Author Topic: Favorite DT ballad/Soft songs (Read 4368 times)

OnTheBacksofAngela · « **on:** November 03, 2015, 12:15:34 PM »

Why did you choose?

Disappear- I swear, I love it to death. I get really emotional hearing this and gosh, no song ever touched me this strongly. I can get depressed immediately just by listening to this song and man, if I have a knife right next to me....

. Imagine losing someone so dear to you. This song=perfection. "Let him come take you home," After that I start crying like a baby. Tears threaten to fall out at, "So I'm moving on/I'll never forget as you laid there and watched me." Shizz, I feel like crying now. So fricking depressing...

Space Dye Vest-Another gut wrenching song and I get lost to the sampling. Especially the "That door gets locked."
And, "Do you really think I need you?"/"I'll never be open again." This doesn't get me as depressed at Disappear, but I still love it!

Anna Lee:
Another hard hitting song. Labrie is perfect here and zisters an feel the pain Anna Lee is feeling. I especially lover the bridge: "And now she's calling out a name/Can't keep on hiding all her paiin/You feel the raim move in/As you begin/ To turn and answer the call."
God bless you anna lee and Sherinian plays it well also.

MirrorMask · « **Reply #1 on:** November 03, 2015, 12:23:14 PM »

Where are Through Her Eyes and Hollow Years? $:\$

OnTheBacksofAngela · « **Reply #2 on:** November 03, 2015, 12:25:30 PM »

Quote from: MirrorMask on November 03, 2015, 12:23:14 PM

Where are Through Her Eyes and Hollow Years? $:\$

I knew I forgot something.

TheCountOfNYC · « **Reply #3 on:** November 03, 2015, 12:38:26 PM »

Of the ones listed, I chose The Spirit Carries On (my favorite Dream Theater ballad), Vacant (tied for my favorite song from Train of Thought with Stream of Consciousness), and Wait for Sleep. However, had you included To Live Forever, I would have chosen that over Wait for Sleep.

MirrorMask · « **Reply #4 on:** November 03, 2015, 12:40:55 PM »

Damn, now I can't vote anymore!

I voted for SPACE DYE VEST because it's a beautiful, somber ballad, moody and melanchonic and a unique piece in DT's history (for obvious reasons). I wish they would do more stuff like that, Far from Heaven was a great song but it didn't come close to the dark beauty of Kevin Moore's swan song with the band.

I picked also THE SILENT MAN as an example of a little gem, a perfect song; it's simple, it's short but it's really great and the chorus with JP's backing vocals is another rare moment in DT's discography.

Third pick was THE SPIRIT CARRIES ON for its soulful ending, the moment JP ends one of his better melodic solos ever, the emotional climax of the album comes up and I think I may cry in the right circumstances when hearing it live.

Through Her Eyes which I couldn't vote for is another example of simple yet powerful ballad, the melody is enchanting and the soft tone of desolation in James'voice is praiseworthy. I'm not bothered at all by the minimalistic drum machine, and the "And as her image wandered through my head" section is heartwrenching. On the LSFNY version when he goes on at the end with the falsetto melodies and then at the end goes into a longer "ohooooooooh" moment with his full voice, that's a breathtaking moment, simply beautiful. When I was a lurker I read someone commenting on his performance on this live record, he was saying that while not being at the top of his game or at his full potential (see the missed high note in Learning to Live), he managed to convey and emotional and convincing performance, and I SO AGREE! James has many great moments on LSFNY and the ending of Through Her Eyes is a prime example of this.

Hollow Years would have also gotten a vote from me, one of the best songs on Falling Into Infinity (I like it however better in its final album version, it flows better) and a solid and memorable chorus. Love the Budokan version when JP had an extended solo section, that was gorgeous. I must say I prefer JP when he's slowing down... when he's doing slow melodic solo he has a wonderful taste for them and I could listen him go on and on for dozens of minutes. Can't say the same for his faster, more "metal" solos.

