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Dream Theater => Dream Theater => Topic started by: JayOctavarium on November 23, 2017, 09:59:13 PM
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There's been so much hate on James lately.
He's not in his 20's any more, he's not perfect, but he doesn't deserve all of the shit people are giving him.
I absolutely LOVE James's singing. Current and past.
Show the Captain some love with me! :yarr :metal :yarr :metal
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I wouldn't say there's been so much hate considering it's come from the same 5 guys (one of whom may or may not be in a rival band of his).
But maybe this isn't the time to debate that. It's time to praise an amazing vocalist and one who is easily in my top 5 (which includes the likes of Ronnie James Dio so you know what company he keeps).
James is amazing. When he sings those unbelievable high notes, when he sings quieter passages, or even his gritty tone which he doesn't get enough credit for, the guy is freaking awesome.
Love his sense of humor too.
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+1 to both of you. I like all of the different facets of his voice. When it comes to the high notes, I certainly do love the stuff on Images and Words, but I also love the high stuff on the most recent albums, and in some ways like them better, even if they aren't as high as the old stuff.
I was amazed at his performance on TA (live and studio), I think he sounds awesome on The Source, and look forward to whatever comes next.
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Well, this seems an occasion as good as any to show my absolute love and praise for James :metal
Really, I may be the 1% or less of the fans in saying this, but James is THE reason I listen to Dream Theater. Guitarits focus on Petrucci, drummers focus on Portnoy, I'm not a singer but I've always loved singing and for 7 years I took singing lessons, so the voice will always be the first thing I notice in music, and James' voice was the deciding factor in starting to love Dream Theater.
Sure, then I also learnt to appreciate the intricacies of the music, but James was and has always been the selling point for me. I'd consider him my favorite singer after Bruce Dickinson, for the many sides of his voice praised before... I was never annoyed by the "breathy" quiet sections, I actually think they're wonderful and when he sings them live it's just spellbinding and awesome.
His roaring voice back in the I&W and Awake days was godlike, and still his high register vocals today on the DT songs and other projects is gorgeous. He comes across as a humble and intelligent guy, and he was very kind with me when I met him at his solo show in 2005, he's the only one of DT I had the pleasure of meeting face to face.
Really, I'm a big fan of James as can be, I actually admire him and respect him. Same for the other DT guys, all hard working musicians dedicated to their craft who are not turned douche by fame or by wild parties and drugs, it's nice to be in the position to not love just the music, but also appreciate the actual persons that create said music.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmIVGLrPJQQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qP6pmJdQZ0
James :tup
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THE voice of DT.
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THE voice of DT.
For... For-say-. Forsaken!
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LaBrie is honestly one of my favorite vocalists. His voice has such a nice, solid tone and he doesn't throw in a lot of showy technical passages, which makes his music fairly easy for me to sing along to. He's also one of the best "singing actors" in prog and metal today, and I absolutely love his performances in The Astonishing, The Source, and The Human/Theater Equation. His lyrics are usually pretty solid, and his vocal melodies are usually super comfortable to sing (at least for me) and well-constructed.
And I've never met him in person, but he also seems like a super chill and funny dude from interviews and such.
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One of my favorite rock/metal singers ever, when looking at just the studio work. He is always great in the studio.
He has always been a mixed bag live, so I cannot say he is one of my favorites in that regard, but since the studio work is what I listen to 99% of the time, I almost always hear the good James! :lol :biggrin:
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This man put godly vocal performance in his prime. He's been always amazing on the studio.
Which I seek in rock/metal music (because I mostly listen rock and metal) is the uniqueness of the voice. Love it or hate it, James' voice is unique among metal/rock singers.
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This man put godly vocal performance in his prime. He's been always amazing on the studio.
Which I seek in rock/metal music (because I mostly listen rock and metal) is the uniqueness of the voice. Love it or hate it, James' voice is unique among metal/rock singers.
Agreed.
He's had some great live moments as well.
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The pirate is the GOAT of all time.
