Have you seen DT on the Along for the Ride tour? Where? How was it?

[Sycsa]

I'm curious what percentage of DTF had a chance to go to a DT concert this tour. Where did you see them? How was it?

I saw them in Budapest this year for the very first time ever. Knew them since 2005 (watched the heck out of Budokan back then), it was quite an experience to finally see those faces in front of me. I was very impressed with their performance and presence and I was pleasantly surprised how good, balanced and clear the sound was. It was pretty quiet considering that it was an outdoors venue, but it was a worthy sacrifice, as it was one of the best sounding concerts I've ever been to (the other one would be Paul Gilbert in a Hard Rock Café). The crowd was great and videos during the break brought an element of friendliness and familiarity, so when they came out for the second set, it almost felt like a private gig among friends.

[mikeyd23]

Yep, I saw them in Pittsburgh on this tour and it was a great show! Probably my favorite DT show out of the five I've been to. 

[Zydar]

I saw them in Stockholm on February 22. I had seen them once before (2009) but this one was easily the best of the two. I went with Lynxo and some of his friends. It was an indoor venue, the sound was great, and the crowd was great too.

[Rodni Demental]

Don't I wish. 

Please come back to New Zealand Dream Theater! I almost hopped on a plane to Melbourne but couldn't quite justify it, still regret it. 

[bl5150]

Melbourne, AUS last week.............loved everything except the sound.  The people in my area were overwhelmed by volume/bass and couldn't make out much of what JLB/JP were doing except at the quieter moments in songs and hence the highlights were songs like Space Dye Vest and Along For The Ride as they were the only ones I could hear properly.

Overall..........disappointing.  With good sound it would've been fantabulous.

My experience doesn't match that of some others at the same gig .

[Evermind]

Saw them in Moscow on February 28th. It was much better than their previous two concerts in Moscow. Being in the front row also helped, I guess.

[Dublagent66]

Yea!

Mesa Arts Center in Mesa, AZ on April 20th 2014.  It was good, but the setlist detracted from it being great.  Too bad the song they named the tour after really isn't that good.  Could've also done without Enigma Machine and Illumination Theory.  Breaking All Illusions was the highlight song which they actually didn't play on the previous ADTOE tour.  So, that was cool.

[TheGreatPretender]

Saw them back in March, in Toronto. It was the first show of their North American leg, so they had a couple of weeks to rest, but everything was still fresh enough not to get rusty I guess, so it was absolutely flawless. It was everything I was hoping it would be.
Me and the guy beside me were so psyched to hear Space-Dye Vest that after Lie ended, we were like, "Okay, here it comes!" and it was actually Lifting Shadows, then once that was done, we were like, "Okay, NOW it's time for Space-Dye Vest!" And it was Scarred. We completely forgot that there were 2 songs between Lie and Space-Dye Vest. 

[hefdaddy42]

Nope, I live in the "No Tour Zone" of Southeast USA.

[Setlist Scotty]

Saw them in Milwaukee this year. The show was good - the performance pretty spot on and the light/video show was the best they've ever had. But I have to say that while I enjoyed the show, spontaneity was missing in the show, and the changes to the songs (from the studio versions), which I almost always find to be a highlight of their shows were almost completely non-existent. Seeing the extended improv jam intro that the band were doing at the beginning of Trial of Tears on this last leg of the tour is exactly what they should've been doing early in the tour, and it's a reason why I wish they would've filmed a show towards the end of the tour, instead of at the beginning.

The setlist was good - I liked the fact that, aside from a few festival shows, there was a complete lack of songs from IaW. It shows the confidence that they have in the rest of their catalog. And I also like the fact that there was a complete lack of repeating songs from the last tour, aside from OtBoA and BAI. But it goes without saying that I missed any swapping out of songs from night to night, which is why I didn't bother going to the Chicago show - having them highlight two anniversaries in addition to promoting a new album really ate up a big chunk of the show, not leaving room for songs from half of their other albums. Had they done an A and B setlist, highlight Awake at one show, and SFaM at the other, swapping a couple of the songs from the s/t album, this would've freed up some space for songs from WDaDU (also celebrating another milestone anniversary), IaW (altho it's been played to death), SDoIT, ToT, 8v and SC.

