Official DT Top 50 Thread Mark II (bss4life15 up now - starting page 79)

[?]

Voices is too low and I've never cared that much about Raise the Knife, but for Afterlife

[Lolzeez]

Endless Sacrifice is easy top 10 for me...

[iamtheeviltwin]

Endless Sacrifice and Peruvian Skies are great tunes, like the others as well,  nice batch.

[IdoSC]

Sorry for the delay, guys. Here's the update.

25. The Spirit Carries On

This song is easily what I would call "Dream Theater's anthem". Every time I meet any Metalhead who knows the band for like 5 songs, it's usually 3 songs where the instrument they play on themselves shines, Pull Me Under or Constant Motion, and this song.

Everything about this ballad is fantastic. It has this classic way of Dream Theater to build up tension and suspense, while expressing so much character and feeling when it comes to the story behind this album. As much as I love to listen to James singing vocals that describe the thoughts and feelings of a girl (no kidding, he nails it both here and in Goodnight Kiss / About to Crash: Reprise), the edition of the song featuring Theresa Thomason, played in Scenes From New York (or for the collectors around here, the bootleg of the same show where they covered Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon) is easily my favorite.

If Finally Free wasn't so fantastic I would've been proud to name this song "the true climax of Scenes". Too bad we have another great song left in the album after this one, right?


24. Under a Glass Moon

This song is Dream Theater's playbook for heavier, metal-sounding songwriting. I've yet to hear any other band who did it as well as they did in this song – awesome heavy riffs, complex breaks and changes in the song's pace, beautiful guitar solo, and the vocals sound like they were ripped straight off the '80s.

This is, more than anything, UNIQUE songwriting. The Dream Theater stamp is all over this song. Every time I hear it, it makes me wonder why they ever had any album that is not their own in the now obsolete "inspiration corner".

Masterpiece. And it was so damn exciting to see them opening with this song in the last show I've seen.

23. Misunderstood

This song is mostly here because of the same "buildup" I talked about in The Spirit Carries On. The same climactic feeling that is featured in so many of their songs, from Another Day to Learning to Live and many others. This song does it better than any other. A huge part of the credit for that goes to the lyrics, though. I hope to see many more of that in the future, Kevin Moore is not the only great lyrics who took part in this band.

22. Only a Matter of Time

...But still, Kevin Moore rocks. This song features a beautiful mix of great songwriting and melodies, with fantastic lyrics to compliment it. I don't have much to say about this song other than the fact that it was a love from first listen.

21. The Great Debate

One of the first things I loved about this band was their expansive repertoire   of subjects and topics for lyrics. It wasn't just about love, hatred, cheating, catching grenades for someone and finishing every row in every song with the word "baby" or "yeah".

Then, of course, there was the amazing ability of writing long, dedicated progressive songs with heavy yet intriguing riffs. This song nailed both areas perfectly. Its lyrics actually deal with a topic that interested me quite a bit back in the day, but it still delivers musically.

To me, it's probably the song that took the longest to grow on me in this whole list. But ever since it did, I love every second of it. And I get goosebumps every time James sings "Life to save life" repetitively. It was, yet again, an amazing surprise to see it in the last tour, and I can't tell you enough how much I love the setlists in A Dramatic Tour of Events.

[BlobVanDam]

Aside from OAMOT, a great batch that would rank very highly on my list.

[IdoSC]

I have to say something. In every update I made so far, I simply sat down, looked at the 5 songs that are coming up next, started writing my descriptions and writeups, fixed some here and added some there - and voila, I copy-pasted it to a new post over here.

But I just looked at the next 5 songs, number 20 to 16. And while I'll hold it with songs 19 to 16 for tomorrow, I have so much to say about song number 20 that I just started writing for it. Already down with 3 long paragraphs and I don't think I'm halfway there yet. So, I apologize in advance.

[TheGreatPretender]

The subject matter and the lyrics are about the only thing I really like about The Great Debate. The vocals for the most part are underwhelming. I mean, I get that they were trying to make the first verse sound kinda like Christopher Reeves talking through his voice box, and it's interesting the first time you hear it, but then after, it just gets kinda boring.

Other than that, great bunch of songs. I'd put the first 3 higher, but good to see them nevertheless.

[Lolzeez]

I have to say something. In every update I made so far, I simply sat down, looked at the 5 songs that are coming up next, started writing my descriptions and writeups, fixed some here and added some there - and voila, I copy-pasted it to a new post over here.

But I just looked at the next 5 songs, number 20 to 16. And while I'll hold it with songs 19 to 16 for tomorrow, I have so much to say about song number 20 that I just started writing for it. Already down with 3 long paragraphs and I don't think I'm halfway there yet. So, I apologize in advance.