Loved the subtle changes in his voice on TA to account for the different characters.
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I'm one of the highly critical fans. He had an amazing voice back in the day but there are lots of subpar LaBrie performances online from the past 10 years or so. That being said, I saw them for the first time a couple weeks ago and enjoyed every minute of it. I wasn't a huge fan of LaBrie's voice but he seemed to nail all the notes and I'm really happy I finally got to hear him (and the rest of the band) in person. I'll definitely see DT again!
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I think he's one of the greatest singers of our time, nobody could replace him in DT. One of the reasons they are tied for first place in my all-time favorite bands.. Seeing him perform The Astonishing live in Seattle was probably the best vocal performance I've ever heard. The whole band was on par with that too.
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I was harsh on James during the DT12 tour but that's partially because the band insisted on revisiting material the man just can't sing or make sound good at his age. But the guy was and still is a monstrous vocalist and one of the very few musicians I'll waste time just watching on YouTube because there are so many great performances out there. I cannot say enough good things about his work across many of Dream Theater's albums, especially I&W and - mostly - Awake.
I admit to being an overly critical fan sometimes but he still kills it live, usually, and I think it'd be in DT's best interest to avoid much heavy metal from now on and really let James's softer side shine because that's what he's best at. Follow the Beneath The Surface approach, or Along For The Ride, or Breaking All Illusions even. I think it'll be best for him *and* the band to play to his strengths. A vocalist at his best can elevate the whole band; a vocalist straining or at his worst can bring down the whole band, imo.
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One of my favorite studio singers and one of the few musicians I would actually like to hang out with.
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I think one sign of just how great he is is that everyone has a different opinion on what he does best, as well as which tours he sounded great on and which he didn't.
I think I've read every possible combination there could be. Someone who thought he was awesome on the Along for the Ride tour and bad on the Astonishing tour. Someone who thought the exact opposite. People who thought he was great on every single tour <insert tour here>, all the way up to the last tour. People who thought he was only good before the food poisoning. People thought he was bad for a while after that then good again. Etc etc etc.
Then you have those who think he can only do the more metal songs these days. People who think that's exactly what he shouldn't do. People who think the softer stuff is the best, or the high stuff is still the best, just not as high as he used to go.
With all that - I guess he should just do what he and the band wants. I'd prefer to continue to get all of the different facets of his voice. Soft, heavy, clear, high, etc. If he even wants to record something he knows he won't be able to do reliably live - fine by me; just modify it for the shows.
And live material - as long as they don't overload him with old stuff, I think all that material should still be in consideration.
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I think he's one of the greatest singers of our time, nobody could replace him in DT. One of the reasons they are tied for first place in my all-time favorite bands.. Seeing him perform The Astonishing live in Seattle was probably the best vocal performance I've ever heard. The whole band was on par with that too.
Also, this. :)
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He's the reason I got into DT, his performance on I&W kicked my ass so hard I'll never fully recover from it. He's absolutely unique and incredible in the studio to this day. He belts out something amazing on every single album (think "Mothers for their children" section of Illumination Theory, or "My brother, Gabriel" on The Gift of Music). His singing constantly gives me goosebumps and moves me emotionally. Can't wait to hear what he'll have to offer on the next album.
Live, however, is a different story these days. It really makes me question sometimes whether or not his performance can even be deemed acceptable.
That said, I would never want him replaced. Appreciatin' the man massively! :metal
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He's the reason I got into DT, his performance on I&W kicked my ass so hard I'll never fully recover from it. He's absolutely unique and incredible in the studio to this day. He belts out something amazing on every single album (think "Mothers for their children" section of Illumination Theory, or "My brother, Gabriel" on The Gift of Music). His singing constantly gives me goosebumps and moves me emotionally.
I agree!
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He's the reason I got into DT, his performance on I&W kicked my ass so hard I'll never fully recover from it. He's absolutely unique and incredible in the studio to this day. He belts out something amazing on every single album (think "Mothers for their children" section of Illumination Theory, or "My brother, Gabriel" on The Gift of Music). His singing constantly gives me goosebumps and moves me emotionally.
