Author Topic: DT album ranking  (Read 208802 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline jammindude

  • Posts: 15237
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1190 on: January 15, 2017, 10:21:33 PM »
I had to think about this one.   Like most people, my list changes sometimes depending on my mood.  But I don't imagine my #1 ever changing.

1. OCTAVARIUM  (I have been a fan since 1992, and I consider 8V to be the single best representation of what Dream Theater is on a single album.  Other than the lyrics for The Answer Lies Within being a bit, "kitchy", it's a PERFECT DT album.

2. Scenes From a Memory (Nearly 8V's equal, but not quite)

3. Images and Words (it was my first love, I couldn't possibly place it lower)

4. Awake (the last album that I felt like I was the only fan in the world LOL)

5. Train of Thought (MP wanted to do a metal masterpiece that was like Master of Puppets or Number of the Beast....I think they achieved their goal)

6. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence - (The title track and The Glass Prison are masterpieces....the rest is just OK)

7. The Astonishing - (Unlike most people, I think it should have been even bigger.  Too many ideas seem not finished. But the most ballsy thing they've done in a long time)

8. DT 12 - (I give TA the slight edge for being more ambitious, but this is the most cohesive album of the Genie era)

9. A Dramatic Turn of Events (an excellent statement after the loss of MP....but slightly derivative, and playing it a bit too safe)

10. Falling Into Infinity (still a good album, but Lines in the Sand (their weakest mini-epic) brings it down some.  It would have been better as a double album as originally hoped)

11. When Dream and Day Unite (this would be much higher if not for the horrible production)

12. Black Clouds and Silver Linings (Truly boring album.  Two half decent mini epics sandwiched with a lot of meh.  A mild improvement over it's predecessor, but not by much)

13. Systematic Chaos (I never listen to this album any more.  Other than The Dark Eternal Night, I can't think of a single song I care to revisit.  ITPOE is easily their worst and most forgettable epic.  Part 1 is good, part 2 is too hard to stifle laughter to bother with.   If it was a Spinal Tap album, it would at least have some comedy effect....but considering they were serious just brings it down)
"Better the pride that resides in a citizen of the world.
Than the pride that divides when a colorful rag is unfurled." - Neil Peart

The Jammin Dude Show - https://www.youtube.com/user/jammindude

Offline TheCountOfNYC

  • Posts: 5412
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1191 on: February 03, 2017, 11:23:42 AM »
My updated ranking, with my favorite and least favorite song from each album.


01: Scenes From a Memory (The Dance of Eternity/Through Her Eyes)

02: Images and Words (Take the Time/Surrounded)

03: Octavarium (Octavarium/I Walk Beside You)

04: The Astonishing (A New Beginning/The Walking Shadow)

05: A Dramatic Turn of Events (Breaking All Illusions/Build Me Up, Break Me Down)

06: Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence/The Great Debate)

07: Awake (Scarred/Innocence Faded)

08: Train of Thought (Stream of Consciousness/This Dying Soul)

09: Black Clouds & Silver Linings (The Count of Tuscany/A Rite of Passage)

10: Dream Theater (Illumination Theory/The Bigger Picture)

11: When Dream and Day Unite (Afterlife/Status Seeker)

12: Systematic Chaos (Constant Motion/Prophets of War)

13: Falling Into Infinity (Trial of Tears/New Millennium)
People figured out that the white thing that comes out of cows' titties could be drunk, and the relation between sweet desires and women's bellies growing up for 9 months. It can't be THAT hard to figure out how a trumpet works.”

-MirrorMask

Offline BowlCity

  • LET ME INTRODUCE
  • Posts: 6
  • Gender: Male
  • MAH BRUTHA
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1192 on: February 19, 2017, 09:22:16 PM »
Great

1. Six Degrees
2. Scenes
3. BC&SL
4. Self titled
5. Octavarium
6. Awake

Meh
7. Images
8. ADTOE
9. ToT
10. Systematic Chaos

Never again
11. The Ass-tonishing
12. Falling Into Impurity

Never listened to the debut.

Online Podaar

  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 9899
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1193 on: February 20, 2017, 07:05:18 AM »
Uh oh. You'll probably want to repair those titles. Soon.
"Religion poisons everything” — Christopher Hitchens

Offline BowlCity

  • LET ME INTRODUCE
  • Posts: 6
  • Gender: Male
  • MAH BRUTHA
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1194 on: February 24, 2017, 05:14:42 PM »
Nah :P

Offline Scorpion

  • Unreal Heir
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 9908
  • Gender: Male
  • Ragnarök around the Clöck!
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1195 on: February 25, 2017, 11:03:57 AM »
Haven't done a DT ranking in a while.

