Who is MVP of Awake?

[LKap13]

I voted Moore. Toss up between Moore and Labrie for me.

[bosk1]

I'm going to go with James again, as I did with I&W.  The grit and power he brought are amazing and help make the album so dark and edge, which it wouldn't otherwise be.

Moore would be my absolute last choice.  He almost ruins this album for me.

[The Walrus]

I'm going to go with James again, as I did with I&W.  The grit and power he brought are amazing and help make the album so dark and edge, which it wouldn't otherwise be.

Bam, spot on, nuff said.

Moore would be my absolute last choice.  He almost ruins this album for me.

Oh no. We were almost friends.

[pg1067]

Going with JP on this one.  Again, JLB would be a close second.  JM is not as strong on this album.  The thing that struck me the first time I heard Awake was the apparently lack of keyboards on large chunks of the album.

[KevShmev]

Kevin Moore.

His more understated keys help make the album more atmospheric and better overall.

[kaos2900]

I almost went JLB because I love his aggressive tone but went with Petrucci just because he has so many amazing melodies and solos.

[Northern Lion]

I chose MP for this one, the only real reason is because I feel he has been behind the band moving towards a heavier sound.  I think most would agree that this album is much heavier that I&W and my guess is MP had a lot to do with that sound direction.

But JLB and JP are close seconds.

[gmillerdrake]

I'm going to go with James again, as I did with I&W.  The grit and power he brought are amazing and help make the album so dark and edge, which it wouldn't otherwise be.

I went Labrie. I think Awake may have been his best album as far as outright showing off his abilities.

[Cool Chris]

James, if solely on the fact that the stuff they gave him to sing was ridiculous, and he delivered beyond measure.

[Volante99]

Petrucci, this is peak JP, for me, showcasing everything he can do- riffs, chunky rhythm, face melting shred, and his playing is VERY inventive on Awake.

LaBrie is an honorable mention.

[CharlesPL]

JP

[mikeyd23]

James

[Dublagent66]

Went with MP because Awake has the best snare sound I've ever heard.  Crisp, clean and powerful.  Love it.

[The Walrus]

Went with MP because Awake has the best snare sound I've ever heard.  Crisp, clean and powerful.  Love it.

Also agree with this. I think SDOIT and Awake have my favorite MP drum sounds.

[pg1067]

Went with MP because Awake has the best snare sound I've ever heard.  Crisp, clean and powerful.  Love it.

Shouldn't that make John Purdell and Duane Baron the MVPs?

[ReaPsTA]

I'm going to go with James again, as I did with I&W.  The grit and power he brought are amazing and help make the album so dark and edge, which it wouldn't otherwise be.

Yeah. I voted LaBrie in the I&W poll, but this album is peak LaBrie for me. Uses *every* part of his range to full effect. Hard to find another vocal performance like this one.

Moore would be my absolute last choice.  He almost ruins this album for me.

Wait, what?

[Peter Mc]

Has to be Moore for me. Great atmospheric keyboard playing in the likes of Voices and awesome solo in Scarred. Space Dye Vest is also an utterly unique and brilliant song in DT's catalog.

[EPIC Outro]

Moore. Some of the best ambient keyboard moods of any DT album.

Actually, I think they are THE best, with Six Degrees close behind.

[MoraWintersoul]

It's difficult to say. JP is the MVP of Dream Theater overall, he is the source and the engine. Awake was JLB's best performance as a singer and one of the best performances by any singer on any prog metal album.

Still, I voted for Kevin Moore because a) you guys are haters, all of you!  b) a lot of ink has been spilled about whether DT is better with three heads strong in the game or just two. From the beginning with MP, JP and KM really battling it out for how the songs were going to go, then with MP and JP steering the ship until they allowed Rudess to rock the boat more, and the JP/JR show since MP left. They made good and bad albums in all configurations - but my favorite albums come from the first one. And a large part of that is thanks to KM's unique viewpoint, specific taste, lyrical talents, and artistic trajectory.

[LKap13]

It's difficult to say. JP is the MVP of Dream Theater overall, he is the source and the engine. Awake was JLB's best performance as a singer and one of the best performances by any singer on any prog metal album.

Still, I voted for Kevin Moore because a) you guys are haters, all of you!  b) a lot of ink has been spilled about whether DT is better with three heads strong in the game or just two. From the beginning with MP, JP and KM really battling it out for how the songs were going to go, then with MP and JP steering the ship until they allowed Rudess to rock the boat more, and the JP/JR show since MP left. They made good and bad albums in all configurations - but my favorite albums come from the first one. And a large part of that is thanks to KM's unique viewpoint, specific taste, lyrical talents, and artistic trajectory.

Agree

[?]

It's difficult to say. JP is the MVP of Dream Theater overall, he is the source and the engine. Awake was JLB's best performance as a singer and one of the best performances by any singer on any prog metal album.

Still, I voted for Kevin Moore because a) you guys are haters, all of you!  b) a lot of ink has been spilled about whether DT is better with three heads strong in the game or just two. From the beginning with MP, JP and KM really battling it out for how the songs were going to go, then with MP and JP steering the ship until they allowed Rudess to rock the boat more, and the JP/JR show since MP left. They made good and bad albums in all configurations - but my favorite albums come from the first one. And a large part of that is thanks to KM's unique viewpoint, specific taste, lyrical talents, and artistic trajectory.

Yup.

[Infinite Cactus]

Kevin with JP right behind him.

[snapple]

James sells this record.

[TheGreatPretender]

Voted for James as well. To be honest, I'm not as in love with Awake as most DT fans seem to be. I used to think it's a fairly mediocre, maybe even subpar album. But once I familiarized myself with the songs and started singing along to them, that's when the album clicked for me a lot more. It's so much fun and so challenging to sing, that that's what ultimately sold the album for me, and puts it above certain others.

[Max Kuehnau]

James because of how diverse he is on that record (remember that the guy did I/W two years before that)