When did you first listen to Dream Theater?

[perfey]

Back in 2003. A friend lent me LSFNY DVD and I was sold. Bought the Budokan DVD and their newly released album Train of Thought (and soon all of their other albums) after that.

[PlaysLikeMyung]

'03/'04 ish. Octavarium had not come out, but it could have been early 2005 as well... I'm unsure

[Egoist Hedonist]

I started listening to Dream Theater in 2006, under the advice of a friend. The first songs I listened to were Take The Time, Another Day and Metropolis, Pt.1, which really got me into progressive music for the first time.

The first full album I listened to was Octavarium, which I marked as a masterpiece from the start. From that moment I started getting to know all their albums and my opinion drastically changed in a month. Now my favourite album is SFAM and Octavarium stands in the lowest position.

[Aadish]

I think it was some time right after SC was released.. I went to the record store and just stared at that totally awesome cover art (atleat I think it is awesome). When I got home I was totally blasted away by the awesomeness of the music.. But I didn't really listen to any other records than SC.. But a year after I got my hands on I&W and I was converted forever..

So I said to myself what a wonderful baaaaaaand  

[bosk1]

Images and Words 1992   

[Zantera]

It was back in 2005 i think.
A friend of mine recommended them to me, and he sent me Panic Attack.
I was mainly into Heavy Metal such as Iron Maiden back then, but i really liked this song.
After this i told my dad about this amazing band, and seeing as he's a progfan, he went and bought the Live in Budokan cd.
I wasn't that open to progressive-music back then, so the songs that i remembered from the live was As I Am and This Dying Soul.
So i bought Train Of Thought (early 2006 i think), and i listened to it so many times i almost overplayed it.
Then i kinda abandoned DT, cause i felt they had too much 'over-wanking' in their songs.
But that was back then.
About a month ago i was looking for a new band to get more into, and the latest years my music-direction has taken a more progressive approach.
So i read a lot about Dream Theater on wikipedia, and i really felt like i wanted to love this band, just give them a fair chance.
I gave Systematic Chaos a spin, and i fell in love with the whole album.
Then came Black Clouds & Silver Linings and then i've kinda worked myself back in time.
I guess that's my DT-story.

[ddtonfire]

Wow, this makes me feel slightly old, and I'm not even old. DT can only build their fanbase!

[STEVETHEATER]

1992... I still remember, good times. 

[Secor]

Back in 2003. My first album being none other than Images and Words.

[Zoom E]

I bought When Dream and Day Unite in 1989. I don't remember how I discovered them, but I probably read about them in Kerrang! I do remember reading a review of WDADU in People magazine, and they made a big deal about the album cover, calling it disturbing. Er...ok.

[obscure]

It was around 2000 I guess. I was much of a Rush fan then (I still am) and was following their forum. On the forum was a Dt thread and unlike other groups threads it was nearly a fight.
Whoever was praising DT was catcing hell. Then I said "OMG what is it about this group? Let's check it out"
And it was one of defining moments in my life...

I listened to SFAM first. I was like "what the hell!!!" Their unique sound and technique blew me away... Then I listened to the entire catalogue without any exception. Every single melody started to stick in my head afterwards...

I clearly remember saying "shame on me" because I actually had the opportunity to hear them before, but I suppose I started with the wrong song in the wrong mood (won't mention which one because I like it as well now). And that wrong start cost me many years 

Now I see I'm a bit late for this forum too, but better late than never, I'm here now and it feels great to be among you... who are crazy for DT...

[Jonathan]

SFAM had just been released I think. My dad, who used to be a hardcore fan, showed me Mike's drumsolo from the Live In Tokyo VHS.. i thought it was soo great. must've been 11 at the time

[lonestar]

When Pull Me Under first came on the radio around '92(?). Images and Words was my first album.

[Icebear]

First day of summer vacation '97. A drummer friend of mine put on Take The Time and said "hey, this is pretty cool..."

And that was that. Hooked from the first fix.

[Edan the Man]

I first heard them around 6DOIT time I guess, but I didn't become a real fan until the time ToT came out.

[ZachyDou]

'07 - '08ish, maybe a bit before that...

[Mebert78]

I first heard "Lie" on the radio in 1994 and was captivated by Kevin's lyrics and the use of keyboards in a metal song.  When I bought the album, I was completely swept away by the whole album.  It was dark and heavy, yet still tender and beautiful in the piano-driven moments on Voices and Space-Dye Vest.  Needless to say I was heartbroken when I found out that Kevin had already left the band, but luckily he resurfaced with Chroma Key and OSI.  Then I backtracked and bought I&W and WDADU and loved it all.

[brodgers]

September 2002

Six Degrees, then got SFAM soon after

[SinisterMinisterX]

Awake, though I think it was actually early '95 when I first heard them. I've posted elsewhere: saw Lie on Headbanger's Ball, bought I&W and Awake the next day, hooked since.