So I have mixed feelings about this tour. I don't want to sound like I didn't enjoy the show - I did. But seeing them once on this tour was enough for me. It certainly is not at the top of the list for me in terms of their tours - the SDoIT, ToT and 8v tours rank the highest for me, for obvious reasons.

[krands85]

Yes, I travelled down from Scotland to Manchester to see them. Great performance from all the guys, great show with the vids and lighting, the sound was pretty decent and the crowd was quite good too (though I'm still not keen on seated venues, but that seems like it's going to be the norm now). It was my third time seeing the band live and I'm glad I got to experience an 'Evening With' show. The only disappointment for me was the setlist, which wasn't really to my taste unfortunately  I was aware of it in advance though, so I knew what I'd be getting.

[bosk1]

Saw them in S.F.  It was a great experience and great show.

[vtgrad]

My wife and I travelled up to DC for the show; took a few extra days before the show to hang out in our nations capitol (Forest Gump reference).

The show was awesome, awesome!  The sound was incredible (very nice venue) and the set-list was my second favorite live set-list (second to the Train of Thought evening with show; also in DC in 2004 @ the 9:30 Club).  JLB was on fire and everyone else was super tight (as always).  This show also contained one of my favorite live moments... small pieces of dust and tile (I suppose) kept falling from the ceiling of the venue during the second act; it was actually very cool because it seemed like snow was falling on the stage at times.  JLB said (I'm paraphrasing) "what is this sh*t falling from the ceiling, I'm breathing it in!"  JP stepped over a whispered in JLB's that "we're bringing the house Down!"  JLB began laughing and then told the audience what JP had said.  Awesome live moment!  Second only to JLB messing up the order of the songs in Columbus in 2010 and MP saying (paraphrasing again) "we've been tight as an opening band, we only F@#k up when we're headlining"... complete with a rim-shot.

My wife and I have been blessed to see DT live seven times; and aside from Score, I think this show was the best sounding show I've seen.  Don't get me wrong, they've all been incredible, but this show was a personal highlight for me.  LSOAD and ToT were highlights for me.

[TAC]

Saw them in Boston. Incredible show.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

Saw the show in Mexico City. Tied first as best DT show I've ever seen with the 20th Anniversary World Tour show.

[Raise the Drum]

I saw them in Chile.
The show was great but towards the end of AFTR, they had some technical issues (something with the mics and JP's guitar) and they had to cut Breaking all Illusions from the setlist.
They took the 15 min break right after AFTR.
The show was amazing though.

[jammindude]

Went up to Vancouver BC to see the show up there, and absolutely had a blast.  I believe it was my first time taking my wife to a DT show (she's not really a fan), but she had a really great time and we loved it.

The light show was amazing, but like others have said, I miss a bit of the spontaneity of the old days.   Still, really enjoyed the energy and performances. 

[Lucidity]

Saw them at the Boston Opera House with the Berklee orchestra and choir. Pretty unbelievable.

[mike099]

Nope, I live in the "No Tour Zone" of Southeast USA.

Same here.  My best hope is Atlanta.  I could have traveled to DC, but quite a haul from Nashville.

[TheCountOfNYC]

I saw them in NYC this year. It is easily one of the best shows I have ever been to. The musicians were on point other than James messing up the words in Lie. The setlist for this tour was awesome and the stage show was great. I loved the intermission video. It was fun and a great way to make the time go by. The highlight of the show for me was TDOE. It was one of two songs I felt I needed to see them perform live along with Octavarium. Just to see these master musicians perform one of the most challenging pieces of music ever written (along with it being my favorite DT instrumental) was a real treat. SFaM is my favorite DT album so really the whole encore was perfect, but Dance being included made my night. I'm really hoping they do another North American leg because after that amazing show, my only thought was "I can't wait to see them again".

