Rock Opera - This is a concept album in which most or all of the lyrics are pieces of dialogue.
I really don't mean to keep dwelling on this, but I actually thought about this yesterday, and this is exactly why I think SFAM does NOT qualify as a Rock Opera. As soon as you mentioned Phantom of the Opera.
SFAM might follow a story, but it's not written like dialogue (or like an Opera) at all. It's written like narration, usually from the perspective of only one person, and even when he's dealing with someone else, as in Fatal Tragedy. He has to mention that he did this and did that, and he met an older man, and if we were to actually have it be like an Opera, let's say, "Scenes From A Memory The Musical" it would be awful. You'd have the Nicholas character standing there singing about what happened, rather than actually showing that it happened.
It works for the album, because you can listen to it and know exactly who the character is talking to, or what is happening (assuming you understand what JLB is singing
), but if you were to try and turn it into an actual opera, it would come off more like a one man show, or a bunch of miming with narration over it.
I've heard some albums that are actually advertised as "Rock Operas" and they've always involved a number of guest singers, and everyone was always singing their own dialogue. Think Ayreon.
That being said, I'd love to see DT tackle an actual Rock Opera. To have not only a concept album, but one made up entirely of dialogue where they invited some guest vocalists to do different characters. Give me some time, and I'll come up with an idea for a DT Rock Opera, and pick some artists I wouldn't mind hearing on it.