Official Distance Over Time discussion thread

[ich bin besser]

Just unpacked the Deluxe Collector's Box Set. Looks awesome!
Hope the new music gets me back into DT (being a fan since I & W came out).

[Grappler]

Ok, thanks. So, I am clear to discuss it then.

I'll stay vague and just personally reflect on my feelings after listening to it a few times, more because I still want folks to enjoy it themselves the first time and not rely on other peoples' descriptions of each individual songs. Hopefully my comments help pump up the excitement and anticipation for DoT a little more.

I really, really like this album, and its the first one, for me personally, in FOREVER that continues to grow on me the more I listen. The record, for me, clearly has this combination of Images & Words, Awake, SFAM, and Train of Thought going on that hits a sweet spot for me. The songs are shorter, but aren't any less technical. There's a warmth to the recording that really makes it come alive.

A few individual song comments that I'll keep brief: At Wit's End is every bit as good as the hype. The outro solo on it is not overly technical, and repeats the same riff motif, but its SO emotional. It just pegs something musically to match the topic, and I love it. I really enjoyed Barstool Warrior as well. Viper King doesn't really fit stylistically, but it was fun to listen to. It could have fit really well onto FII with the Jon Lord-inspired keyboards.

If you've followed my posts over the years, you know I haven't been a big fan of what Dream Theater has done post-Train of Thought. And that wasn't the heaviness. I am not sure how to describe it, but I felt like the influences of the band came to the surface too much, the songs were more focused on technicality and lost some mood and feeling, etc. I know all of that is really personal to each person, and that's how I thought. Even with the switch to Mangini, I wasn't blown away, and I drifted a bit further from DT.

I'm from Long Island. Lived there the first 25 years of my life, and I still consider myself a Long Islander, and I'm proud of the musicians from my home. I became a Dream Theater fan with ACOS and then FII, going backwards to get Awake and Images. I saw them live for the first time (twice) in 1998 (opening for Deep Purple and ELP, and then the 12/29/98 holiday show in NYC). I've seen them 13 or 14 times total, all across the United States. So, what I'm trying to say is, I beat the drum as a fan of theirs through Train of Thought. And even after that, when I really wasn't a fan of what they were doing, I still was a Dream Theater supporter. But I haven't been a FAN in quite some time.

Thankfully, thanks to DoT, I am again a FAN of what the band is doing. It brilliantly captures Dream Theater's past in a way that makes it completely modern, without sacrificing both technicality and melody. I liken it to the same feeling I got with Fates Warning's Theories of Flight a couple years back. It expertly weaves all eras of the band's sound and presents it in a way that sounds fresh, exciting and inspiring.

My personal favorites (so far):

At Wit's End
Paralyzed
Pale Blue Dot

Thanks Dream Theater. I needed this one. If you're an old school fan that really separated from DT over the last decade or so, give this one a spin. You won't regret it.

This really echoes my feelings on the album.  I've only listened to it full through twice and have to spend a lot of time with it, but that first listen made me feel like I was really listening to a classic Dream Theater album again.  The last time I felt like that was when Train of Thought came out.  Ever since then, each disc has a few songs I like and I have trouble connecting to or even enjoying the rest - it always comes across like Dream Theater paint by numbers.

Absolutely loving this disc!

[MirrorMask]

Just unpacked the Deluxe Collector's Box Set. Looks awesome!
Hope the new music gets me back into DT (being a fan since I & W came out).

Even the standard digipack version is cool. A vast improvement over the self titled (booklet glued to the case, gaaaah!) and The Astonishing (booklet glued, lyrics in very standard Arial font and white writing on a white background on the back cover. Ugh)

[rumborak]

Rumbo, have you read Pale Blue Dot? Here is an excerpt:

"Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there--on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.

The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds.

Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves."

Is that not what the song is about?

I can only speak for myself and my personal interpretation of Sagan's speech here. While Carl indeed uses a lot of words like destroyer, blood, war etc, the point of the speech is to show the exact opposite it, the futility of our local feuds. There is a vibe of serenity, standing above those earthly things, and when I heard about the topic of the song I expected that vibe to be reflected in the music. Again, just my personal opinion, but I mostly get the ITPOE war-like vibe from the song. That doesn't make it bad or anything, I was just looking forward for a DT "space epic".