1. Six Degrees
2. Awake
3. Falling into Infinity
4. Train of Thought
5. Scenes from a Memory
6. A Dramatic Turn of Events
7. Images and Words
8. Black Clouds and Silver Linings
9. Systematic Chaos
10. Octavarium
11. The Astonishing
12. Dream Theater
13. When Dream and Day Unite

Images and Words keeps slipping in my rankings. Not quite sure why that is, but I almost never come back to it these days.
scorpion is my favorite deathcore lobster
Hey, the length is fine :azn: Thanks!

Offline fadetoblackdude7

  • Posts: 2534
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1196 on: February 25, 2017, 03:40:57 PM »
Haven't done a DT ranking in a while.

1. Six Degrees
2. Awake
3. Falling into Infinity
4. Train of Thought
5. Scenes from a Memory
6. A Dramatic Turn of Events
7. Images and Words
8. Black Clouds and Silver Linings
9. Systematic Chaos
10. Octavarium
11. The Astonishing
12. Dream Theater
13. When Dream and Day Unite

Images and Words keeps slipping in my rankings. Not quite sure why that is, but I almost never come back to it these days.

Perhaps your opinion could change if you see the tour this year?

Offline ToT-147

  • Posts: 2223
  • Gender: Male
  • Living out this Utopian Dream
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1197 on: February 25, 2017, 04:17:57 PM »
Haven't done a DT ranking in a while.

1. Six Degrees
2. Awake
3. Falling into Infinity
4. Train of Thought
5. Scenes from a Memory
6. A Dramatic Turn of Events
7. Images and Words
8. Black Clouds and Silver Linings
9. Systematic Chaos
10. Octavarium
11. The Astonishing
12. Dream Theater
13. When Dream and Day Unite

Images and Words keeps slipping in my rankings. Not quite sure why that is, but I almost never come back to it these days.

Perhaps your opinion could change if you see the tour this year?

Except we're ranking the studio versions of the albums in this thread, not the live versions.. ;)
UTÓPICA 'Symphonic Progressive Metal' band - First album's now out
iTunes goo.gl/z5kl9d Amazon goo.gl/bWTwMF
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRKNqEH1rxo (Videoclip from Second album)

Offline metrojam

  • Posts: 144
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1198 on: February 26, 2017, 11:00:58 AM »
1. Scenes from a Memory     
2. Images and Words     
3. Octavarium         
4. Six Degrees       
5. A Dramatic Turn of Events 
6. Awake
7. Black Clouds and Silver Linings
8. Train of Thought
9. When Dream and Day Unite         
10. Falling into Infinity
11. DT 12
12. Systematic Chaos
13. The Astonishing

Offline ToT-147

  • Posts: 2223
  • Gender: Male
  • Living out this Utopian Dream
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1199 on: February 26, 2017, 02:49:53 PM »

 1- Train of Thought  :tup :tup :tup :tup :tup  :heart

 2- Black Clouds & Silver Linings  :tup :tup :tup :tup :tup

 3- Octavarium  :tup :tup :tup :tup :tup

 4- Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence  :tup :tup :tup :tup

 5- Systematic Chaos  :tup :tup :tup :tup

 6- The Astonishing  :tup :tup :tup :tup

 7- Dream Theater  :tup :tup :tup :tup

 8- Metropolis pt 2: Scenes from a Memory  :tup :tup :tup :tup

 9- A Dramatic Turn of Events  :tup :tup :tup

 10- Awake  :tup :tup :tup

 11- Images and Words  :tup :tup :tup

 12- When Dream and Day Unite  :tup :tup

 13- Falling into Infinity  :tup
UTÓPICA 'Symphonic Progressive Metal' band - First album's now out
iTunes goo.gl/z5kl9d Amazon goo.gl/bWTwMF
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRKNqEH1rxo (Videoclip from Second album)

Offline Kotowboy

  • Yes THAT Kotowboy.
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 28561
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1200 on: February 26, 2017, 04:38:03 PM »
It's about that time isn't it...