I agree!
Thirded. And I mostly care for the studio releases now (I haven't seen them in concert since the ToT tour in January 2004), so that's good for me.
B.Lee
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*appreciates*
As Kattelox said, a good vocalist can elevate the whole band. I'd even go so far as to say the lead singer *is* the band, in that a change of singer results in a vastly different sound for the band. It's far more noticeable a change than when an instrumentalist is replaced.
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Never understood the hate. Maybe he's too breathy when he sings. Maybe his enunciation is poor when singing high notes. Doesn't matter cause haters gonna hate. JP's guitar playing is what got my attention first, but JLB was a close 2nd. Iconic, high pitch metal vocals. Gotta love it! :tup
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OK, first I'm gonna say that I really like James Labrie's voice & attitude. He seems to be a very positive person. On the live albums that I own, he sometimes sounds a little weird. On the studio albums I think he sounds PERFECT and what I mean by that is that he sounds like a voice sent from Heaven (I don't find other words right now :).
I've also started to discover is solo/guest albums as well: Mullmuzzler 1 & 2, Tim Donahue's Madmen and Sinners album and Elements Of Persuasion. All four of them featuring...................................Mike Mangini!!!
I almost consider those four albums as if they were part of Dream Theater discography.......................and the features Mike Mangini!
So I really like James Labrie as a singer of Dream Theater.
Tx
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a little off topic, but I was listening to Crucify recently off of EoP... I always get confused when the solos start... Yes I know the first solo is • Marco Sfogli
, but is the 2nd solo a keyboard?
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I would assume that's a solo by the writer of the album - Matt Guillory, who is a keyboard player.
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Don't want to derail the thread as I am a big fan of JLB, his utterly unique voice is part of what gives DT their distinctive sound. I've been put off many progmetal/powermetal bands due to the singers being too annoying to listen to. JLB classy voice is part of what got me into DT (after JP of course!)
My question is for people who criticise his live performances. Do you actually go to see the band live or is this based upon poor quality mobile phone recordings on youtube? I do understand that some of them do not show him in a good light but I can only speak for myself in that he's never let me down live in person. Considering his age, I have recently seen him sing stuff from Awake on the AFTR tour to absolute perfection and pretty much the same on the recent I&W tour. He did avoid a few higher notes earlier on in the show during the likes of Another Day and Take The Time but by the end of the album he absolutely went for everything in Metropolis, Under A Glass Moon, Learning to Live and A Change of Seasons at album quality. Maybe those shows would not sound great on youtube but, in person, he has been incredible on recent tours singing those 20+year old songs.
Bruce Dickinson can't hit the high notes in most of the old Maiden stuff anymore and strains all over the place in the likes of Run To The Hills but does not attract anything like the same criticism. I also love Bruce by the way, this is not a dig at him, I saw Maiden this year and was blown away by how good they still are.
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Bruce is essentially the best heavy metal frontman so he doesn't even let you notice his occasional difficulties since he's so awesome at whatever he does on stage ;D James is not in the same league of course but I wouldn't even want him running around the stage like a madman, the music does not call for it. Actually the last show I've seen by them, the Images and Words & Beyond show of course, was possibily his best performance as a frontman, without exagerating or doing weird stuff he really, really manned the stage very well. :coolio
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Bruce Dickinson can't hit the high notes in most of the old Maiden stuff anymore and strains all over the place in the likes of Run To The Hills but does not attract anything like the same criticism. I also love Bruce by the way, this is not a dig at him, I saw Maiden this year and was blown away by how good they still are.
