Is there any connection between Vacant and Stream of Consciousness?

[ElliottTamer]

During the last six months I've been listening to ToT a lot more often than I previously did. That led to my noticing some similar sounds in Vacant and Stream of Consciousness. in my opinion, the beginning and ending of Vacant has a melody that is extremely similar to the one Stream of Consciousness starts with and sometimes repeats.
So what I was thinking was that these two songs were connected, just like The Mirror and Lie (which if I'm not mistaken deal with pretty much the same subject, Lie being based around a riff that they left out of The Mirror) and, according to some recent DT interviews, Far From Heaven and Breaking All Illusions (Petrucci or LaBrie mentioned how one was pretty much Part 1 and the other Part 2 and also commented on their being thematically similar).
I've been imagining that Vacant depicts LaBrie's concern for his comatose daughter, while Stream of Consciousness is meant to represent what's going on inside of her.
So I would like to know if anyone has any more solid information than my thinking they sound alike.

[Metrovarium]

They're connected in the same way Wait for Sleep and Learning to Live are connected: they're musically connected, but not lyrically connected (well, obviously, in the case of SoC )

I think Far from Heaven and Breaking All Illusions are supposed to be the same way.

[Marion Crane]

umm...clearly

[Shadow2222]

umm...clearly

Very contributing post. Yes they definitely are musically connected. Good ear  I love stuff like this in DT's music.

[Marion Crane]

umm...clearly

Very contributing post. Yes they definitely are musically connected. Good ear  I love stuff like this in DT's music.

I'm sorry.  I thought it was obvious.  I noticed it on my first listen.  Same exact main chord progression

[Shadow2222]

umm...clearly

Very contributing post. Yes they definitely are musically connected. Good ear  I love stuff like this in DT's music.

I'm sorry.  I thought it was obvious.  I noticed it on my first listen.  Same exact main chord progression

Don't get me wrong, I did as well, but there is no reason to essentially insult someone over it. Not starting anything, just trying to be a nice internet poster 

[bosk1]

...just like The Mirror and Lie (which if I'm not mistaken deal with pretty much the same subject, Lie being based around a riff that they left out of The Mirror)

The Mirror and Lie are not about the same subject.

[atalkingfish]

While I knew this similarity existed, it wasn't until I listened to the entire DT discography last week where I realized that they flow right into eachother and are way cool to listen to that way.

[Lotion]

...just like The Mirror and Lie (which if I'm not mistaken deal with pretty much the same subject, Lie being based around a riff that they left out of The Mirror)

The Mirror and Lie are not about the same subject.

And isn't it SDV and The Mirror that got the same chord progressions, like WFS/LTL?

[ZirconBlue]

While I knew this similarity existed, it wasn't until I listened to the entire DT discography last week where I realized that they flow right into eachother and are way cool to listen to that way.

This is what makes me sad about the iPod age.

[Orbert]

Indeed.  Some artists take great care to present albums as more than just a collection of songs.  It's not always going all the way and making it a concept album, but sometimes just small connections between songs that give the album more cohesiveness.  If all you do is listen to songs individually, that gets lost.

[theseoafs]

...just like The Mirror and Lie (which if I'm not mistaken deal with pretty much the same subject, Lie being based around a riff that they left out of The Mirror)

The Mirror and Lie are not about the same subject.

And isn't it SDV and The Mirror that got the same chord progressions, like WFS/LTL?

Space Dye Vest's theme is quoted near the end of The Mirror, but that's the only similarity the two share.

An "If you listen closely, you can hear the Octavarium theme at the end of The Root of All Evil" thread is probably gonna come next, huh?

[Elite]

I hate how Vacant and SoC are musically reminiscent but don't EXACTLY flow into eachother seamlessly. DT could have worked this out into something beautiful, it's a shame they didn't.

[bosk1]

There's no reason why they should have.

[Adami]

I think they're very connected. Stream of Consciousness is rather.................vacant of lyrics.

[Ben_Jamin]

I heard/read somewhere that Vacant was made by a jam between JR and JM.