Great Albums

1. Octavarium
2. Scenes From A Memory
3. Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence
4. Images & Words

Good Albums

1. The Astonishing
2. A Dramatic Turn Of Events
3. Train of Thought
4. Falling Into Infinity

Ok Albums

1. Black Clouds & Silver Linings
2. Dream Theater
3. Systematic Chaos
4. Awake
5. When Dream And Day Unite

Online MarkFitDT

  • Posts: 326
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1201 on: February 28, 2017, 11:17:35 AM »
for me :-

1) Images and Words
2) Scenes from a Memory
3) Dream Theater
4) Six Degrees
5) The Astonishing
6) Octavarium
7) A Dramatic Turn of Events
8) Train of Thought
9) Falling Into Infinity
10 Awake
11) When Dream and Day Unite
12) Systematic Chaos
13) Black Clouds

Extremely difficult - the top 2 was easy as was the bottom 3 but there really is a hairs breath between the rest and can change day by day. Even the bottom 3 have some brilliant songs and better than what most bands produce but just below the usual DT level (imho of course)

Offline Renzo

  • Daryus
  • Posts: 221
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1202 on: February 28, 2017, 11:42:41 AM »
I'll go with:

1. Images and Words
2. Metropolis Part II
3. Black Clouds and Silver Linings
4. Octavarium
5. Awake
6. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
7. Train of Thought
8. A Dramatic Turn of Events
9. Dream Theater
10. The Astonishing
11. When Dream and Day Unite
12. Systematic Chaos
13. Falling into Infinity

Offline CB

  • Posts: 147
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1203 on: February 28, 2017, 03:17:44 PM »
Wow, 35 pages. I tried to post my ranking but I just can't. I'm totally baffled that you can rank those albums. My ranking would look different almost every day, my favourite songs are spread all over the albums and change as well. The only thing I'm quite sure of is that my 2 favourite albums now and for quite some time are SFAM and ADTOE.

Offline TheAtliator

  • Sixdegrematichaos onachristmasmorning
  • Posts: 1587
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1204 on: February 28, 2017, 04:21:44 PM »
So if The Astonishing has the absolute best moments of Dream Theater's entire career, and also has the absolute worst moments of their career (in fact the only bad moments on any Dream Theater album) does that make it rank at the top or at the bottom? ...Or in the middle?  :lol

Offline Phoenix87x

  • From the ashes
  • Posts: 8386
  • The Phoenix shall rise
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1205 on: February 28, 2017, 05:42:08 PM »
1. I & W
2. Train of thought
3. Scenes from a memory
4. Awake
5. FII
6. WDADU
7. Self Titled
8. Dramatic turn of events
9. Six degrees
10. TA - I kind of wish it was just one cd instead of two, but hey, its still solid

11. Octavarium


12. SC



13.Black clouds

Offline Dream Team

  • Posts: 5630
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1206 on: March 02, 2017, 10:53:35 AM »
As a twist, I'll add what IMO is the most overrated/underrated of each album.

1. TA (overrated: Three Days, underrated: My Last Farewell)
2. I&W (Take The Time; Under a Glass Moon)
3. SDoIT (The Glass Prison; The Great Debate)
4. SFAM (Finally Free; One Last Time)
5. ADTOE  - would rate higher with better production (Bridges in the Sky; This is the Life)
6. Awake - (Space-Dye Vest; Lifting Shadows off a Dream)
7. WDaDU - (A Fortune in Lies; Only a Matter of Time)
8. DT12 (The Enemy Inside; Surrender to Reason)
9. ToT (Honor Thy Father; no real underrated tracks)
10. BCaSL (A Nightmare to Remember; Wither)
11. OV (Panic Attack; I Walk Beside You)
12. SC (most of them; Repentence)
13. FII (most of them; Take Away My Pain)

Offline Nachtmerrie

  • Posts: 519
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1207 on: March 03, 2017, 02:40:12 AM »
1. SFAM
2. SDOIT
3. TOT
4. I&W
5. ADTOE
6. Awake
7. SC
8. FII
9. Octavarium
10. DT
11. BCASL
12. TA.
13. WDADU
« Last Edit: March 05, 2017, 10:01:16 AM by Nachtmerrie »

Offline SeRoX

  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2425
  • Gender: Male
  • The VoiceMaster
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1208 on: March 03, 2017, 05:19:14 AM »
1-Awake
2-I&W
3-SFAM
4-SDOIT
5-WDADU
6- FII
7-Octavarium
8-DT12
9-ToT
10- SC
11- ADTOE
12- BC&SL
13- TA
Quote from: Plasmastrike
SeRoX is right!
Quote from: Nihil-Morari
SeRoX is DTF's JLB!
As usual, SeRoX is correct.

