New DT Tour dates

[El Barto]

A lot of these are criticisms he's seen in the past, and deflected.

And add to the list the reason I might not even bother seeing them in Dallas. There will not be a single note different than what I saw twice already. Unless one of them screws up there will be no variance whatsoever. Which ironically means that if I did go it would be in the hopes that one of them starts playing the wrong song or JLB forgets the lyrics. 

Seriously, I'd be happy to spend $10 on a ticket that will likely get me moved up pretty close to the stage. Spending $20 to park might be enough to warrant just listening to the album at home.

[cramx3]

What would motivate me more to go to the NJ show was if there was a DTF meet up, that was a ton of fun last time.  The attendance is so poor there isn't even a show thread on this site 

Although, I've thought about it a lot lately, I am almost 100% sure I will go, just because I feel like I should support one of my favorite bands and that TA is actually pretty damn good from my perspective, I'm just not all that excited to go like I typically am.

[TAC]

Things are getting desperate!

https://bravewords.com/news/dream-theater-bassist-john-myung-invites-fans-to-the-astonishing-fall-tour-video


Not sure I can bring myself to watch it.

[Podaar]

Not sure I can bring myself to watch it.

Why not?

[Thoughtspart3]

I really enjoyed the concert.  JP's solo was just epic live.  Everyone got to their feet and was cheering.  I know this is not what everyone wanted but I wish more people could enjoy it for what it is and still support the band by going to at least one show.

DT may have over did it this tour but I don't get why there is so much criticism.  I for one was happy that they played in Wilkes Barre which they have never done before.  It gave me a chance to see TA which is a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Does DT have to sell out every venue to make a profit?  They might still be making a profit even though they don't sell out.  My guess is that they put more money into the production than normal and want to take advantage of it while they have everything in place.  They will never do this again so they are trying to play as many venues as possible and give as many people an opportunity to see it.

I can sympathize though with adding some classic songs as an encore.  It would probably help repeat attendance.  Also, the lack of improvisation also reduces repeat viewings.  My guess is they will realize this and take that into consideration if they decide to do another concept album. 

[JayOctavarium]

If DT were playing a venue closer to my house on this second time round, I would  be more inclined to go. I really don't wanna make a trip out of it to see them. What would be awesome would to see them play at the Majestic Ventura Theater here... seats about 1k people.. I'd be there in a heartbeat. But Temecula? Nah. Saw it once. I'm good.

Bring on the next album!

[ytserush]

I was there, and there was no way the place was anywhere near 3/4ths full. If it was half full I'd be surprised, frankly. Probably over 300 though, I'd say maybe 600-800.

Where were you sitting? I'm surprised I didn't see you. It wasn't THAT crowded.  Will I see you at the Marillion show?

For some reason a lot of people bought seats on the outside rather than the middle which may explain the conflicting head counts. There were definitely a lot more people there than the seating chart said there were a few days before.

[RaiseTheKnife]

If DT were playing a venue closer to my house on this second time round, I would  be more inclined to go.

Anaheim?

[Nick]

I was there, and there was no way the place was anywhere near 3/4ths full. If it was half full I'd be surprised, frankly. Probably over 300 though, I'd say maybe 600-800.

Where were you sitting? I'm surprised I didn't see you. It wasn't THAT crowded.  Will I see you at the Marillion show?

For some reason a lot of people bought seats on the outside rather than the middle which may explain the conflicting head counts. There were definitely a lot more people there than the seating chart said there were a few days before.

Front row, left wing. Was actually there with Karl and Greg from Pinnacle.

[JayOctavarium]

If DT were playing a venue closer to my house on this second time round, I would  be more inclined to go.

Anaheim?

By closer I mean less than an hour. Anaheim is still a 2 hour drive or more depending on traffic.

As much as I love the Grove and Dream Theater.... I don't love The Astonishing enough to make the drive.

[ytserush]

I was there, and there was no way the place was anywhere near 3/4ths full. If it was half full I'd be surprised, frankly. Probably over 300 though, I'd say maybe 600-800.

Where were you sitting? I'm surprised I didn't see you. It wasn't THAT crowded.  Will I see you at the Marillion show?