[skydivingninja]

Welp. Back from a several-year absence. As someone who haaaaaated DT12 and the Astonishing, this is a pleasant surprise. Mostly. I dig all of Petrucci's solos. I appreciate the audible bass even if it sounds like Myung has fallen into a now-tired "Darkglass pedal metal bass" tone, and I'm always a fan of Rudess on piano.

There are still a bunch of issues. There are only a handful of really catchy choruses, still quite a few tracks that are absolute duds (which I was hoping wouldn't be the case since they made this album shorter), and the vocal melodies on the whole are really lackluster. I imagine its because James needs to hit these live, so he writes stuff that's easier to hit with his current range. Speaking of James, wtf is with all the reverb on his voice? I'm not sure it helps. It buries his voice rather than making it feel bigger (which I imagine was the original intent). Unfortunately I think only Barstool Warrior and At Wit's End are the only tracks that can compete with the best of their pre-DT12 material.

All that being said, it is so much better than DT12 and the Astonishing. 6/10.

Track ranking:

1. Barstool Warrior - Why did they have to give the best song on the album the dumbest name. Lot of Fish-era Marillion vibes on this one but it all works really well. Kind of reminds me of "A New Beginning" in that way, but with better lyrics.
2. At Wit's End - Oh hey DT remembered how to write good long songs.
3. Untethered Angel - Surprisingly good single and one of the better choruses
4. S2N - Lots of great ideas here (it starts off as a real banger except for that stupid robot voice). Could do without the keyboard solo at the end.
5. Out of Reach - Start off with Wither vibes on this one. Pretty good ballad.
6. Fall Into the Light - Big fan of Petrucci's solo but the first half is just okay.
7. Paralyzed - The now-traditional heavy DT single. Its not bad, its not great.
8. Pale Blue Dot - Oh crap DT forgot how to write good long songs. Okay in fairness it starts off well and then just gets bland. I wonder if Jordan has hidden the existence of envelope filter pedals from JM, because if JM ever finds out about them, Jordan's snarling pig patch is basically obsolete.
9. Viper King - I will hand it to DT, "Deep Purple soundalike novelty song" was not something I would ever expect from them. Unfortunately, James has trouble consistently singing in his upper register even in the studio.
10. Room 137 - Boring and bland.

[Skeever]

Welp. Back from a several-year absence. As someone who haaaaaated DT12 and the Astonishing, this is a pleasant surprise. Mostly. I dig all of Petrucci's solos. I appreciate the audible bass even if it sounds like Myung has fallen into a now-tired "Darkglass pedal metal bass" tone, and I'm always a fan of Rudess on piano.

There are still a bunch of issues. There are only a handful of really catchy choruses, still quite a few tracks that are absolute duds (which I was hoping wouldn't be the case since they made this album shorter), and the vocal melodies on the whole are really lackluster. I imagine its because James needs to hit these live, so he writes stuff that's easier to hit with his current range. Speaking of James, wtf is with all the reverb on his voice? I'm not sure it helps. It buries his voice rather than making it feel bigger (which I imagine was the original intent). Unfortunately I think only Barstool Warrior and At Wit's End are the only tracks that can compete with the best of their pre-DT12 material.

All that being said, it is so much better than DT12 and the Astonishing. 6/10.

Track ranking:

1. Barstool Warrior - Why did they have to give the best song on the album the dumbest name. Lot of Fish-era Marillion vibes on this one but it all works really well. Kind of reminds me of "A New Beginning" in that way, but with better lyrics.
2. At Wit's End - Oh hey DT remembered how to write good long songs.
3. Untethered Angel - Surprisingly good single and one of the better choruses
4. S2N - Lots of great ideas here (it starts off as a real banger except for that stupid robot voice). Could do without the keyboard solo at the end.
5. Out of Reach - Start off with Wither vibes on this one. Pretty good ballad.
6. Fall Into the Light - Big fan of Petrucci's solo but the first half is just okay.
7. Paralyzed - The now-traditional heavy DT single. Its not bad, its not great.
8. Pale Blue Dot - Oh crap DT forgot how to write good long songs. Okay in fairness it starts off well and then just gets bland. I wonder if Jordan has hidden the existence of envelope filter pedals from JM, because if JM ever finds out about them, Jordan's snarling pig patch is basically obsolete.
9. Viper King - I will hand it to DT, "Deep Purple soundalike novelty song" was not something I would ever expect from them. Unfortunately, James has trouble consistently singing in his upper register even in the studio.
10. Room 137 - Boring and bland.