Offline Clancy Wiggum

  • Posts: 28
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1209 on: April 22, 2017, 10:38:20 AM »
Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
Falling into Infinity
Images and Words
Black Clouds & Silver Linings
The Astonishing
Scenes from a Memory
Octavarium
Dream Theater
A Dramatic Turn of Events
Train of Thought
Awake
Systematic Chaos
When Dream and Day Unite

Offline JediKnight1969

  • Andrés
  • Posts: 1308
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1210 on: April 26, 2017, 10:29:09 AM »
1. Scenes from a Memory
2. Images and Words
3. Awake
4. A Dramatic Turn of events
5. Falling into Infinity
6. Train of Thought
7. Systematic Chaos
8. Six Degrees of inner turbulence
9. Octavarium
10. Black Clouds & silver linings
11. The Astonishing
12. Dream Theater
13. When Dream and Day Unite
A daily dose of eMpTyV will flush your mind right down the drain...

Offline PixelDream

  • Posts: 2891
  • Gender: Male
  • Maestro
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1211 on: April 28, 2017, 12:33:59 PM »
Awake
Images & Words
Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
Scenes from a Memory
Octavarium
Falling Into Infinity
Systematic Chaos
Black Clouds & Silver Linings
A Dramatic Turn of Events
Dream Theater
The Astonishing
When Dream & Day Unite
Not 'Down To F***', but 'Dream Theater Forums' .

Offline clitharj

  • Posts: 1
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1212 on: May 01, 2017, 11:18:56 AM »
Controversial but........

Scenes
Images
ADTOE (pushing 2nd place)
The astonishing
Six degrees
BCASL
DT12
SC
Octavarium (root and octave apart)
FII (although hells kitchen is my favorite DT track)
TOT
Awake (vastly overrated by most on this forum)
WDADU

Offline wrighty

  • Posts: 38
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1213 on: May 02, 2017, 03:29:04 PM »
Newbie's ranking:

1. SFAM
2. SDOIT (particularly title track/2nd disc)
3. The Astonishing
4. Octavarium
5. A Dramatic Turn of Events
6. Black Clouds
7. Images & Words
8. Train of Thought
9. Awake
10. Falling into infinity
11. Systematic Chaos
12. Dream Theater
13. When Dream and Day unite

And if 'A Change of Seasons' were to count I'd put it at 7.5

Offline Peter Mc

  • Posts: 1163
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1214 on: May 05, 2017, 06:31:40 AM »
Don't hold me to this but here goes

Images & Words
Metropolis Pt 2: Scenes From A Memory  (top 2 are set in stone)
Awake
When Dream And Day Unite
Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence
Falling Into Infinity
The Astonishing
Dream Theater
A Dramatic Turn Of Events
Systematic Chaos
Train Of Thought
Black Clouds & Silver Linings
Octavarium

Offline BeardedGentlemanHistorian

  • Posts: 65
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1215 on: May 05, 2017, 09:05:36 AM »
1) SFAM
2) TOT
3) 8VM
4) IAW
5) SDOIT
6) BC&SL
7) DT12
8) Awake
9) ADTOE
10) SC
11) TA
12) FII
13) WD&DU

Ranking the albums was a tough thing to do and to be perfectly honest if I tried again next week the list would probably be different. The only ones that have never changed for me are my top two and putting WD&DU at the bottom.

Online lucasembarbosa

  • Posts: 531
  • Gender: Male
  • Pale Rider of No Tomorrow
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1216 on: May 05, 2017, 01:55:24 PM »
In no particular order:

Hors concours/godlike:
ACOS

Top-tier:
IAW
FII
Awake
SFAM

Awesome:
SDOIT
8V
ADTOE
TA

Good:
DT12
BC&SL
TOT

Meh:
SC
WDADU

Offline Jarlaxle

  • Posts: 1592
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1217 on: May 07, 2017, 01:22:32 AM »
1 - SDOIT
2 - 8VM
3 - SFAM
4 - ADTOE
5 - TOT
6 - I&W
7 - FII

Dramatic Dropoff

8 - SC
9 - BCSL
10 - DT12

Another Significant Dropoff

11 - WDADU
12 - Awake
13 - ACOS

Never been able to finish.

14 - TA

Those first 7 albums are all incredible, 8-10 are pretty good but have a few snooze moments, but also the odd amazing section, 11-13 are largely snooze fests with the odd good part, and TA, unfortunately, just isn't my thing. I appreciate what they tried to do, but it doesn't strike a chord with me, perhaps because my interest in DT has fallen to almost 0, starting from when BCSL came out.