Well, if you compare the two under similar circumstances (raw Wacken recording, audio not tempered with), Bruce comes out way better in every aspect, to put it mildly. Even when he's straining, his tone is more pleasant, and he enunciates.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qy4s3F9P6I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2wcY4bVYjw
On a side note, how fucking amazing is Russell Allen live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bd3R30AM1E
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Don't want to derail the thread as I am a big fan of JLB, his utterly unique voice is part of what gives DT their distinctive sound. I've been put off many progmetal/powermetal bands due to the singers being too annoying to listen to. JLB classy voice is part of what got me into DT (after JP of course!)
My question is for people who criticise his live performances. Do you actually go to see the band live or is this based upon poor quality mobile phone recordings on youtube? I do understand that some of them do not show him in a good light but I can only speak for myself in that he's never let me down live in person. Considering his age, I have recently seen him sing stuff from Awake on the AFTR tour to absolute perfection and pretty much the same on the recent I&W tour. He did avoid a few higher notes earlier on in the show during the likes of Another Day and Take The Time but by the end of the album he absolutely went for everything in Metropolis, Under A Glass Moon, Learning to Live and A Change of Seasons at album quality. Maybe those shows would not sound great on youtube but, in person, he has been incredible on recent tours singing those 20+year old songs.
I agree with all of this. There are many bands to whom I never gave a second listen because of their singers, but whom I might have loved with better singers. I also feel like James's live performances have been stronger on the post-MP tours (not that I think MP leaving had any causal effect on James's live performances, but it's just an easy way to mark time). He did seem to struggle a bit on some of the older material on the current tour, but that's not too surprising. On the other hand, it seemed to me like he went for - and hit - the infamous F# on Learning to Live.
To me, his studio performances count WAY more than live stuff, and in that regard, JLB is one of my 3 or 4 favorite singers of all time.
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On the other hand, it seemed to me like he went for - and hit - the infamous F# on Learning to Live.
Keyword: Seemed like! He can't hit an F# in full voice anymore, he creates an illusion of it by screaming into his falsetto. And it actually sounds pretty great! I don't think anyone leaves disappointed :)
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I've always enjoyed his singing. I've tried to get so many people into DT and they all tell me the same thing: I like the music but I hate the singer. No matter how I try to explain it to them, they all hate poor James. To me, his voice is perfect for DT because it rises above all this hard metal chaos - they need a voice that stands out against that hard music, and he does fine every time. Has his voiced aged? Well, haven't we all aged in many ways?
But whatever, I like him and he was awesome in Chicago earlier this month. I really wish I could have talked to him at the meet and greet but it all went so fast I never got a chance to tell him just how much I appreciate him.
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Bruce Dickinson can't hit the high notes in most of the old Maiden stuff anymore and strains all over the place in the likes of Run To The Hills but does not attract anything like the same criticism. I also love Bruce by the way, this is not a dig at him, I saw Maiden this year and was blown away by how good they still are.
Well, if you compare the two under similar circumstances (raw Wacken recording, audio not tempered with), Bruce comes out way better in every aspect, to put it mildly. Even when he's straining, his tone is more pleasant, and he enunciates.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qy4s3F9P6I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2wcY4bVYjw
On a side note, how fucking amazing is Russell Allen live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bd3R30AM1E
To be fair, that has to be one of the worst LaBrie performances on YouTube. He was seriously off in the beginning but I remember him sounding better later on. But I agree with the point you made about his overall live tone which I think is where most of the criticism is coming from. I don't think it's all that great but I realize the majority of fans like it or love it. No one in their right mind is going to say LaBrie is a bad singer because he can't hit crazy high notes like he used to back in the day.
I've always enjoyed his singing. I've tried to get so many people into DT and they all tell me the same thing: I like the music but I hate the singer. No matter how I try to explain it to them, they all hate poor James. To me, his voice is perfect for DT because it rises above all this hard metal chaos - they need a voice that stands out against that hard music, and he does fine every time. Has his voiced aged? Well, haven't we all aged in many ways?
But whatever, I like him and he was awesome in Chicago earlier this month. I really wish I could have talked to him at the meet and greet but it all went so fast I never got a chance to tell him just how much I appreciate him.
