The Enemy Inside vs. On The Backs Of Angels

[Ħ]

The two singles from the "new" DT. Very similar in song presentation, structure, and overall sound. Both put forward as album teasers. Which is the best them?

[LieLowTheWantedMan]

Both great tracks. Slight edge to OtBoA, but TEI was enough to get me interested for the rest of the album for sure.

[Scorpion]

I don't think that they are very similar in sound, personally. OTBOA is pretty restrained, while TEI is more balls-to-the-wall. Both are good.

I have no idea yet which one I prefer.

[Zook]

I've only listened to TEI once so far, but it's still miles better than OTBOA. I never really thought the latter was anything special.

[Ħ]

I have no idea yet which one I prefer.

This is where I'm at too. I'm leaning towards OTBOA though.

[Perpetual Change]

RIGHT NOW, I'd say the Enemy Inside. But I might be forgetting how much I really liked OTBOA when it came out. For comparison, I listened to OTBOA like a dozen times the first day it came out. I've only listened to The Enemy Inside twice, and while I really like it, I'm not going back over and over again like I did with OTBOA. So who knows. Time will tell, I guess.

[T-ski]

I don't see many similarities in the two.  OTBoA is much better to my ears.

[BlackInk]

On the Backs of Angels wins this one. It was such a refreshing song to hear when it came.

The Enemy Inside has a really nice chorus, but not much else.

[rush-signals]

I like both, but they're totally different to each other.

[Voices]

Hard to tell...I had the same reaction when first heard OTBOA: loved it! So I just can't choose.

[Blackfield]

OTBOA feels more solid for me.

[hefdaddy42]

Only heard TEI once, so it's too soon to tell.

[Outcrier]

I've only listened to TEI once so far, but it's still miles better than OTBOA. I never really thought the latter was anything special.

I'm too

[wolfking]

The Enemy Inside.  And I've only listened to it once.

[aprilethereal]

I love both, but OTBOA is a bit more "special" to me. And I don't think they sound similar at all.

[Jaq]

Not exactly sure how they're alike in any way other than "first single off a Dream Theater album." 

OTBOA is a longer, more sprawling number, mid tempo, with relatively straight forward instrumental sections. TEI is uptempo, more straight up metal, with far more complex instrumental breaks and more aggression. Completely different animals. Both songs are great, but I like The Enemy Inside more.

[Dark Castle]

I don't get how this is similar in structure to OtBoA...
This song has such a more in your face sound, and is a much faster song..

Now I love OtBoA, but The Enemy Inside is so fantastic, I just had to choose it!

[Joshin U]

Wow this is much more of an even split than what i was expecting.  I really enjoy TEI, but OTBOA blew me away from first listen and has still held up to this day, whereas I can see myself tiring of TEI quite easily.

[Outcrier]

The thing i disliked most in the song was the vocal melodies, the rest i can live with it (the intro is very good though)

[aprilethereal]

The thing i disliked most in the song was the vocal melodies, the rest i can live with it (the intro is very good though)

OTBOA or TEI? Which one are you referring to?

[snapple]

JESUS

I clicked OTBOA and meant TEI. OTBOA was thick with "we need to prove something". TEI feels like "fuck yeah, DT". I don't know which I prefer as a song, but as they feel on day 1, TEI is much more fun to listen to.

[theseoafs]

OTBOA was thick with "we need to prove something". TEI feels like "fuck yeah, DT". I don't know which I prefer as a song, but as they feel on day 1, TEI is much more fun to listen to.

Basically how I felt.  It's impossible to know at this point which one is better, but I will say I had a lot more fun listening to TEI than I did listening to OTBOA on day one.

[mikeyd23]

TEI is fresh, and I voted for it....

That might be the reason why, just because its fresh, but I'm not sure, its a killer tune.  I really like it a lot, and I feel like it will hold up well over time for me.  OTBoA was not as immediate for me, but I grew to like it a lot!! 

TEI was immediate, I dug the energy and feel of the song right away.  Are there things about it I don't care for and could nit-pick about? Sure there are, but overall its pretty great!!   

[Setebos]

Voted for OTBOA. It's a close call and both have aspects that I like and don't like. TEI is a bit too heavy and loud for my taste and therefore a bit exhausting to listen to. However it does have  better vocal melodies, a better chorus and better sounding drums. OTBOA on the other hand has the better intro, solo section and outro than TEI. So, the overall winner for me is OTBOA, but not by much.

[Slain]

It's a tough choice at the moment, but I'm going to go for On the Backs of Angels for now. It's possible that over time TEI will surpass it, but I love me some OtBoA. It's damn close though. 

[Tom Bombadil]

I LOVE the intro to OTBOA, but after that it gets rather bland, imo. So I voted for TEI- it's good the whole way through

[Mister Gold]

I don't think that they are very similar in sound, personally. OTBOA is pretty restrained, while TEI is more balls-to-the-wall. Both are good.

I have no idea yet which one I prefer.

This, though I know I prefer TEI already.

[Sycsa]

OTBOA has so much going for it, the change in dynamics, Jordan's piano solo...on the other hand, TEI is face melting, so I'll need some more time to decide, but definitely leaning towards the former.

[Tis BOOLsheet]

Going with Angels easily. Although, Enemy is not bad.

[Daso]

Went with The Enemy Inside, and I only heard it (and only will hear it until Sept. 24th) twice.

I really liked (and still do) OtBoA, but I fell The Enemy Inside flows better. While OtBoA has different sections in one song (the intro, the Rudess keyboard section, verses and choruses, Rudess piano solo, Petrucci solo and so on) and The Enemy Inside does as well, I feel the enemy inside blends each part much better than OtBoA does.

Also, Mangini is better on The Enemy Inside and it is heavier and faster, which in this case suits me better.

[XB0BX]

Going with Angels easily. Although, Enemy is not bad.

This. I think some people are getting too caught up in the moment. OtBoA is REALLY good.

[Dark Castle]

The Enemy Inside is really REALLY good 

[TheGreatPretender]

I still need to listen to TEI more to decide how I feel about it in the long run. But I voted for it, because I definitely like the production better. The guitar is more crisp and the drums are deeeeelicious.

[johncal]

My personal preference is for the new one but that's because I like the high energy stuff with a lot of craziness in it. That being said, they are both excellent IMO. It can be hard to compare because they are so different. OTBOE has a lot of great stuff going for it as well.

[WindMaster]

I like both, but I don't want to listen to TEI any more until the album drops because I burned out on OTBOA before ADTOE came out. So I guess I don't know which one I prefer.