Author Topic: - " The Astonishing " - One Year -- er, SEVEN YEARS On.  (Read 173124 times)

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Offline cramx3

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #525 on: January 10, 2018, 09:25:21 AM »
So true, also that second show was on the 2nd NA leg.  The first show at RCMH on the first leg sold much better and while it wasn't packed, RCMH is a large venue so I think the band did well with attendance there.  Just by the time they came back for the second run, people didn't come out for it.   But that helped me, I bought my first row seat a few hours before the show.  I was either going to get a super cheap ticket in the back or pay face value for front row for that show.  Glad things worked out the way they did for me, plus a JP hand shake before leaving the stage.  :metal

Offline smegolas

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #526 on: January 10, 2018, 09:44:46 AM »
I think its such a shame that this album wasn't better received.  Like it or lump it, there is no denying the sheer scale and originality of this project.  Sure the plot has some issues, but I don't care, I'm in it for the music.  In my view, they pulled it off spectacularly as only DT could.  Unfortunately, the lack of commercial success will discourage them (and perhaps other bands) from really stepping out of their comfort zone again.

Also a huge shame we didn't get a DVD.  In a weird way I almost feel like DT owes it to the fans who didn't get to see this live, although I know that's a bit silly.  I also wonder if James' deteriorating live performances are another reason we didn't get it, and may not get any more in the future.

Online Chino

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #527 on: January 10, 2018, 10:06:10 AM »
I'm still pissed they couldn't just record it from a tripod and dump the audio for us. I'd pay $9.99 for a digital copy of that.

Offline cramx3

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #528 on: January 10, 2018, 10:09:57 AM »
I'm still pissed they couldn't just record it from a tripod and dump the audio for us. I'd pay $9.99 for a digital copy of that.

Something simple like this would be perfect for an official bootleg.   I'd take the single camera angle of the whole stage as well, bootleg style.  Just as long as it captures the visuals and the band. 

Offline Cyclopssss

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #529 on: January 10, 2018, 10:49:03 AM »
The first theater shows they did for TA were fantastic. The atmosphere was great amongst the audiences, the visuals were great and the sound was near perfect. They should have recorded those.
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Online Chino

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #530 on: January 10, 2018, 01:20:55 PM »
And the biggest salt in the wound from it all is that the no cellphone policy means that there are next to no videos on Youtube, and the ones that exist are really, really terrible.

Offline Evai

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #531 on: January 10, 2018, 01:57:56 PM »
Never give up hope! SDoIT took what, 4 years to end up on an official live release? A Change Of Seasons also took a long time to even end up as a song. Don't lose faith :)



I gave up hope
Was dead inside
Stayed lost within a world without an official live release of The Astonishing
Then I found, my faith in DT
And now I can
Listen to it

I once believed
An official live release of The Astonishing's fate was sealed
But now at last the release date has been revealed

In an instant, John Petrucci's mind could change
And now and then
I can listen to it
Jordan took Moore's boring, pedestrian parts and elevated them considerably to take them from barely palatable to stellar.

Online Anguyen92

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #532 on: January 10, 2018, 02:36:32 PM »
And the biggest salt in the wound from it all is that the no cellphone policy means that there are next to no videos on Youtube, and the ones that exist are really, really terrible.

That really was the most frustrating part of the tour.  I have no problems with the no cellphone policy as long as there was that assurance that there was going to be a DVD release, but since now that there will be no DVD in the future as far as we know right now, this tour would be forgotten and hard to look back on which is a bloody shame.  Like the album or not, I love it that Dream Theater wanted to be this ambitious with the way they went about with The Astonishing and their stage setup for the tour and it would have been nice to document that in a live DVD release.

Offline RodrigoAltaf

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #533 on: January 10, 2018, 03:02:29 PM »
Did they record any of the shows? If so, rest assured that it will be released at some point. Same as Maiden's A Matter of life and death. Wait until it gets later in their career and they'll rely more on the release of oddities to bump sales. And this is not criticism to DT or Maiden, it's just how the business is carried out.

Offline cramx3

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #534 on: January 10, 2018, 03:08:02 PM »
Im sure there are soundboard recordings, but I do believe there is no video recorded of this show, unlike IM who we know have the Donnington show video taped from their tour.

Offline mikeyd23

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #535 on: January 10, 2018, 03:11:52 PM »
I'm pretty sure DT does soundboard recordings of every show, so yeah I'm sure they have audio they could do something with in the future if they so desire.