I don't agree with the ranking but otherwise this is pretty similar to my thoughts. For me the keepers are At Wit's End, Out of Reach, and Barstool, and everything else I could take or leave. And really just At Wit's End and Barstool.

I will say it's the best sounding DT album in awhile, James' vocal production aside (which I just find odd, to say the last).

[skydivingninja]

Yeah, props to the mixing and production. It does sound great.

[Gromit1710]

Hnnnng~ Just hit that groove at the end of S2n for the second time.

I think I need a cigarette.

[Max Kuehnau]

They should play as much as is possible from the album on the tour (excluding Viper King maybe) but I'd love to hear PBD, Barstool and AWE. S2N as well probably.

[KevShmev]

I already knew the first three songs, and listened to tracks 4 and 5 on the way to work; they sounded good.

And now I need to hold out on the others till I go out for lunch and can hear them for the first time in my car, since I don't want the initial listen of those songs to be at work with the ear buds in while being distracted with work and other things going on here in the office.

[MirrorMask]

Btw, anyone noticed yet in the credits the mention of "Our court jester, Yorick - alas, we knew him well"? 

Nice nod to the Hamlet vibe of the cover!

[erwinrafael]

They should play as much as is possible from the album on the tour (excluding Viper King maybe) but I'd love to hear PBD, Barstool and AWE. S2N as well probably.

Just play the whole D/T album as first set and SFAM as second set.

[Sir Walrus Cauliflower]

About 2:06-2:34 in At Wit's End sounds very WDADU inspired in the vocal melodies and I dig it. So many little sections and parts on this album where I can hear little just glimpses of older albums. Plus the song is just killer.

[NoseofNicko]

About 2:06-2:34 in At Wit's End sounds very WDADU inspired in the vocal melodies and I dig it.

Love those vocal melodies!

[TAC]

At Wit's End is simply amazing. That opening is such a monster.

My favorite part comes at 5:20-5:30. It's the chunky part between the mellow part and then James starting to sing again.

[erwinrafael]

At Wit's End is simply amazing. That opening is such a monster.

My favorite part comes at 5:20-5:30. It's the chunky part between the mellow part and then James starting to sing again.

Then MM does his off-beat hi-hats. 

[RoeDent]

Very interesting. Not the first time DT have referred to Hamlet in their work...

Very very good album, with definite potential for it to grow further on me. Favourite of the non-singles so far (with the caveat that this may change as I digest the album further) is definitely Barstool Warrior. Pale Blue Dot is such a thrill-ride. I'm also appreciating Fall Into the Light a bit more too.

[fadetoblackdude7]

Gotta say, after being underwhelmed/disappointed by Pale Blue Dot, it has grown on me considerably with more listens. I like how sinister it sounds, and James sounds great with those vocal melodies!

[SeRoX]

For me Fall Into The Light fails to amaze me because of the vocal melodies. Everything else is just perfect but vocals are absent to complete the puzzle.

[cramx3]

They should play as much as is possible from the album on the tour (excluding Viper King maybe) but I'd love to hear PBD, Barstool and AWE. S2N as well probably.

Just play the whole D/T album as first set and SFAM as second set.

I wouldn't be upset if they did this

[V_R11]

For me, there's a lot of stuff I like in the album, but it's somehow missing the wow-factor. I still have some digesting to do, though. I will probably rank it somewhere in the middle of all the albums.

Early favorites, not counting the singles, seem to be Barstool Warrior, Room 137 and At Wit's End

However the overall sound of the album is a little too echoey for my taste. Bummer.

[gmillerdrake]

Was able to get one listen in....gotta say....I really dig it. I like the 'shorter' more concise approach they took with these songs. Trimmed the fat and just made every moment count.

I can't even begin to pick a 'favorite' yet but the two standouts to me first listen were Pale Blue Dot and At Wits End.

[Shooters1221]

Gotta say, after being underwhelmed/disappointed by Pale Blue Dot, it has grown on me considerably with more listens. I like how sinister it sounds, and James sounds great with those vocal melodies!

Agreed, musically, it's very much feeling like Rush's Cygnus X-1 on high amounts of caffeine! Loving the atmosphere of it.