LoL if they don't like his studio work then there's no hope for them :D No matter how great a singer is if you don't like it you don't like it. Periphery is a band I would probably enjoy a lot if it weren't for the singer. I realize the dude is a talented vocalist but I simply don't care for that vocal style.
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James' warm soft voice is excellent. Arjen Lucassen utilized it perfectly on The Human Equation and The Source, especially The Source. You can hear the desperation in his tone, great for his character.
I actually like his vocals In his other projects outside of Dream Theater more than in Dream Theater. Solo, Ayreon, Roswell Six - Terra Incognita.
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James' warm soft voice is excellent. Arjen Lucassen utilized it perfectly on The Human Equation and The Source, especially The Source. You can hear the desperation in his tone, great for his character.
I actually like his vocals In his other projects outside of Dream Theater more than in Dream Theater. Solo, Ayreon, Roswell Six - Terra Incognita.
That's cool. I didn't know there was an Ayreon release this year. How much does LaBrie sing on it?
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3DCkAJS334
I'll just put it here...
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I love James' voice. I also appreciate his willingness to tone things down a bit now that he and the band are a bit older. At the show I attended a few days ago, he held back and altered the vocal melodies for the really tough bits.
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I love his voice and he is a fun guy,he's one of the reasons i became a DT fan>And he's a major part of their succes.
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I just watched an interview with him on youtube so I wanted to share this one. It's really interesting!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nta4ZknXESI
Tx
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I just watched that last night. :). Loved that he said they all more or less want to continue for at least ten more years.
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I'm resurrecting this because reasons.
It's strange how people who go nuts over JLB's F# in Learning to Live tend to gloss over the fact that he (a 19-years-older "he", let's not forget) goes even higher on Build Me Up, Break Me Down ("BUILD....ME....UP..."). More should be made of that than currently is.
*appreciates*
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I'm resurrecting this because reasons.
It's strange how people who go nuts over JLB's F# in Learning to Live tend to gloss over the fact that he (a 19-years-older "he", let's not forget) goes even higher on Build Me Up, Break Me Down ("BUILD....ME....UP..."). More should be made of that than currently is.
*appreciates*
Not taking anything away from that but it seems to be a less controlled, more brutal, screaming, in your face type of style. Still amazing.
With that said, I'm an old school fan of DT but I would choose BMUBMD 90% of the time if I had to choose which one I would want to listen to. :-X
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I'm resurrecting this because reasons.
It's strange how people who go nuts over JLB's F# in Learning to Live tend to gloss over the fact that he (a 19-years-older "he", let's not forget) goes even higher on Build Me Up, Break Me Down ("BUILD....ME....UP..."). More should be made of that than currently is.
*appreciates*
Which part of Build Me Up Break Me Down is higher than the F# in Learning To Live?
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I'm resurrecting this because reasons.
It's strange how people who go nuts over JLB's F# in Learning to Live tend to gloss over the fact that he (a 19-years-older "he", let's not forget) goes even higher on Build Me Up, Break Me Down ("BUILD....ME....UP..."). More should be made of that than currently is.
*appreciates*
Not taking anything away from that but it seems to be a less controlled, more brutal, screaming, in your face type of style. Still amazing.
This. Besides, a big part of the F#5's charm is the epic buildup into it and how it in turn leads into JP's solo.
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I'm resurrecting this because reasons.
It's strange how people who go nuts over JLB's F# in Learning to Live tend to gloss over the fact that he (a 19-years-older "he", let's not forget) goes even higher on Build Me Up, Break Me Down ("BUILD....ME....UP..."). More should be made of that than currently is.
*appreciates*
Which part of Build Me Up Break Me Down is higher than the F# in Learning To Live?
I'm guessing RoeDent's referring to the screaming JL does that's buried in the mix underneath him singing Build...Me...Up....Break...Me...Down. It's worth noting that you can also hear this in the live version on L@LP, but of course it's backing tapes, not him singing it live, not just because he's singing the words at the same time, but also because there's no way he could pull it off without shredding his vocal cords.