For some reason a lot of people bought seats on the outside rather than the middle which may explain the conflicting head counts. There were definitely a lot more people there than the seating chart said there were a few days before.

Front row, left wing. Was actually there with Karl and Greg from Pinnacle.

Karl and Greg too?  Damn!  Blew that one big time. Poor planning. Any live Pinnacle gigs planned?

I was supposed to be in Row 21 but a friend and his son said there were a few extra seats in Row 9 center so we ended up watching it from there most of the night.

You going to Marillion?

[cramx3]

Anyone going to the NJ show tomorrow?

Show doesn't look as empty as it did a month ago on ticketmaster.  Still haven't bought a ticket, but some of the tickets on stubhub are below face value so might pick one up there or maybe just a cheap ticket in the back where hopefully I won't be bothered by security.

[OpenYourEyes311]

Saw the Worcester show last night in the front row. It was awesome! The band sounded tight, James sounded incredible. I think I heard the total number of tickets sold was about 750, and because of the fact I was in front, it really seemed like an intimate performance.

[Chino]

Anyone going to the NJ show tomorrow?

Show doesn't look as empty as it did a month ago on ticketmaster.  Still haven't bought a ticket, but some of the tickets on stubhub are below face value so might pick one up there or maybe just a cheap ticket in the back where hopefully I won't be bothered by security.

Dude on FB by the name of "Joe Digsby" just posted to the DT FB page "FREE TICKET for tonight at newark jn. message me please"

[cfmoran13]

Anyone going to the NJ show tomorrow?

Show doesn't look as empty as it did a month ago on ticketmaster.  Still haven't bought a ticket, but some of the tickets on stubhub are below face value so might pick one up there or maybe just a cheap ticket in the back where hopefully I won't be bothered by security.

My wife and I are going tonight to see them for the first time since ATDoE.  Looking forward to it.  Been giving The Astonishing a few more listens lately.  I'm liking it more than when it came out.

[cramx3]

Hm, thought I responded to this thread an hour ago, but Im pretty much losing my mind at the moment and axeman can verify that as I sent him a random text message too lol

But I snagged a front row ticket for tonight on ticketmaster.  I had the page loaded and constantly refreshing all day to see if any good seats opened up and one seat in the front row center became available and I immediately bought it.

[El Barto]

Hm, thought I responded to this thread an hour ago, but Im pretty much losing my mind at the moment and axeman can verify that as I sent him a random text message too lol

But I snagged a front row ticket for tonight on ticketmaster.  I had the page loaded and constantly refreshing all day to see if any good seats opened up and one seat in the front row center became available and I immediately bought it.

Really easy to do with DT. If it's not something that'll be in high demand, that is.

[cramx3]

Hm, thought I responded to this thread an hour ago, but Im pretty much losing my mind at the moment and axeman can verify that as I sent him a random text message too lol

But I snagged a front row ticket for tonight on ticketmaster.  I had the page loaded and constantly refreshing all day to see if any good seats opened up and one seat in the front row center became available and I immediately bought it.

Really easy to do with DT. If it's not something that'll be in high demand, that is.

Yup, that's what I was waiting for, but I was also totally willing to buy the cheapest ticket as well so that's the risk I was willing to take.  That's not always the case though for me.

[cramx3]

And upon checking again out of curiosity some more good seats opened up, but more weirdly, all the balcony seats are for sale again that were not available earlier.  So essentially the place looks like itll be empty.    Oh well, I know I will be there in the front row enjoying my evening    Otherwise I'd be pulling out hairs watching the debate 

[El Barto]

Fourth row center now fetching $20/ea on Stubhub.

[SystematicThought]

DT posted this picture on their Facebook advertising their Diamond package where you get to walk on the stage before the show or something like that. I couldn't help but kind of laugh at the picture, but I was curious if the new package was an attempt to get more ticket sales

[El Barto]

Have they added a new package, or have they just added more access? This just seems to me like adding some value. As for increasing ticket sales, this makes no difference. The people who will spend money to shake hands and get a picture have probably already done so. It's a commercial for that package, but it's not going to put 200 more people in seats which is what they need.