[dbrooks22]

I think the transition is perfect the way it is.  For the first several years of owning ToT, i didn't look at the CD player and thus had no idea they were separate songs.

[Elite]

There is an audible silence between the songs and a clearly distinct 'mood' or 'tone' between the two. That's what bugs me. It slmost breaks down the flow of the album funnily enough.


(I like to exaggerate to make my point clear, but there is a hint of truth in that last sentence.)

[theseoafs]

There is an audible silence between the songs and a clearly distinct 'mood' or 'tone' between the two. That's what bugs me. It slmost breaks down the flow of the album funnily enough.


(I like to exaggerate to make my point clear, but there is a hint of truth in that last sentence.)

There's a silence between all the songs on Train of Thought. So this is confusing.

[Elite]

There is an audible silence between the songs and a clearly distinct 'mood' or 'tone' between the two. That's what bugs me. It slmost breaks down the flow of the album funnily enough.


(I like to exaggerate to make my point clear, but there is a hint of truth in that last sentence.)

There's a silence between all the songs on Train of Thought. So this is confusing.

Yeah, but for two songs that are so musically alike it seems strange (to me) not to let them flow into each without a gap (and fixing the tone differences). Maybe I'm just making a fuss about minor things, but I think it would have been good for the album.

[robwebster]

There is an audible silence between the songs and a clearly distinct 'mood' or 'tone' between the two. That's what bugs me. It slmost breaks down the flow of the album funnily enough.


(I like to exaggerate to make my point clear, but there is a hint of truth in that last sentence.)

There's a silence between all the songs on Train of Thought. So this is confusing.

Yeah, but for two songs that are so musically alike it seems strange (to me) not to let them flow into each without a gap (and fixing the tone differences). Maybe I'm just making a fuss about minor things, but I think it would have been good for the album.

Am I missing something? The final cello note extends into Stream of Consciousness just fine on my copy...

[theseoafs]

There is an audible silence between the songs and a clearly distinct 'mood' or 'tone' between the two. That's what bugs me. It slmost breaks down the flow of the album funnily enough.


(I like to exaggerate to make my point clear, but there is a hint of truth in that last sentence.)

There's a silence between all the songs on Train of Thought. So this is confusing.

Yeah, but for two songs that are so musically alike it seems strange (to me) not to let them flow into each without a gap (and fixing the tone differences). Maybe I'm just making a fuss about minor things, but I think it would have been good for the album.

Am I missing something? The final cello note extends into Stream of Consciousness just fine on my copy...

Yeah, this. These two songs are connected to each other just as closely if not moreso as any other pairing of adjacent songs on that album. And all things considered, there's no reason for them to have come up with another transition. They're two completely separate songs.

[Orbert]

There is an audible silence between the songs and a clearly distinct 'mood' or 'tone' between the two. That's what bugs me. It slmost breaks down the flow of the album funnily enough.


(I like to exaggerate to make my point clear, but there is a hint of truth in that last sentence.)

There's a silence between all the songs on Train of Thought. So this is confusing.

Yeah, but for two songs that are so musically alike it seems strange (to me) not to let them flow into each without a gap (and fixing the tone differences). Maybe I'm just making a fuss about minor things, but I think it would have been good for the album.

They've done it before, with "Wait for Sleep" + "Learning to Live".  There's a gap between them to emphasize that they're indeed separate tracks, but they're consecutive on the album in a way that emphasizes their connection.  Also similar is that in each case, it's a shorter, quieter piece that serves as almost an introduction to the longer piece.

I know what you're saying, and I agree that it would've been cool to have the tracks actually segue, even if they're numbered separately.  It would've added continuity to their respective albums, etc.  But for whatever reason, it seems DT specifically wanted to make it clear that they're independent tracks.  They don't play the songs together in concert, either.

[Psy]

Aside from that connection, am I the only one who hears the main melody of Vacant in the bassline of Lifting Shadows Off A Dream's intro? :X

[theseoafs]

Yes.

[olliemedsy]

Yes. and also, it's not as bad as the gap between Solitary shell and about to crash reprise

[hefdaddy42]

Maybe I'm just making a fuss about minor things

You are.