Which brings up an interesting point to consider: it's one thing to be able to pull something off in the studio, in a controlled environment where one can perform repeated takes numerous times over a long period of time and have the advantage of studio doctoring, as opposed to pull it off live (on tour, in one take, in front of an audience). So while I'm not trying to take anything away from JL's vocal abilities (which, on his worst day, blow away my pathetic attempts to sing), praising what he can do within the studio is not the same thing as what he can do live. I mean, I'd wager he could probably pull off the F# in a re-recording of LtL in the studio for the reasons I mentioned above, but he certainly was unable to do it on this latest tour. Yes, the setlist last year was taxing on him, but keep in mind that even on previous tours where LtL was played inconsistently (with rotating setlists), often he struggled with it.
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It's not hard to sing one note, he's never struggled with it. Singing any section of Metropolis is a lot more demanding
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Yes, the setlist last year was taxing on him, but keep in mind that even on previous tours where LtL was played inconsistently (with rotating setlists), often he struggled with it.
...and often, he nailed it.
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Love JLB. Really appreciate his role in DT. While he may not be able to do what he once was, he's still an awesome singer in my book. Really can't wait to see his solo band this fall, his solo music really makes me appreciate him more since he gets to do something a little different and it's still awesome.
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JLB is amazing. I love him. He is a true frontman, a leader (in his solo work).
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I’m a big fan of James LaBrie from the start. But his effort on The Astonishing is just astonishing. One of the great rock vocal efforts of recent times. James, through voice alone, gives life and credibility to a big cast of very different characters. I can’t begin to imagine how hard that was to accomplish.
I tips my hat to JLB and remind his fellow band members how lucky they are to have him. Like all of them, I think he’s getting better with age.
Cheers
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The smile of dawn AND our dear James arrived early May!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAMES!!! :metal
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But his effort on The Astonishing is just astonishing. One of the great rock vocal efforts of recent times. James, through voice alone, gives life and credibility to a big cast of very different characters. I can’t begin to imagine how hard that was to accomplish.
While I'm nat a big fan of The Astonishing, I think James' performance on the album was excellent. To me, he was the shining member of the group on TA.
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To be honest, James is the main reason why I give a spin to TA. He is the MVP of the album for me.
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To be honest, James is the main reason why I give a spin to TA. He is the MVP of the album for me.
Without question. He is amazing.
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But his effort on The Astonishing is just astonishing. One of the great rock vocal efforts of recent times. James, through voice alone, gives life and credibility to a big cast of very different characters. I can’t begin to imagine how hard that was to accomplish.
While I'm nat a big fan of The Astonishing, I think James' performance on the album was excellent. To me, he was the shining member of the group on TA.
YES. :tup
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+1 to all saying that James is the MVP of The Astonishing. But I love the album too so he's not the "only" reason I listen to it. :)
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I nitpick a lot of James's live appearances but boy did he do The Astonishing justice live, from the soft to the heavy parts, and even the really Train of Thought-ish fast part in Act 2. Had me in my seat all like :metardica:
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(https://s22.postimg.cc/gmh1x9t35/labrie0.jpg)
(https://s22.postimg.cc/5o77oddox/JLB_Christmas.jpg)
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I appreciate his studio work.
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(https://s22.postimg.cc/gmh1x9t35/labrie0.jpg)
(https://s22.postimg.cc/5o77oddox/JLB_Christmas.jpg)
:rollin
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And I've never met him in person, but he also seems like a super chill and funny dude from interviews and such.
I've met him twice at Meet and Greets, and his is very talkative and antimated, the most personable one in the band...next to Mangini of course!!! :rollin
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He's the only DT member I ever met (when he toured solo) and I can confirm his kindess and chillness!
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I'm gonna go on record about those LaBrie burgers and say I just don't know. Sometimes less is more James.
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I love JLB, he's one of the main reasons for my appreciation for the band. He is great on albums, has an original voice and fits DT the way no other singer would. Also, he was great live for many years.