His number 20 is either an odd one or a song that usually ranks high

[Nekov]

Not much of a fan of TSCO but the rest are great

[IdoSC]

20. On the Backs of Angels

I really can't say that I HATE Systematic Chaos or Black Clouds. I can't even say that I dislike them, because I really do like them – there are some great songs in those albums, many of those are in this list. And even the worst tracks in these two albums, while I might consider them some of the worst tracks in Dream Theater's discography, are still quite decent.

It's quite ironic, because I became a fan in the middle of Chaos in Motion tour. Despite that, Systematic Chaos was their last album that got to hear back then. I kinda heard the albums chronologically, with some exceptions here and there, and honestly I was quite disappointed with Systematic Chaos, and later with Black Clouds at first. It took them quite some time to actually grow on me but eventually, they did. Still, they're easily my least favorite DT albums, and it's been that way for ages.

My problem with these albums was that, while they did have some great moments, they didn't feel much like Dream Theater to me. The completely fictional lyrics in the former and the ridiculously realistic and unsophisticated lyrics in the latter, the instrumental sections that kept on going for so long to a point where I forgot that it's supposed to be part of a song, the gazillion of influences from other bands...
And the parts where it seemed like 3 instrumentalists told the 4th one "Okay, you're taking the lead for the next 40 seconds...starting...Now!"

Not to mention James trying to emulate certain vocalists and Portnoy trying to emulate others. It all felt like I wasn't listening to Dream Theater, I was listening to a great band who forgot how they usually sound like, so they took a few basic ideas from previous efforts, took some influences from other bands, wrote a moderately good song and called it a day.

Again, I don't hate any of these songs. But if anyone should ever ask me who are Dream Theater, what do they sound like – I'm not going to play The Shattered Fortress to him. Or Forsaken, or The Ministry of Lost Souls for that matter. And I'm damn sure not going to play songs like Repentance that I can barely see myself listening to most of the time.

So for that reason it was a really pleasant surprise when I first heard the "new single" (it's not so new anymore now is it?) back in 2011. My reaction was something among the lines of, "A Dream Theater song? In my Dream Theater album?"
When I hear this song, I can't think of any other band as I ridiculously try to imitate James LaBrie and sing "Tears fall from the shameless...". That awesome combination of clean, soft vocals with heavy riffs, the structure, the instrumental arrangement throughout the whole song. It's all Dream Theater. And I've been striving for that.

19. Take the Time

I'll always remember this song as the one time where I truly love DT's bizarre experiments with different genres and influences to death. At times I may appreciate or like other attempts, but here, it was just brilliant.

That weird thought of bringing a vocalist that would be immediately associated with Hair Metal by anyone who hears him to sing that section in the beginning of the song is just hilarious. But dammit, it works so well, to the point where it became one of my favorite moments in Images and Words (which is an album that is full of "favorite moments"!).

The intense vocal passage that they always seem to skip is also great, though I'm not EXTREMELY disappointed about that – The rest of the song is just as awesome. Also, the instrumental section is easily one of the most memorable moments in Dream Theater's catalog. Partially because it's just this great, mostly because they played it in many, many memorable shows and James just nails the whole interaction with the crowd at the end of it.

18. Outcry

Just like On the Backs of Angels, one of the greatest surprises in the latest album, to me, was that James sounded like James, singing soft, and almost operatic melodies while the band played heavier sounding riffs, creating that sort of combination, or balance. The same balance that was created back in Six Degrees, where Mike's voice was used to balance James out and nothing else. The same balance that makes me love Static Impulse so much.

That is, easily, one of my favorite things about this song. Though it does so many things right. Whether it's the quiet start that's suddenly broken by the intense main riff, which kind of reminded me of Voices, the chorus, the outro, or the instrumental section...I just love this song.

17. Another Won

One of the two songs that I actually like from the Majesty demos, and now both appear on the list. That was the biggest surprise to me in Score, or the Octavarium tour altogether.

16. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence

I've only met one person in my life who actually bothered to listen to a 40-minutes long track when I wanted to introduce her to the band. And when she did, she loved everything about it. This song shows everything that's good about this band, from the intense moments, to the crazy instrumental sections, and even one section that is probably one of my favorite ballads of all time. The lyrics, just like The Great Debate, are not just beautiful to listen to but also make up for a great read. Ironically, I find this song therapeutic and it's one of these songs that I always play when I'm trying to just chill. There's not much else to say about it, you all know this song extremely well, I just have to admit that I love all the sections of this song equally. Including Overture.