Train of Naught · « **Reply #5 on:** November 03, 2015, 12:43:26 PM »

Space-Dye Vest, TMOLS and ~~This Is The Life~~

Outcrier · « **Reply #6 on:** November 03, 2015, 01:21:44 PM »

Wait for Sleep, Space Dye Vest and ~~The Spirit Carries On~~ Solitary Shell (now that it's an option).

cramx3 · « **Reply #7 on:** November 03, 2015, 02:41:08 PM »

Wait for Sleep, The Spirit Carries On, Anna Lee ( was debating that or Hallow Years)

chaossystem · « **Reply #8 on:** November 03, 2015, 03:30:03 PM »

What about Solitary Shell and Along for the Ride?

OnTheBacksofAngela · « **Reply #9 on:** November 03, 2015, 03:38:46 PM »

Done

CharlesPL · « **Reply #10 on:** November 03, 2015, 03:50:56 PM »

Spirit,AD,GK/SS

pcs90 · « **Reply #11 on:** November 03, 2015, 04:49:26 PM »

No Beneath The Surface?

wolfking · « **Reply #12 on:** November 03, 2015, 05:45:55 PM »

I Walk Beside You?

TAC · « **Reply #13 on:** November 03, 2015, 05:49:42 PM »

Space Dye Vest easily, followed by Disappear.

OnTheBacksofAngela · « **Reply #14 on:** November 03, 2015, 05:54:14 PM »

Quote from: wolfking on November 03, 2015, 05:45:55 PM

I Walk Beside You?

I thought of putting that, but that didn't seem like ballad, though it might be a soft song. Will edit.

Ben_Jamin · « **Reply #15 on:** November 03, 2015, 07:33:36 PM »

Disappear: I love the entire atmosphere and mood. James really delivers the emotion of the lyrics. When the last verse starts I prefer the studio version more than the live version(which is a bit too fast), James' Low voice suits it better.

Through Her Eyes: As with Disappear, James really sells the emotion. It's a nice simple song that I'd like to see live one day.

Goodnight Kiss: I voted this mainly for Goodnight Kiss. James voice is lovely and the buildup at the end is great in portraying the pain of the point of seperation between the Mother.

yeah_93 · « **Reply #16 on:** November 03, 2015, 08:18:49 PM »

Space Dye Vest

Everything else.

wideworldofmike · « **Reply #17 on:** November 03, 2015, 08:39:36 PM »

Disappear, Wither, Spirit Carries On.

OnTheBacksofAngela · « **Reply #18 on:** November 03, 2015, 10:57:42 PM »

Quote from: wideworldofmike on November 03, 2015, 08:39:36 PM

Disappear, Wither, Spirit Carries On.

URGH! I'm an idiot. How can I forget Wither?!!!

jjrock88 · « **Reply #19 on:** November 04, 2015, 01:03:18 AM »

Space Dye Vest, Another Day, Wait for Sleep

nicmos · « **Reply #20 on:** November 04, 2015, 09:41:52 AM »

Answer Lies Within, Take Away My Pain, Goodnight Kiss/Solitary Shell

Can't believe I'm the first to pick TALW. underrated for sure.

V_R11 · « **Reply #21 on:** November 04, 2015, 09:55:05 AM »

So many good ones. AFTR, Disappear, TSCO and Far From Heaven for example. FFH is not there btw

Art · « **Reply #22 on:** November 04, 2015, 10:02:56 AM »

Went with Space Dye Vest, Lifting Shadows and Hollow Years.

ZKX-2099 · « **Reply #23 on:** November 04, 2015, 10:17:30 AM »

Wither

Ben_Jamin · « **Reply #24 on:** November 04, 2015, 12:49:29 PM »

You also forgot Eve.

Pax · « **Reply #25 on:** November 04, 2015, 01:39:51 PM »

First thing, ballad doesn't mean soft, it means narrative (endless sacrifice and blind faith are perfect examples), check out Chopin's ballades to hear

But, my answers are

TMOLS, beautiful
Goodnight kiss/solitary shell, but not because slow parts, but because solos
Take away my pain, a simple yet beautiful song, dat solo

Btw I dislike spirit carries on

YtseJamittaja · « **Reply #26 on:** November 04, 2015, 02:11:44 PM »

That was hard but I chose Wait for Sleep, TSCO and Eve. It's so damn melancholic and beautiful song which really should have been on LP.