[MetalManiac666]

SC time period.

[MetalMike06]

A friend showed me the song "Blind Faith" not long after SDOIT came out, but I really didn't start listening to them regularly until maybe late '04, when I first bought I&W and ACoS.

So I voted '02, since technically that's when I first heard them.

[Mladen]

The first time I listened to Dream Theater was in the summer of 2007, with Images & words being the first album. Then in october I purchased Octavarium. I think I didn't buy Systematic chaos until the begining of 2008 (january the 3rd, actually  ). It was funny that I actually wasn't planing to get SC, I went to the store to buy Megadeth's United abominations, but because the store sold it, I had to purchase something else.  It was a good choice.

[energythief]

Images and Words 1992  

also

[Blind_FaithX]

Ocatavariumera

[Portrucci]

Randomly found The Dark Eternal Night video on Youtube. I was big into Metal (Metallica) and had just started playing drums and Portnoy blew me away. I didn't get the album for a while though. I looked for more Dream Theater and I loved the songs off Awake. The album cover was so awesome and songs like The Mirror and Erotomania were cool as hell. That was my first DT album and still is my favourite 

[EmilSumm]

2007. Downloaded Fatal Tragedy and bought SCORE. If you mean studio albums, I started with Octavarium.

[Dark Master Of Sin]

I'm not sure how to answer. I've listened my entire life, (My dad first heard PMU on the radio and was hooked) and has listened to them in the car my entire life. I didn't come to appreciate them until I was 14 or so though. Which would be two/three years ago, I believe it was just after the release of SC. So i'll vote that...

[nemesiskoen]

Octavarium era, a friend introduced me to them, but it wasn't until I inherited Octavarium, Awake, ACoS and Marquee that I got hooked.

[Drakkhim]

SFAM for me. Was listening to Creed's latest album at the time, "Weathered," in my car. Picked up my buddy who had SFAM and within the first 15 minutes, I was very very impressed. Weathered never made it back to my CD player.

[icysk8r]

I listened to them right after Systematic Chaos came out, but didn't like them until 2008. [I listened to forsaken, not a very good representation for a first listen.  Actually, my dad played them before that, but I never payed attention.

My first album was Awake.

[juice]

I listened to SFAM first but its Score that really got me hooked 

[Chino]

First heard of them in Spring of 04. I had only ever heard Metropolis and went to go see them in concert for the TOT tour. Even though I didn't know a single song they played, I enjoyed every second of it.

[nightmare_cinema]

Inbetween ToT and 8VM, guy at the guitar store I worked at told me I'd really like dream theater, I went and bought train of thought (he didn't know most of the older stuff, was more into them back in images&words, acos kinda days but could still play a mean metropolis part 1 solo).

First listens I wasn't hugely keen to be honest, but something kept me listening. At that point I was really into Muse, and had been through an obsession with system of a down (that I'm still kinda on...) One day stream of consciousness actually clicked into place, while I was on a bus stood waiting to get off at my stop, the next morning this dying soul clicked as I was walking home from a friend's house in the rain, I honestly remember both of those moments so well, it was one of the most important things to happen to me. From there it was kinda a quick descent into borrowing/buying all the rest of the available albums, I liked most of them quite quickly, some took a year or two to grow on me. By the time I'd discovered scenes from a memory it was (And still is) by FAR the greatest album I've ever been lucky enough to hear  

I put various dream theater songs on in the shop on the cd player. One day two guys came in to try a guitar out, no dream theater was on, and one of them started playing some stuff from octavarium I went through to the back, found out they both LOVED dream theater, one of them thought scenes was dream theater's best album, the other preferred train of thought. I semi-seriously proposed to either of them. I was a proper geeky 17 year old I tell ya. Weirdly I ended up meeting the guy again when I started university, after not speaking to him after he left the shop and never knowing his name, and he's become one of my closest friends.

As a thankyou, seen as the guy who told me about them was outta touch and didn't own any new dream theater, I bought him systematic chaos for his wedding present lol.

Went to see them on both hammersmith apollo dates in london shortly after with my best mate who also got into them through me. We were hugely late to the ticket buying party and ended up sat right at the back of the balcony for both gigs but my god, it was good.

You know how people talk about how they met their husband/wife/partner fondly? I think that's how I view the afternoon I clicked with stream of consciousness. In all serious, of all the moments to happen that have influenced my life and changed it in a huge way, that is up there with the most important. I will never stop being grateful to my colleague for telling me about dream theater.

[FiberglassMoon]

When I was a mega metal-head.  Train of Thought blew my mind once I learned to deal with JLB's voice (I love his voice now btw, I dont "cope" with it anymore).  From that album alone DT became my favorite band, and have stayed my favorite ever since.

First ever listen  - As I Am, August 2003

[SystematicThought]

Chaos In Motion 2008. I heard CM on Rock Band