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #536 on: January 10, 2018, 04:25:43 PM »
I don't think I would be too interested in a soundboard recording of it.  If I wanted audio, I just listen to the studio album, unless they did certain notable nuances that differs from the studio version.  I just heard they had good visuals and I wanted to see that.

Offline Pebsie

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #537 on: January 18, 2018, 01:19:06 PM »
The first theater shows they did for TA were fantastic. The atmosphere was great amongst the audiences, the visuals were great and the sound was near perfect. They should have recorded those.

Until everyone booed from the lack of an encore! ::)
I was pretty disappointed with these shows because they were just so damn similar to the CD. Could've spent the £240 we collectively spent on tickets on a HiFi system and blasted it through that with mood lights for a similar experience. The lack of talking spots and the prerecorded-ness of the thing was enough to make me not pay the £80 they asked for the I&W show. A real shame as my brother said it's the best he's ever seen them :'(

Offline bosk1

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #538 on: January 18, 2018, 01:27:41 PM »
The first theater shows they did for TA were fantastic. The atmosphere was great amongst the audiences, the visuals were great and the sound was near perfect. They should have recorded those.

Until everyone booed from the lack of an encore! ::)

Wow, sounds like the crowd at your show was pretty rude and ungrateful.  Glad that doesn't represent the majority of the tour. 
"The Supreme Court of the United States has descended from the disciplined legal reasoning of John Marshall and Joseph Story to the mystical aphorisms of the fortune cookie."

Offline Cyclopssss

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #539 on: January 18, 2018, 01:44:54 PM »
The first theater shows they did for TA were fantastic. The atmosphere was great amongst the audiences, the visuals were great and the sound was near perfect. They should have recorded those.

Until everyone booed from the lack of an encore! ::)
I was pretty disappointed with these shows because they were just so damn similar to the CD. Could've spent the £240 we collectively spent on tickets on a HiFi system and blasted it through that with mood lights for a similar experience. The lack of talking spots and the prerecorded-ness of the thing was enough to make me not pay the £80 they asked for the I&W show. A real shame as my brother said it's the best he's ever seen them :'(

Sorry but what the fuck did you expect? It was exactly as advertised. 
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Offline Evai

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #540 on: January 18, 2018, 01:54:36 PM »
People never read the descriptions
Jordan took Moore's boring, pedestrian parts and elevated them considerably to take them from barely palatable to stellar.

Offline Pebsie

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #541 on: January 18, 2018, 02:10:10 PM »
The first theater shows they did for TA were fantastic. The atmosphere was great amongst the audiences, the visuals were great and the sound was near perfect. They should have recorded those.

Until everyone booed from the lack of an encore! ::)
I was pretty disappointed with these shows because they were just so damn similar to the CD. Could've spent the £240 we collectively spent on tickets on a HiFi system and blasted it through that with mood lights for a similar experience. The lack of talking spots and the prerecorded-ness of the thing was enough to make me not pay the £80 they asked for the I&W show. A real shame as my brother said it's the best he's ever seen them :'(

Sorry but what the fuck did you expect? It was exactly as advertised.

You're completely right! I just thought it would be for me and it wasn't. That's nothing against the band! :)

Online MirrorMask

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #542 on: January 18, 2018, 02:48:38 PM »
In indsight, they should have done a couple of older songs as encore. I was just fine with only the album, but I think not a single person would have said "Eh, two classic songs as encore ruined the mood and the atmosphere of the album".
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Offline bosk1

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #543 on: January 18, 2018, 03:15:08 PM »
In indsight, they should have done a couple of older songs as encore. I was just fine with only the album, but I think not a single person would have said "Eh, two classic songs as encore ruined the mood and the atmosphere of the album".

I don't know about "should."  But they did realize that that is what the fans wanted, so they slightly modified the set on the second U.S. leg and cut a few TA songs to make room for the encore of 2-3 "classic" songs. 