Yes, was.
Let's be objective guys. He's been hit or miss for at least 15 years on tours. Live at Budokan or SC/BC&SL tours are proofs (to name a few). He then came back on ADTOE tour and was pretty ok for a couple of years. But last year, sorry, he was far from acceptable. Changing vocal lines on I&W songs didn't help at all. He struggled with TGOM, which is from their latest release. And yes, I've seen them on every tour since 2007, so my opinion is not based on YT videos.
Just to clarify. I'm not trying to bash him or be a hater. As I mentioned, I love his vocals. I just don't understand how can some people be ignorant and say he's spot on.
This is a great insight on JLB by a professional vocal coach talking about what's the reason of JLB's decline and how he may have destroyed his voice during the years: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3fGgEciPcI
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I think JLB does a really great job of representing the band. My close friends and family have heard a lot of DT over the years, since they're around me. They are not any kind of super-fan... but they like rock music. To all of them, it's James LaBrie's band. They aren't necessarily listening to the bass, or the drums, or any one instrument when they listen to music, and they aren't going to memorize the names of all the people in any band. But they recognize DT by JLB, and they recognize a DT song once he starts singing. They aren't ever going to listen to Shmedley Wilcox or Intstramedley... but they'll gladly listen to the new DT songs when they come out, and judge it largely by JLBs look, sound, and performance. I think he is up to the task.
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I think JLB does a really great job of representing the band. My close friends and family have heard a lot of DT over the years, since they're around me. They are not any kind of super-fan... but they like rock music. To all of them, it's James LaBrie's band. They aren't necessarily listening to the bass, or the drums, or any one instrument when they listen to music, and they aren't going to memorize the names of all the people in any band. But they recognize DT by JLB, and they recognize a DT song once he starts singing. They aren't ever going to listen to Shmedley Wilcox or Intstramedley... but they'll gladly listen to the new DT songs when they come out, and judge it largely by JLBs look, sound, and performance. I think he is up to the task.
Even my dad, who likes one song or another but is not huge into DT, recognizes James' voice instantly and knows it's DT.
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He’s an awesome vocalist who can do the soft-sung ballads as well as he belts out the epics, and is pretty good with the gravely rock voice as well. He is the voice of DT, through and through. The idea of replacing him after Six Degrees (as told in the Lifting Shadows book) is ridiculous. Also, his solo stuff may be my favorite “side project” stuff from these guys.
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I think JLB does a really great job of representing the band. My close friends and family have heard a lot of DT over the years, since they're around me. They are not any kind of super-fan... but they like rock music. To all of them, it's James LaBrie's band. They aren't necessarily listening to the bass, or the drums, or any one instrument when they listen to music, and they aren't going to memorize the names of all the people in any band. But they recognize DT by JLB, and they recognize a DT song once he starts singing. They aren't ever going to listen to Shmedley Wilcox or Intstramedley... but they'll gladly listen to the new DT songs when they come out, and judge it largely by JLBs look, sound, and performance. I think he is up to the task.
Excellent point.
James is DT's voice, he's been on every album but one. If he departs for Mars to bring some vocal awesomeness there and DT need a new singer, no one else would sound "right". You could get the best prog metal singer around, an unknown phenomeon, Freddie Mercury reincarnated.... it just wouldn't sound like DT anymore.
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James is DT's voice, he's been on every album but one. If he departs for Mars to bring some vocal awesomeness there and DT need a new singer, no one else would sound "right". You could get the best prog metal singer around, an unknown phenomeon, Freddie Mercury reincarnated.... it just wouldn't sound like DT anymore.
That'll just be your controversial opinion, while the rest of us get used to the new, Labrie-less DT and convince ourselves it's better
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James not being a part of DT anymore would be just as bad as Bruce Dickinson not being in Maiden, Rob Halford not being in Priest or Ozzy Osbourne not begin in Sabbath. Sure, they probably would go on to have a more than adequate career, but it wouldn't be the same.