[Tomislav95]

Great to see OtBoA and Outcry high on your list

[SomeoneLikeHim]

Six degrees is 15 spots too low

[IdoSC]

Six degrees is 15 spots too low

Eh, it's a fantastic epic but it's not my favorite. Plus, the other epics may or may not be my absolute favorite DT song So yeah...

[TheGreatPretender]

I think Six Degrees is one of the most overrated DT songs ever. Longer =/= better. So I'm glad it's not in the top 10 or anything. Good to see Outcry, best song on ADTOE, I would say.

[IdoSC]

I think Six Degrees is one of the most overrated DT songs ever. Longer =/= better. So I'm glad it's not in the top 10 or anything. Good to see Outcry, best song on ADTOE, I would say.

Personally I think that when you look at it section by section, they're all extremely short to the point where I would want some of them to last longer. But at the same time, when I listen to the whole track, it's like I'm getting my "fix" and then I can't listen to any of its sections, let alone the whole thing, for a few days or so.

It definitely has some amazing qualities, but length has nothing to do with its position in my personal list. If anything I would've said that its length actually takes away from the experience, but really, it's the 16th song only because I like 15 other songs better.

[TheGreatPretender]

Well, you know the expression, "Greater than the sum of its parts"? I think it's the opposite for Six Degrees. There are sections of it that I enjoy listening to more on their own, than as a part of the entire thing. The problem is that those sections (like About To Crash) don't have a concise intro or outro, and that kind of thing bugs me, so I end up inevitably listening to the entire thing anyway. And I just think there are parts of it (I've mentioned this before: A Goodnight Kiss) that really drag the entire thing down. Every time A Goodnight Kiss comes on, it feels like way too much of a drag to listen to. But everything after that starting with Solitary Shell and all the way through the end, are the best parts of the song, so in order to get to them, I HAVE to sit through The Goodnight Kiss.

My point is, I could take the last half, starting from Solitary Shell and all the way through the end, and I'd enjoy that more than I would enjoy listening to the whole thing starting from the very beginning.

[IdoSC]

I used to dislike Goodnight Kiss but it grew on me so much in the last few months that I'd probably say that I like the other parts equally, and Goodnight Kiss just a little bit more than the others. It's easily the most touching piece of music I've heard from this band, whether it's the lyrics and the vocal melodies, the whole delivery of the full-band section or the solo in the end.

Then again, we all have different opinions

[KevShmev]

Goodnight Kiss is one of my favorite sections of Disc 2, but I generally agree with 6DOIT the song being a case where the parts are greater than the sum.  As a whole, it is a bit clunky and doesn't really flow all that well, but almost all of the individual sections are great, the Overture being the obvious exception.  I love the way it starts with the main theme being played, but it goes on way too long, and sounds a bit too cheesy, doing all of those would-be orchestra bits on a keyboard.  That works well for the band most of the time, but didn't that time, IMO.

[TheGreatPretender]

I love the way it starts with the main theme being played, but it goes on way too long, and sounds a bit too cheesy, doing all of those would-be orchestra bits on a keyboard.

That's why when it comes to listening to the entire thing, I almost exclusively listen to the Score version with the actual orchestra.

[Lolzeez]

Well, you know the expression, "Greater than the sum of its parts"? I think it's the opposite for Six Degrees. There are sections of it that I enjoy listening to more on their own, than as a part of the entire thing. The problem is that those sections (like About To Crash) don't have a concise intro or outro, and that kind of thing bugs me, so I end up inevitably listening to the entire thing anyway. And I just think there are parts of it (I've mentioned this before: A Goodnight Kiss) that really drag the entire thing down. Every time A Goodnight Kiss comes on, it feels like way too much of a drag to listen to. But everything after that starting with Solitary Shell and all the way through the end, are the best parts of the song, so in order to get to them, I HAVE to sit through The Goodnight Kiss.

My point is, I could take the last half, starting from Solitary Shell and all the way through the end, and I'd enjoy that more than I would enjoy listening to the whole thing starting from the very beginning.

There hasnt been one single moment that i disagreed with tgp... And i agree with this too...

[IdoSC]

Next update will be delayed for tomorrow as I have an exam, but I'll be done with the list by Saturday tops. Sorry about that!

[Ħ]

Some weird picks there, but nice inclusion of On The Backs Of Angels!

[Scorpion]

Ten great songs, though I never really cared a lot for Misunderstood, tbh. I enjoy it and all, but I never really got to like it as well as others do.