[SystematicThought]

Apparently if you purchase a platinum package you will be contacted about upgrading to the Diamond

[jsbru]

I can see why this second leg isn't selling great except for a few places.  I did drive 4 hours to see them at a nearly sold-out show in Chicago, with VIP tickets.  It was one of the most amazing shows I've ever seen.

It's hard for me to convince myself to spend even $30 to see them here in St. Louis when they're about 10 minutes away on the train and I won't even have to pay for parking.  Because.....it's the exact same show, and it won't feel nearly as exciting with half of the Peabody Opera House empty.

Thing is, even the FL shows look like they're drawing poor attendance.  I just don't understand why they've chosen to play where they have.  3 Central FL shows, but none in South FL?

They definitely should have done an abridged version of The Astonishing, with a second set of other songs.  I'd go see that in a heartbeat.

Anyhow, their costs are probably a lot lower this time around because most of their overhead has been paid for, and there simply lugging around the setup that's already been paid for, etc.  Maybe it's just a fun thing for them to be playing in smaller theaters.

[cramx3]

I think that picture was supposed to be a bit of comedy/"look we have old lady fans" but mostly to advertise a new package they are offering.  Which works for these poor selling shows at it creates more income from the people who are going.  There isn't anything they can do to get more butts in the seats without changing the show.

I had an AWESOME time at the show last night, but I wrote my complaints in the complaint thread because there were legit complaints as well and from talking to some of the people at the show, there were a lot of pissed off fans in my section as well as the two people next to me who left at intermission and sat with their arms crossed the entire first half.

[cfmoran13]

Well, last night was, by far, my least favorite DT show I've ever been to.  I knew going in what I was in for.  I am not a fan of TA at all.  But, I've heard other people say they gained a whole new appreciation for the album seeing it played live in its entirety.  Unfortunately, I did not gain that appreciation.  James did a great job with the material.  I just don't like it.  And, I've never felt so disconnected at a DT show (having I've seen them over 20 times since '94).  I find the songs lacking in any kind of energy.  The first hour of the show felt like it had been three hours.  The only time I felt any real energy in the venue was during "Our New World".  A couple of times of times, James asked the crowd to sing along.  I kinda laughed to myself because, to be honest, other than ONW, I couldn't have sung along if i wanted to since I don't even know the words.  Nothing on that album compelled me to make that kind of commitment.

Like I said, I knew what I was in for when I bought the tickets.  I'm just happy that, after last night's show, I'll hopefully never hear any of those songs (except one or two) live again.

Having never been there before, I thought the venue was pretty cool.  It's a shame it couldn't have been more full.  And, the whole "Don't access your cell phone at any time during the performance" announcement, is that from the band or the venue?  That's a pretty extreme request to make.

[pantsofeternity]

I've seen some great DT setlists (TOT and DT12 tours especially), but the two TA shows I attended were probably my most enjoyable DT live experiences.  Not to take away from others' criticisms, which I totally understand and respect, but many of the things people complain about were actually improvements for me:

• I love TA to begin with;
• I think it's cool that they're presenting just the album as a single work;
• I like treating a rock concert like it's an evening at the theater (though please understand that you will see me rocking out in my seat at Broadway shows, so an evening at the theater to me is not a passive event);
• I don't mind sitting down for concerts because (a) I like standing to be reserved for key moments of appreciation and (b) my feet get tired;
• I hate cell phones at concerts.

I'm honestly shocked I'm fairly alone on that last one; there's plenty of curmudgeonly folks on this forum, right?  I'm no Luddite, but I just don't see the point of taking concert video (the audio is always garbage, and I'd rather focus on being in the moment than getting something to watch later).  Photos I get, but I hate having other people's phones in my face while I'm trying to watch.  I just don't think the phone restriction is that big a deal. Phones are terrible at movie theaters and Broadway shows; I don't think they're any less annoying at a rock show. My two cents, of course... flame away.

[El Barto]

I've never seen anybody here defend cellphones at concerts. I'm actually pretty cool with them and I'm an outlier. What people have been objecting to on this tour is the hardassed nature of the shows. Security at these things have been particularly obnoxious due to the bands request.