OnTheBacksofAngela · « **Reply #27 on:** November 04, 2015, 02:13:05 PM »

Quote from: YtseJamittaja on November 04, 2015, 02:11:44 PM

That was hard but I chose Wait for Sleep, TSCO and Eve. It's so damn melancholic and beautiful song which really should have been on LP.

Yeah, sorry about that. I should've just allowed users to vote for like maybe 5.

pcs90 · « **Reply #28 on:** November 04, 2015, 03:09:53 PM »

I can't believe I forgot about Eve...one of their best slower songs.

Enigmachine · « **Reply #29 on:** November 04, 2015, 04:02:00 PM »

That was extremely difficult. I chose:

Lifting Shadows off a Dream - Some of Myung's best lyrics here. The imagery is all so beautiful and deep and that chorus just makes me involuntarily shiver from how majestic the thing is. The whole song sounds like I'm waking up in heaven.

The Spirit Carries On - This is one of the greatest climaxes to a concept album I've ever heard. The meaning is almost childishly simple but that's part of why it's so poignant and memorable. It seems very Savatage-esque in the way it contrasts so much with the other material that it really draws attention to itself and the glorious melodies that are proudly displayed right from the start.

Dissapear - It must be no accident that this is the final track on the first disc of SDoIT as such an emotionally-draining song would probably require a break before any more music. This is another example of how lyrics don't need to be sophisticated to be effective, it just needs a compelling premise which this definitely has. The decision to mold a song around the death of a loved one may not be stunningly original, but the execution is amazing.

CoT67 · « **Reply #30 on:** November 04, 2015, 04:05:12 PM »

I chose The Spirit Carries On, 'cause it's the timeless masterpiece

, Take Away My Pain because I feel it's a pretty underrated but rather enjoyable and somewhat heartfelt due to Petrucci's lyrics about his dad and Goodnight Kiss/Solitary Shell, but only for the second one, the first one is incredibly daunting and desperate... it's probably the only DT song I can't take when I listen to it. Solitary Shell by itself is an incredibly heartwarming song and I just tend to love that sort of stuff from DT.

Special mentions to To Live Forever (dat solo in '94), and Another Day, the first one because it's not on the list and the second one because I couldn't just choose 3 ballads (and the solo again)

I forgot... Along For The Ride is my favourite in the After Portnoy timeline.

pdurbin22 · « **Reply #31 on:** November 04, 2015, 04:09:58 PM »

The live version of "Hollow Years" from Live at Budokan. That solo...

lucasembarbosa · « **Reply #32 on:** November 04, 2015, 07:21:21 PM »

TSCO, LSOAD and Eve.

chaossystem · « **Reply #33 on:** November 04, 2015, 07:28:24 PM »

For the "I hate ballads" option you should also have included Systematic Chaos!

Speaking of which, I wouldn't really consider Repentance to be a "softer" song. It DOES have a fairly heavy guitar solo...

Rodni Demental · « **Reply #34 on:** November 05, 2015, 12:07:04 AM »

Wait For Sleep: Had to pick this one, spent a fair while learning it on piano which helped me gain a new appreciation for KMs play style like the way he inverts chords say in the RH from a counter pattern in the LH (or vice versa).

Anna Lee: I see this as DTs tribute to The Beatles, I dunno how agreeable that is to many people but I find it unique in the discography for this reason.

Along for the Ride: Love the way it constantly builds. And that keyboard solo..

I did pick The Silent Man because I love A Mind Beside Itself as a whole, but changed my vote to AFTR when I saw it.

Honorable mentions go to LSOAD, BTS, TALW, I like these ones too when I'm in the mood. Same with TMOLS except for cheese factor.

Also I like me some Wither and Disappear sometimes, but I could certainly do without: TAMP, HY and SDV, possibly 3 of my least favourite DT songs. $:\$ That being said those last 3 seem to vastly improve in a live setting so they're not all that bad I guess.

News: Track-by-track video for Fall Into the Light: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ezfzdMpRc0

Poll

Ballad/Soft Songs

Author Topic: Favorite DT ballad/Soft songs (Read 4368 times)