I saw both version of the tour, and I thought they were both great.  The first time through, I was glad to have gotten the entire album.  But the second time through, I didn't miss the songs that were cut, and felt that the encore was a lot of fun and ended the night on a high note that had a cool and different energy than just getting TA by itself.  And keep in mind, the second leg was not supposed to be anywhere near that extensive.  It wasn't supposed to just be a repeat.  They were supposed to do a short stint of gigs in markets they hadn't yet visited the first time through, which is why they didn't initially alter the set.  But it got booked wrong, which the band were not happy about, but they went out and tried to put their best foot forward and deliver anyway.
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Online MirrorMask

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #544 on: January 18, 2018, 03:17:50 PM »
Didn't know the details about that! that was a bummer for them, let's hope next tour they'll do things exactly as they want.
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Offline bosk1

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #545 on: January 18, 2018, 03:27:15 PM »
Thought it was common knowledge by now, but since you weren't aware of that part, let me add one other detail as well:  I passed on to John Petrucci some of the concerns/complaints that were being voiced here about doing the same tour in the same places.  He listened.  And despite that they were pretty much locked into doing TA because that is how it was booked, and the fact that they had all the expensive production tied up in the extended tour, he and the band wanted to do what they could to address those concerns.  That is why they made the changes they did and included As I Am, Pull Me Under, and The Spirit Carries On as an encore.  You guys were instrumental in having them do that.  So props to the forum members for voicing those things so I could get that information to him.  And props to the band for listening and acting on those concerns.
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Offline Lethean

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #546 on: January 18, 2018, 06:05:06 PM »
I think that was cool in a way, but... I was at some of the shows with the new encore, and a few fans were a little bummed at not having gotten the full TA. The shows where they did that were (most if not all), not shows in the same area as the first leg. The first half was, but the shows in the south were getting it for the first time.  For me, it was cool seeing something else since I had already seen the full set a few times.

I like that JP is open to listening to stuff like that. It was also good when he finally put out a statement about the mess that was the I&W US tour with shows being cancelled or moved without people knowing what was going on.  I just hope he doesn't let people convince him to do other things, like get an outside producer... ;)

Offline gzarruk

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #547 on: January 18, 2018, 06:24:01 PM »
I just hope the mixed reaction for TA doesn't prevent them from making another concept album in the next years.
It sounds like, "ruk, ruk, ruk, ruk, ruk." Instead of the more pleasing kick drum sound of, "gzarruk, gzarruk, gzarruk, gzarruk."

Offline SystematicThought

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #548 on: January 18, 2018, 08:45:08 PM »
It feels kinda weird that I ordered the book while sitting in front of my Christmas tree in late November of 2016. Fast forward, I'm sitting in front of my Christmas tree late November 2017, reading about updates regarding the book's progress. At least it looks like I won't be reading it in front of my Christmas tree in late November 2018, not unless I choose to.
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Offline Evai

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #549 on: January 19, 2018, 12:04:10 AM »
Maybe you'll be watching the documentary in 2019: An Astonishing Mishap: How one band didn't have time for books anymore (and no-one seemed to care)
Jordan took Moore's boring, pedestrian parts and elevated them considerably to take them from barely palatable to stellar.

Offline gzarruk

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #550 on: January 19, 2018, 06:18:48 AM »
Maybe you'll be watching the documentary in 2019: An Astonishing Mishap: How one band didn't have time for books anymore (and no-one seemed to care)

 :rollin
It sounds like, "ruk, ruk, ruk, ruk, ruk." Instead of the more pleasing kick drum sound of, "gzarruk, gzarruk, gzarruk, gzarruk."

Offline Pebsie

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #551 on: January 20, 2018, 11:46:41 AM »
I just hope the mixed reaction for TA doesn't prevent them from making another concept album in the next years.

Completely agree with this. The biggest takeaway from TA for me was just how different it was.

Yes, you had the classic DT sound there, but there are so many bands that fit into the "progressive" category now that aren't progressive (I absolutely love Neal Morse, but he's had the same sound for 20 years. It fits into "prog" the genre, but certainly not "prog" the idea). You've then got Dream Theater who totally changed things up and took prog metal and made it into this huge musical with a full on orchestra.

Love it or hate it, The Astonishing is certainly progressive and an attempt at something different. We need more innovation in this genre!! I can count on one hand the number of other bands that are actively trying something different.

Offline Architeuthis

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #552 on: January 22, 2018, 10:54:46 PM »
Exactly this!  Dream Theater totally gets what it means to be progressive. TA showcases that DT has no musical boundaries and that they can play anything under the sun. One of my favorite albums of all time from any band!
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Offline SwedishGoose

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #553 on: January 22, 2018, 10:56:01 PM »
Exactly this!  Dream Theater totally gets what it means to be progressive. TA showcases that DT has no musical boundaries and that they can play anything under the sun. One of my favorite albums of all time from any band!