[Elite]

Take The Time, OTBOA and Another Won
Outcry could go way lower and SDOIT.. well, that remains the endless debate.

[Onno]

Take The Time, OTBOA and Another Won
Outcry could go way lower and SDOIT.. well, that remains the great debate.

FTFY

[TheGreatPretender]

Take The Time, OTBOA and Another Won
Outcry could go way higher and SDOIT.. well, that remains the endless debate.

FTFY

[IdoSC]

15. In the Presence of Enemies

While I did say that I've had a harder time getting myself to listen and even enjoy the songs in Systematic Chaos where the band focused a lot on their heavier side and JP wrote some scenic lyrics about monsters, dark masters, lost souls and whatnot – eventually I did find plenty of positive sides to these songs. And In the Presence of Enemies, with both parts united, is the pinnacle of that phenomenon.

That track was, in the end of day, a pleasant surprise - considering that was literally the first new song by Dream Theater to be heard in a studio album right after Octavarium. While the latter was Dream Theater's ideal love letter to their previous efforts, this new song just came out, took their strengths and did something completely new. Whether it's the overall technicality or heaviness in the song, the extended breaks of the song's flow for an instrumental section, or even Mike's specific heavier vocals than usual. While these things became a little bit more controversial in other songs of the same album, in this one, all of these things were done well *for the most part*. Great song overall.

As far as the lyrics are concerned – again, while I don't like that kind of lyrics, in this case it was heavily based on a Korean comic book as far as I know, and it really shows – for the most part, the song has a unique way of storytelling.

14. Blind Faith

To me, that was the first song since Awake's Scarred, that felt like a complete, almost flawless, by-the-book Dream Theater song. There have been many great song from Falling into Infinity up to SDOIT's The Glass Prison, but they always had something that kept them from being what I immediately think of when I try to think of a Dream Theater song. They either sounded too different compared to the band's sound as presented in Images and Words and Awake, or they weren't as "complete" as I hoped they would be, considering every single song in Scenes From a Memory is part of the album's plot and thus it loses some of its "quality" when played as a standalone song.

This song is just ideal – Dream Theater-like melodies, progressive like hell, amazing lyrics, flows incredibly well. Love it.

13. Lines in the Sand

Was the only song in Falling into Infinity that came close to the definition above. The unison, in particular, is one of the greatest moments in Dream Theater's history. The solo is great, unlike many others I have quite a few solos by Petrucci that I like more – but it's still awesome.

The one thing that bugs me about this song, is the arrangement of the melodies in the chorus. I don't like the way it sounds whether it's James trading off with Doug Pinnick, or Mike/John trading off with James (demos/live), something doesn't click there with me. Still, the only reason I mention that is that otherwise, there's absolutely nothing wrong with this song. It's awesome.

12. In the Name of God

I guess it's becoming kind of a pattern – I fall for lyrics that deal with interesting subjects very easily. Otherwise, I appreciate many of the songs in Train of Thought because it was the first time where I enjoyed James' vocals as much as I did in Images and Words or Awake in a while.

11. Scarred

This song is always extremely entertaining to hear, in the sense that it combines so many great elements at one piece. I'd love it if they would bring it back to their master setlist as some of the performances in Chaos in Motion tour, specifically the one in the DVD, were my biggest disappointments of that tour. It deserves better! XD

[BlobVanDam]

All fantastic songs, except for Scarred, which I consider DT's most confused and jumbled mess of a song this side of WDADU.

[Nekov]

Those 5 songs are awesome! Blind Faith is too low

[Tomislav95]

Great to see Scarred so high, it' great songs

[wolfandwolfandwolf]

Did you guys know that Blob doesn't like Scarred very much?

[BlobVanDam]

Did you guys know that Blob doesn't like Scarred very much?

Did you guys know that it's actually ok to express an original opinion without getting singled out every. single. fucking. time?

[Scorpion]

All of these songs are great, and in my Top 50, though ITPOE just made the cut, whereas the other four are in my Top 10. So, needless to say, a very good bunch.

[Nekov]

Did you guys know that Blob doesn't like Scarred very much?

Did you guys know that it's actually ok to express an original opinion without getting singled out every. single. fucking. time?

Maybe in Australia it is, but not on the interwebz.














I'm kidding, it's nice to see we are not all the same even though I can't really understand what you don't like about it 

[RuRoRul]

Amazing bunch of songs - all of those would be ranked up there for me. Don't actually see these songs get ranked highly enough - ITNOG and ITPOE I like more than most obviously, but even Lines In The Sand and Blind Faith don't make it quite this far up many people's list (they're almost exactly where I'd rank them  ).