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Out of the three examples, I think Halford not being in Priest is the most fitting one. They got a phenomenal replacement, someone who could sing his ass off on each and every song of the back catalogue, with the same vocal style, and still he wasn't accepted in full. Why? because after all those decades, only Rob Halford was right and fitting for Priest. So is James for DT. Then of course I won't deny that some people might be happy to hear someone else handle DT's vocals.
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The same thing was said about Mike Portnoy, just sayin...
Not that I want them to replace James, he’s amazing, but I don’t buy the “it wouldn’t sound like DT anymore” thing. Bands change members all the time, some more than others, but it happens anyway, and I believe the only irreplaceable DT member is JP. If James ever left and they get a great replacement, it would sound different, yes, but it would still be and sound like DT.
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People being able to identify a band from the guitarist or the drummer are a big minority. For most people the voice is the one and only defining trait of a band.
Everyone on this forum can probably recognize JP's style, and I agree that he's absolutely the most important member when it comes to the songwriting, but let's remember that even DT fans fell for the trick when back in 2005 Mike Portnoy passed off James' solo songs as leaks off Octavarium, just because James was singing.
I bet there are more people who would actually buy into James' solo songs being DT songs, than an actual DT song without James, in an hypothetical scenario where James is gone, as DT.
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I think JLB does a really great job of representing the band. My close friends and family have heard a lot of DT over the years, since they're around me. They are not any kind of super-fan... but they like rock music. To all of them, it's James LaBrie's band. They aren't necessarily listening to the bass, or the drums, or any one instrument when they listen to music, and they aren't going to memorize the names of all the people in any band. But they recognize DT by JLB, and they recognize a DT song once he starts singing. They aren't ever going to listen to Shmedley Wilcox or Intstramedley... but they'll gladly listen to the new DT songs when they come out, and judge it largely by JLBs look, sound, and performance. I think he is up to the task.
Excellent point.
James is DT's voice, he's been on every album but one. If he departs for Mars to bring some vocal awesomeness there and DT need a new singer, no one else would sound "right". You could get the best prog metal singer around, an unknown phenomeon, Freddie Mercury reincarnated.... it just wouldn't sound like DT anymore.
Replacing a singer late in your career is a near impossible thing to do. Kamelot and Nightwish have managed to more-or-less pull it off. Their music still has the basic DNA it always had. I honestly don't know how they've gotten away with it. Maybe the prog metal (symphonic metal) genre has fans that are more instrument centric. I'm trying to imagine a band like The Killers without Brandon Flowers. I think it would be instantly over for them.
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When David Lee Roth left Van Halen and put out his first solo record, I remember people asking "is this Van Halen?" solely on the fact that they heard Roth's voice.
I remember when James LaBrie's solo record Impermanent Resonance came out in 2013, some people were thinking it was the new DT record (DT's self titled album was released later that same year).
In the case of both vocalists, people who pay attention to the music know that it wasn't Van Halen or Dream Theater. However, a voice attaches an individual to a band.
LaBrie is DT's voice. Unless he leaves DT on his own initiative, I don't think DT will pursue another vocalist.
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I love JLB and agree with most here that he is the voice of DT, but I think like some other examples, when the core of the band stays put (aka the people who write the music, JP specifically and JR as well) then the band can still be good if the singer changes. Granted, it's much harder for the general fan base who identifies with the singer, but the music can still be really good after replacing a long time singer if JP kept doing what he's been doing. It would certainly be interesting to see DT make music with a different singer, but it's not something I really want. I love JLB and his voice, his live show suffers a bit but for the most part, I've always really thought he did well live for the shows I've seen. I wouldn't want DT to separate with JLB unless JLB himself wanted to step down on his own.
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The same thing was said about Mike Portnoy, just sayin...
That's true. That particular experience taught me to never say never. I wouldn't be able to swear I'll never listened to some band again if a certain member left. However, James leaving the group or being replaced would hit me harder than JM, JR or MM. As flawed as his voice is nowadays during the live performances.