A huge +1

Offline RoeDent

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #554 on: January 23, 2018, 12:28:55 AM »
And I'm telling you now, a lot of those same people will probably complain if DT "play it safe" for their next album. That's what infuriates me about the whole thing. With The Astonishing, DT managed something that no other artist has been able to accomplish. Create a true Rock Opera, infuse its characters with life, provide us with scenarios we can imagine (even going so far as to indicate Day or Night for each scene). I really hope this doesn't leave DT with a sour taste about the album. I hope they are still immensely proud of it, because they absolutely deserve to be.

Offline tristl

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #555 on: January 23, 2018, 02:01:53 AM »
I have seen TA two times live, really loved it, and I am very dissapointed that they didn‘t make a blue ray of the show.
I hope they do a one of at a special location(maybe on broadway?),
I have to ask JP at the G3 in Offenbach about that :metal
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Offline TheOutlawXanadu

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #556 on: January 23, 2018, 08:48:47 AM »
And I'm telling you now, a lot of those same people will probably complain if DT "play it safe" for their next album. That's what infuriates me about the whole thing. With The Astonishing, DT managed something that no other artist has been able to accomplish. Create a true Rock Opera, infuse its characters with life, provide us with scenarios we can imagine (even going so far as to indicate Day or Night for each scene). I really hope this doesn't leave DT with a sour taste about the album. I hope they are still immensely proud of it, because they absolutely deserve to be.

To me, it's totally fair to criticize Dream Theater for "playing it safe". It's also fair to dislike The Astonishing. However, what seems in poor taste to me is criticizing Dream Theater for not taking chances and then being on the front lines of the anti-Astonishing stampede. I definitely noticed some of that when the album first came out. I think some people just like to complain. :lol

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Offline DoctorAction

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #557 on: January 28, 2018, 01:08:04 AM »
And I'm telling you now, a lot of those same people will probably complain if DT "play it safe" for their next album. That's what infuriates me about the whole thing. With The Astonishing, DT managed something that no other artist has been able to accomplish. Create a true Rock Opera, infuse its characters with life, provide us with scenarios we can imagine (even going so far as to indicate Day or Night for each scene). I really hope this doesn't leave DT with a sour taste about the album. I hope they are still immensely proud of it, because they absolutely deserve to be.
However, what seems in poor taste to me is criticizing Dream Theater for not taking chances and then being on the front lines of the anti-Astonishing stampede. I definitely noticed some of that when the album first came out. I think some people just like to complain. :lol

Agreed. TA was different from the DT norm. And respect to that. It wasn't very progressive, to my ears, though. It was a mixture of two very well trodden styles, for the most part. 2112 meets DT meets Andrew Lloyd Webber, with equally familiar story and characters. Once that was apparent, there were no surprises.

So different, yes - a bit, but it bored me to tears.

I still really hope they can strip back the production, focus on the playing and step FORWARD in time rather than so obviously back next time.
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Offline KevShmev

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #558 on: January 28, 2018, 06:39:15 AM »


I still really hope they can strip back the production, focus on the playing and step FORWARD in time rather than so obviously back next time.

The way I see it, the playing is always a focus anyway, and if you mean make it the main focus, I definitely disagree.  Making the playing the main focus will result in major wankery.  At this stage, Dream Theater has nothing left to prove when it comes to their playing abilities, so songwriting should always be the main focus, like it was on The Astonishing.

Offline gzarruk

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Re: - " The Astonishing " - One Year On.
« Reply #559 on: January 28, 2018, 10:46:59 AM »


I still really hope they can strip back the production, focus on the playing and step FORWARD in time rather than so obviously back next time.

The way I see it, the playing is always a focus anyway, and if you mean make it the main focus, I definitely disagree.  Making the playing the main focus will result in major wankery.  At this stage, Dream Theater has nothing left to prove when it comes to their playing abilities, so songwriting should always be the main focus, like it was on The Astonishing.

This. Something that annoys me is that some people often confuse good songwriting with lots of wankery (SOA diehard fans, I’m looking at you). DT have focused more on songwriting rather than wankery and that’s always better imo.
It sounds like, "ruk, ruk, ruk, ruk, ruk." Instead of the more pleasing kick drum sound of, "gzarruk, gzarruk, gzarruk, gzarruk."