[Chino]

I've never seen anybody here defend cellphones at concerts. I'm actually pretty cool with them and I'm an outlier. What people have been objecting to on this tour is the hardassed nature of the shows. Security at these things have been particularly obnoxious due to the bands request.

I don't mind cellphone use at concerts, as long as some decent etiquette is used. Snap a few pics? No issue there whatsoever. Start taking video? You begin to annoy me. Record multiple songs consecutively in their entirety? Fuck off. Bring in a tablet as your media capturing device? Kill yourself. 

[pantsofeternity]

I've never seen anybody here defend cellphones at concerts. I'm actually pretty cool with them and I'm an outlier. What people have been objecting to on this tour is the hardassed nature of the shows. Security at these things have been particularly obnoxious due to the bands request.

Huh, I guess I just haven't had any bad experiences with security personally.

[El Barto]

I've never seen anybody here defend cellphones at concerts. I'm actually pretty cool with them and I'm an outlier. What people have been objecting to on this tour is the hardassed nature of the shows. Security at these things have been particularly obnoxious due to the bands request.

Huh, I guess I just haven't had any bad experiences with security personally.

RCMH was the first time I actually wanted to sock one of those assholes, and I wasn't alone. First text I got after the show was something to effect of "Linda came real close to kicking a security guard's ass."

[cfmoran13]

I've seen some great DT setlists (TOT and DT12 tours especially), but the two TA shows I attended were probably my most enjoyable DT live experiences.  Not to take away from others' criticisms, which I totally understand and respect, but many of the things people complain about were actually improvements for me:

• I love TA to begin with;
• I think it's cool that they're presenting just the album as a single work;
• I like treating a rock concert like it's an evening at the theater (though please understand that you will see me rocking out in my seat at Broadway shows, so an evening at the theater to me is not a passive event);
• I don't mind sitting down for concerts because (a) I like standing to be reserved for key moments of appreciation and (b) my feet get tired;
• I hate cell phones at concerts.

I'm honestly shocked I'm fairly alone on that last one; there's plenty of curmudgeonly folks on this forum, right?  I'm no Luddite, but I just don't see the point of taking concert video (the audio is always garbage, and I'd rather focus on being in the moment than getting something to watch later).  Photos I get, but I hate having other people's phones in my face while I'm trying to watch.  I just don't think the phone restriction is that big a deal. Phones are terrible at movie theaters and Broadway shows; I don't think they're any less annoying at a rock show. My two cents, of course... flame away.

I agree cell phones are annoying during concerts.  However, I was scolded from 30 feet away for taking a picture of me and my wife with the stage in back of us 20 minutes before the show started.  The announcement made it sound like you should turn it off during the performance.  When you have children being babysat at home, that's a little extreme.  Obviously, my phone stayed on.  Just not used for pics/vids.

I'd agree with the rest of your points, too... if I didn't dislike TA.  Cool idea overall.  Would've worked better for me if it was for SFaM of SDoIT.

[cramx3]

I've never seen anybody here defend cellphones at concerts. I'm actually pretty cool with them and I'm an outlier. What people have been objecting to on this tour is the hardassed nature of the shows. Security at these things have been particularly obnoxious due to the bands request.

Huh, I guess I just haven't had any bad experiences with security personally.

RCMH was the first time I actually wanted to sock one of those assholes, and I wasn't alone. First text I got after the show was something to effect of "Linda came real close to kicking a security guard's ass."

I was threatened a few times to be kicked out by security at RCMH.  I was pretty drunk so I can't defend my actions of wanting to jump and run down the aisle and use my camera, but I never got kicked out because I kept pretending like I didn't know what the usher was saying.

Last night I didnt even attempt to do anything cause I just wanted to sit back and enjoy the show, which I very much did.  But the ushers were even worse than RCMH last night.  And they were TOLD to be that way, not their interpretation of the rules as they told me.  The asshole usher was actually pretty nice during intermission when some of the complaints were brought to him in a respectful manner.  He was just doing his job.