[McNugg]

Saw them in Manchester since they didn't come up to Scotland this time round.  Managed to pair it with going to see Tarja Turunen in Nottingham the night before to make the flight costs worthwhile too   (400 mile trip)

Overall, it was definitely my favourite DT show to date.  Amazing setlist and the band were on top form.  Really liked the venue too (Manchester Apollo).

Only two niggling problems.
-They were wayyy too loud as always.  Was my third DT gig and each time they have been crazy loud even when i'm near the back.                         
-James voice for some reason was a much higher pitch than it should have been from where I was sitting (right at the back in the centre)  Something to do with the acoustics of the room made it sound a bit odd..He was like a chipmonk during the spoken parts   

Were minor issues though and didn't stop it from being my favourite DT show to date.  Trial of Tears, Illumination Theory, the Awake suite and Finally Free made the setlist far better than any other show i'd seen.

[bosk1]

-James voice for some reason was a much higher pitch than it should have been from where I was sitting (right at the back in the centre)  Something to do with the acoustics of the room made it sound a bit odd..He was like a chipmonk during the spoken parts   

You do know they play to a click track and use pre-recording backing tracks, right?  James' in-between song spoken parts are all pre-recorded and lip synched, so at some shows where they have started a bit late, they speed up the talking track.  It usually isn't noticeable, but there have been a few shows where they sped it up just a bit too much, which produced the "chipmunk" effect you noticed.

[Setlist Scotty]

-James voice for some reason was a much higher pitch than it should have been from where I was sitting (right at the back in the centre)  Something to do with the acoustics of the room made it sound a bit odd..He was like a chipmonk during the spoken parts   

You do know they play to a click track and use pre-recording backing tracks, right?  James' in-between song spoken parts are all pre-recorded and lip synched, so at some shows where they have started a bit late, they speed up the talking track.  It usually isn't noticeable, but there have been a few shows where they sped it up just a bit too much, which produced the "chipmunk" effect you noticed.

Better watch out Bosk, someone might actually believe that!   

[King Postwhore]

I was lucky enough to see them in Boston.  Fantastic show.  My only complaint was the volume but the Blu Ray is amazing.

[JediKnight1969]

Buenos Aires. Killer show. Awesome sound.

[McNugg]

You do know they play to a click track and use pre-recording backing tracks, right?  James' in-between song spoken parts are all pre-recorded and lip synched, so at some shows where they have started a bit late, they speed up the talking track.  It usually isn't noticeable, but there have been a few shows where they sped it up just a bit too much, which produced the "chipmunk" effect you noticed.

At first I was like      

And then I was like        

[The Holy Tune]

Saw them in Istanbul, Turkey. Pretty much a fantastic night(the best 3 hours in my life so far). The sound system was far from being good, but my god did I enjoy the concert... The most vivid scene is that everyone is madly singing the "Don't tell me/you wanted me" part in Lie with their hands up in the air. I could see that James was having a ton of fun out there, can't really say much about the rest of the band as I was completely focused on James

I'd run a 7 hour road back to Istanbul only to see them live again right now, the concert was that good.

[Another_Won]

Drove up and saw them in Chicago.  Great venue, the show was fantastic.  I even made it into a JP selfie (along with 80% of the crowd but it still counts)

[CharlesPL]

Yea!


1st leg:

Prague
Katowice
Amsterdam (best show on 1st leg)
Vilnius

2nd leg:

Vizovice (PMU )
Gdynia (new JP pick-after a 5 year break )
Bratislava
Budapest

Gdynia & Budapest were the best on this leg.

[lucky7]

Melbourne, Australia just over a week ago (29/10/2014) Some sound issues early on but well worth seeing! 

[?]

I saw them in Helsinki in February and it was my first DT show. It was an amazing experience! As someone whose favorite album is Awake and favorite song is Space-Dye Vest, I was basically in heaven during the second set. I thought the sound was good and I had earplugs, so it wasn't too loud for me. My friend was with me and she said the show was way better than the one she saw in Canada on the Prog Nation 2008 tour. The only mildly negative thing about the show was that there were speakers blocking part of the screen, and our seats were so far from the stage that it was hard to follow the EM animation or see the guys' faces properly even on the screen. Nevertheless, it might've just been the best concert I've ever attended!