[Sir Walrus Cauliflower]

My favorites after listening through again are At Wit's End, S2N, Pale Blue Dot (Carl Sagan's Pale Blue Dot Speech has been my favorite speech/monologue for years), Barstool Warrior, and Room 137. I still really love Fall Into the Light too. I really, really love Mangini's work on this album. Some of those fills are just impossible. But also his ride work, high hat work, and cymbal work in general. And some of that FII type stuff they sprinkle in is so groovy. Drum sound is great too. I'm really happy Mangini is getting some credit.

[TAC]

I love the late 70's Rush influence I hear.



I love JP's solos. It's not 1000 notes per second all the time.
Like at 5:55 of AWE when he comes out of nowhere with this amazing sounding solo.

[rab7]

Like at 5:55 of AWE when he comes out of nowhere with this amazing sounding solo.

The amazing thing is that it's the same 4 measures repeated over and over and over, sometimes in different octaves, yet it never gets boring. I love it

[erwinrafael]

So the way I see it, after the MP fiasco, the guys needed ADTOE to find their sound again. Then DT self-titled to cut away the excessive playing that became a crutch. Then TA to refocus on writing songs.

And now we have D/T.

[Samsara]

I love the late 70's Rush influence I hear.



I love JP's solos. It's not 1000 notes per second all the time.
Like at 5:55 of AWE when he comes out of nowhere with this amazing sounding solo.

ALL of this. For me personally, it is the most soulful JP has sounded in a very long time. That solo isn't even all that complicated. But the notes resonate with the vibe of the song...ala something harkening back to the I&W-FII days.

[MirrorMask]

Listening now, very first impressions:

Unthered Angel - Clean intro.... and then off we go! I like the initial riff, but the song "quiets down" for the verses, I'm not so sure it will be a good opener. Those effects on James' voice though.... not convinced. Chorus is not bad, it will need more listening!

Paralyzed - I expected a heavy shredfest with such a short song but I was pleasantly suprised by how melodic it sounds! the chorus being just "I am paralyzed" is a bit underwhelming, but the pre-chorus is great. Should have been more "full" like at the end.

Fall into the Light - Whoah, nice Metallica-ish riff at the beginning! Another song melodic and not heavy for the sake of being heavy. Anyway - should I get worried at the lack of memorable choruses so far? awesome melodic breakdown in the middle however!

[gm5k]

I love the late 70's Rush influence I hear.



I love JP's solos. It's not 1000 notes per second all the time.
Like at 5:55 of AWE when he comes out of nowhere with this amazing sounding solo.

ALL of this. For me personally, it is the most soulful JP has sounded in a very long time. That solo isn't even all that complicated. But the notes resonate with the vibe of the song...ala something harkening back to the I&W-FII days.

It's crazy I honestly feel like I'm listening to late 90s JP during that solo.  That's an all time great.

[gmillerdrake]

I've had four solid listens now and honestly the only thing I know for sure is that Room 137 is my 'least' favorite track....but I still dig it.

What I like most about this album is (I'm no audiophile...just a normal music listener) that this 'sounds' like the best mixed album DT has had in some time. At any given moment you can hone in and listen to any one of the band members specifically.

I think that JP, MM and JMX are just showing off in this album....they're spot on and not over the top in any instance. JR feels a bit more subdued than previous albums although I don't mind it...and that's not to say that he doesn't have some cool parts. Just feels like he worked on 'atmosphere control' of the songs which worked out great.

I almost wish they'd just play this whole album and Scenes on the Tour

[Another_Won]

Looks like we're back  D/T is so awesome it overloaded this forum 

I've been trying to listen to bits and pieces here at work and it's driving me nuts.  The songs are all so awesome just like you guys have said.  I'll need at least a couple of good dedicated listens on headphones once I get home.

[DebraKadabra]

Um... let's just put it this way - I'm glad I have tickets for all three Texas shows. This is gonna sound SO sick live!

That, and I officially cannot word. WOW. 

[ReaPsTA]

Looks like we're back  D/T is so awesome it overloaded this forum 

No kidding. Even the Youtube comments are positive.

[romdrums]

There's a swagger to this record that I haven't heard from DT before.  Even on the darker, heavier stuff, there's an energy and sense of fun that is honestly very refreshing.  You can tell they had a great time with the process of creating this music.  This is exactly the kind of record I wanted them to make after The Astonishing.  Maybe their best since 6 Degrees?