As for phones, I love using my phone at a concert.  I hate when someone tells me you aren't enjoying the show.  Fuck off.  I'm almost always having a blast.  However, I am very much respectful as to not over use or not block someone else's view with my camera.  I even have a youtube page for my videos which usually gets a few compliments like "I'm so glad you got this recorded".  Also, the audio on cameras now is great.

[utopiarun]

I've never seen anybody here defend cellphones at concerts. I'm actually pretty cool with them and I'm an outlier. What people have been objecting to on this tour is the hardassed nature of the shows. Security at these things have been particularly obnoxious due to the bands request.

Huh, I guess I just haven't had any bad experiences with security personally.

RCMH was the first time I actually wanted to sock one of those assholes, and I wasn't alone. First text I got after the show was something to effect of "Linda came real close to kicking a security guard's ass."

I was threatened a few times to be kicked out by security at RCMH.  I was pretty drunk so I can't defend my actions of wanting to jump and run down the aisle and use my camera, but I never got kicked out because I kept pretending like I didn't know what the usher was saying.

Last night I didnt even attempt to do anything cause I just wanted to sit back and enjoy the show, which I very much did.  But the ushers were even worse than RCMH last night.  And they were TOLD to be that way, not their interpretation of the rules as they told me.  The asshole usher was actually pretty nice during intermission when some of the complaints were brought to him in a respectful manner.  He was just doing his job.

As for phones, I love using my phone at a concert.  I hate when someone tells me you aren't enjoying the show.  Fuck off.  I'm almost always having a blast.  However, I am very much respectful as to not over use or not block someone else's view with my camera.  I even have a youtube page for my videos which usually gets a few compliments like "I'm so glad you got this recorded".  Also, the audio on cameras now is great.

Well, to the best of your knowledge you aren't blocking someone else's view. The truth is, even if you aren't holding the phone up, the light from the phone is a distraction in a dark audience (at least to me). I enjoyed the show immensely last night (I love TA) and not having to look around a phone or see a phone light in front of me made it better.

[cramx3]

I've never seen anybody here defend cellphones at concerts. I'm actually pretty cool with them and I'm an outlier. What people have been objecting to on this tour is the hardassed nature of the shows. Security at these things have been particularly obnoxious due to the bands request.

Huh, I guess I just haven't had any bad experiences with security personally.

RCMH was the first time I actually wanted to sock one of those assholes, and I wasn't alone. First text I got after the show was something to effect of "Linda came real close to kicking a security guard's ass."

I was threatened a few times to be kicked out by security at RCMH.  I was pretty drunk so I can't defend my actions of wanting to jump and run down the aisle and use my camera, but I never got kicked out because I kept pretending like I didn't know what the usher was saying.

Last night I didnt even attempt to do anything cause I just wanted to sit back and enjoy the show, which I very much did.  But the ushers were even worse than RCMH last night.  And they were TOLD to be that way, not their interpretation of the rules as they told me.  The asshole usher was actually pretty nice during intermission when some of the complaints were brought to him in a respectful manner.  He was just doing his job.

As for phones, I love using my phone at a concert.  I hate when someone tells me you aren't enjoying the show.  Fuck off.  I'm almost always having a blast.  However, I am very much respectful as to not over use or not block someone else's view with my camera.  I even have a youtube page for my videos which usually gets a few compliments like "I'm so glad you got this recorded".  Also, the audio on cameras now is great.

Well, to the best of your knowledge you aren't blocking someone else's view. The truth is, even if you aren't holding the phone up, the light from the phone is a distraction in a dark audience (at least to me). I enjoyed the show immensely last night (I love TA) and not having to look around a phone or see a phone light in front of me made it better.

And I put my screen at the lowest light setting which I admit will still create some light, but certainly not something that I would have thought would ever bother anyone.  But I take these extra precautions because I know it IS bothersome.  I see people with bright screens, using flash photography, sticking their phone so high in the air.  I try to get a few shots without doing any of this.  I've yet to have a single person ask me to stop (and while many wouldn't say anything, i think by now at least one person would have asked me to stop if I was being bothersome).

There is definitely a fine line between using your camera in a way that isn't bothersome vs. is bothersome.