[sylvinception]

1 vote for "I don't remember" ? Seriously ? 

Saw them twice in Paris.
The 2 shows were awesome, as usual. 

[chaossystem]

Yea!

Mesa Arts Center in Mesa, AZ on April 20th 2014.  It was good, but the setlist detracted from it being great.  Too bad the song they named the tour after really isn't that good.  Could've also done without Enigma Machine and Illumination Theory.  Breaking All Illusions was the highlight song which they actually didn't play on the previous ADTOE tour.  So, that was cool.

I was at the same show, and it had been a long time since I had seen ANYONE in concert.

It was the first live show where I went in knowing what the entire show was going to be.

I wasn't AS disappointed as "Agent" was, but...

I actually wish they had played at least a couple of more new songs.

I like "Along for the Ride," and "Enigma Machine" and the Drum Solo were a nice change from the other DT shows I had been to, where there NO solos or instrumental pieces played.

But I DO think that "Illumination Theory" is somewhat over-rated. It would be better if, when they play it live, they would at least leave out the orchestral section, unless they have a live orchestra to play it.

I also thought it was a strange way to commemorate the anniversaries of "Awake" and "Scenes. It would probably have been better if they had played more new and recent songs in the second set, and then played a MEDLEY of songs from those two albums for the encore. Maybe even make the first two sets a little shorter, and the encore a little longer.

[Rodni Demental]

But I DO think that "Illumination Theory" is somewhat over-rated. It would be better if, when they play it live, they would at least leave out the orchestral section, unless they have a live orchestra to play it.

I also thought it was a strange way to commemorate the anniversaries of "Awake" and "Scenes. It would probably have been better if they had played more new and recent songs in the second set, and then played a MEDLEY of songs from those two albums for the encore. Maybe even make the first two sets a little shorter, and the encore a little longer.

I can appreciate where you're coming from. But personally, I think it'd be a tragic loss for IT to cut the orchestral section, I feel it's essential to the piece as a whole and couldn't imagine not having it in there.

Also, I'm sure these opinions have been thrown around all the time here but I actually really like the anniversaries, I think it's a fantastic idea. It's a great way for them to cycle material and potentially play things they haven't played in a long time. Or in some cases not at all. Besides, the unplayed new material will surely find it's way into the next tour.

[As I Am]

Saw them in Milwaukee this year. The show was good - the performance pretty spot on and the light/video show was the best they've ever had. But I have to say that while I enjoyed the show, spontaneity was missing in the show, and the changes to the songs (from the studio versions), which I almost always find to be a highlight of their shows were almost completely non-existent. Seeing the extended improv jam intro that the band were doing at the beginning of Trial of Tears on this last leg of the tour is exactly what they should've been doing early in the tour, and it's a reason why I wish they would've filmed a show towards the end of the tour, instead of at the beginning.

The setlist was good - I liked the fact that, aside from a few festival shows, there was a complete lack of songs from IaW. It shows the confidence that they have in the rest of their catalog. And I also like the fact that there was a complete lack of repeating songs from the last tour, aside from OtBoA and BAI. But it goes without saying that I missed any swapping out of songs from night to night, which is why I didn't bother going to the Chicago show - having them highlight two anniversaries in addition to promoting a new album really ate up a big chunk of the show, not leaving room for songs from half of their other albums. Had they done an A and B setlist, highlight Awake at one show, and SFaM at the other, swapping a couple of the songs from the s/t album, this would've freed up some space for songs from WDaDU (also celebrating another milestone anniversary), IaW (altho it's been played to death), SDoIT, ToT, 8v and SC.

So I have mixed feelings about this tour. I don't want to sound like I didn't enjoy the show - I did. But seeing them once on this tour was enough for me. It certainly is not at the top of the list for me in terms of their tours - the SDoIT, ToT and 8v tours rank the highest for me, for obvious reasons.

+1