. 

FII was compromised by the record label, but I still liked most of it. There are a couple of radio-friendly tunes on there, though, the Quiet One. Take Away My Pain, Hollow Years? Even Burning My Soul to me sounds like an attempt to recapture the style of Pull Me Under. 

 But you're right. Stuff like Lines In the Sand, Trial of Tears would never get airplay on radio. 

I'm still puzzled by the reaction to Octavarium by the fans. I like that one a lot. Maybe its because it was my first DT album. 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 19:13
Just to keep things moving here's my favorite to least favorite DT albums:

1. Scenes From a Memory
2. Octavarium
3. Images & Words
4. Black Clouds & Silver Linings
5. Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence
6. Awake
7. Systematic Chaos
8. Train of Thought
9. When Dream And Day Unite
10. Falling Into Infinity

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 19:20
I feel sorry for those who voted Scenes From a Memory the worst album. 6 people, a shame.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Nice new signature Jeff.Big smile
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 19:24
Originally posted by Kashmir75 Kashmir75 wrote:


FII was compromised by the record label, but I still liked most of it. There are a couple of radio-friendly tunes on there, though, the Quiet One. Take Away My Pain, Hollow Years? Even Burning My Soul to me sounds like an attempt to recapture the style of Pull Me Under. 

 But you're right. Stuff like Lines In the Sand, Trial of Tears would never get airplay on radio. 

I'm still puzzled by the reaction to Octavarium by the fans. I like that one a lot. Maybe its because it was my first DT album. 
 
I know those tunes are radio-friendly and that's why I didn't mention them, or did I? Come on, you can't call an album radio-friendly because out of 11 songs 4 that are pop, and not that all of them are bad, eh!
 
Octavarium was also my first DT album and liked it at first and still do enjoy some of it, but having discovered their earlier works, Octavarium just worn-out I suppose, it's pretty un-original for me.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 19:26
Originally posted by The Block The Block wrote:

I feel sorry for those who voted Scenes From a Memory the worst album. 6 people, a shame.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Nice new signature Jeff.Big smile


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 03 2009 at 21:00
Originally posted by The Block The Block wrote:

I feel sorry for those who voted Scenes From a Memory the worst album. 6 people, a shame.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Nice new signature Jeff.Big smile

Yeah, I know! SFAM is one of the best things they've ever done. They've been trying to better it ever since. Well, I actually though Six Degrees was quite good, and a decent attempt at trying to top SFAM. Octavarium came close, with the awesome Sacrificed Sons and the excellent title track, but not quite as classic as SFAM.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 04 2009 at 03:24
Black clouds and silver ass.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 04 2009 at 06:03
Falling into infinity. I keep it as my avatar because the cover rules.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 04 2009 at 21:13
Cover rules- Album Stinks
SFAM- Cool Cover- Awesome Album
SAme with Octavarium.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 06 2009 at 17:19
For me, it's Systematic Chaos. It just gets worse each time I listen to it. The self-indulgence on In The Presence Of Enemies particularly gets to me. And the whiny minor key that pretty much every song is written in also gets to me.

Originally posted by Kashmir75 Kashmir75 wrote:

WDADU was not bad per se, the musicians were great. Dominici's vocals let it down. Charlie Dominici isn't even a bad singer. He just didn't sound right for DT. He made them sound like any number of other 80s metal bands. In fact, didn't they get Labrie in order to get MORE mainstream exposure? (Well, it did work on one occasion)


I particularly like the quote from Mike Portnoy regarding Dominici: "It was like having Billy Joel playing in Queensrĸche."

Edited by Elderflower Man - December 06 2009 at 17:23
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 06 2009 at 22:09
I'd have to go with their debut, largely because they simply hadn't matured as musicians and song writers yet.  That's not to say that its a bad album (though personally I think the songs are better when LaBrie sings them on "When Dream and Day Re-Unite").

On the other hand, I'm not a huge fan of the direction they've taken starting around Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence.  Train of Thought was a huge let down for me when it first came out, but songs like "Stream of Consciousness" have really grown on me with time.
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