Offline kaos2900

  • Posts: 2964
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1218 on: June 02, 2017, 07:53:37 AM »
1- SFAM
2- Awake
3- 6DOIT
4- 8VM
5- ADTOE
6- I&W
7- TOT
8- DT12
9- BC&SL
10- FII
11- TA
12- WDADU
13- Systematic Chaos

Offline BanksD

  • Posts: 418
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1219 on: June 02, 2017, 09:40:30 AM »
The best ones:

Scenes From a Memory
Six Degrees
Awake
Images and Words

Not the best ones but still pretty great ones:

Octavarium
Systematic Chaos
Falling Into Infinity

Not Bad but only have a few songs I like:

DT12
ADTOE
BC&SL

Not particularly good ones:

The Astonishing
WDADU
Train of Thought


Offline IDontNotDoThings

  • Posts: 3627
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1220 on: August 29, 2017, 05:07:07 AM »
Time for an update! (parentheses are how much the albums have changed in ranking since my previous list)

Among the best of all-time:
#1. Images & Words
#2. Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence
Amazing:
#3. Black Clouds & Silver Linings
#4. Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory
#5. Systematic Chaos
Really good:
#6. Train Of Thought (+1)
#7. Awake (+2)
#8. The Astonishing (+2)
I wish there were higher but DT's just too good:
#9. Octavarium (-3)
10. Dream Theater (+3)
Okay I guess:
11. A Dramatic Turn Of Events (-3)
12. When Dream & Day Unite (-1)
Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh:
13. Falling Into Infinity (-1)

Edits: I'm indecisive about formatting
ドリームシアターはあまり好きではありませんが、ペンと紙を持っていたので、なんてこった。

Offline Sycsa

  • Posts: 1895
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1221 on: August 29, 2017, 06:32:50 AM »
Albums that I really like and listen to without skipping more than 1-3 songs:
I&W
Awake
Scenes
Dream Theater (the highs of this album don't compare to the highs of many of the other albums I listed below, but the album wins on consistency)

Albums where I like more than half the runtime:
FII
ToT
ADToE
SDoIT

Albums where I like 2-3 songs:
Octa (title song excluded sans for Jordan's Moog solo)
SC
BC&SL
The Astonishing

Albums I pretty much never listen to:
Tempted to put TA here, since the couple of songs that I like make up about 10% of the runtime
WDaDU

« Last Edit: August 29, 2017, 06:37:52 AM by Sycsa »


Sycsa is perhaps the most brilliant and insightful man I have ever encountered.

Offline Renzo

  • Daryus
  • Posts: 221
  • Gender: Male
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1222 on: August 29, 2017, 06:51:23 AM »
I admit my ranking has been changing in all of these weeks so here's my updated version:
1.Images and Words (10/10)
2.Scenes from a Memory (9,5/10)
3.The Astonishing (9/10)
4.Black Clouds (9/10)
5.Six Degrees (8,5/10)
6.Awake (8/10)
7.Octavarium (8/10)
8.Dream Theater (8/10)
9.Train of Thought (7,5/10)
10.A Dramatic Turn of Events (7,5/10)
11.When Dream and Day Unite (7,5/10)
12.Systematic Chaos (7/10)
13.Cleaning Out The Closet (6,5/10)
14.Falling into Infinity (6/10)
15.The Majesty Demos (5,5/10)

FII is the only album I am not into it and I would have rated higher The Majesty Demos if it had a re-recording with a better quality and LaBrie on vocals.
« Last Edit: August 29, 2017, 10:37:30 AM by Renzo »

Offline The Walrus

  • goo goo g'joob
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 17221
  • PSA: Stairway to Heaven is in 4/4
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1223 on: August 29, 2017, 07:30:10 AM »
As of the time of this post:

1. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
2. Images & Words
3. Octavarium
4. The Astonishing
5. Falling Into Infinity
6. Awake
7. Scenes From A Memory
8. A Dramatic Turn of Events
9. Train of Thought
10. Systematic Chaos
11. Black Clouds & Silver Linings
12. Dream Theater
13. When Dream and Day Unite
From a Mega Man Legends island jamming power metal to a Walrus listening to black metal, I like your story arc.
"I don't worry about nothing, no, 'cause worrying's a waste of my time"

Offline The Silent Cody

  • The biggest polish DT appreciator ;)
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 4477
  • Gender: Male
  • Ten years older, but still DT'ish ;)
Re: DT album ranking
« Reply #1224 on: August 29, 2017, 09:41:31 AM »
I feel that I was doing it before, but what the hell ;) it changes anyway so I'll do it one more time ;)

1. Images & Words
2. Awake
3. Metropolis pt 2: Scenes From A Memory
4. Train Of Thought
5. Black Clouds & Silver Linings
6. Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence
7. Systematic Chaos
8. Octavarium
9. Falling Into Infinity
10. A Dramatic Turn Of Events
11. When Dream And Day Unite
12. DT12
13. The Astonishing

As I remember FII was right after BC&SL not so long ago. First three is practicaly the same all the time....