What are your FOUR favorite Dream Theater studio albums?

[Dublagent66]

Yeah, those are obviously the 4 definitive choices.

[bosk1]

I'll be one of the few old timers to boldly say that I&W and Awake do not make my top 4 (but they are 5 and 6). 

1.  Six Degrees
2.  SFAM
3.  ADTOE
4.  DT12

The MM era has been very good, but I don't think any of the albums touch the greatness of I&W, Awake, Scenes or 6DOIT, all of which are legit great albums with no weak or average spots. 

I know I've said this before, but to me, the consistency of ADTOE and DT12 are what put them ahead of I&W and Awake.  The two Mangini-era albums might not have as many "A+ moments" as I&W and Awake, but treading consistently in A-/B+ territory or better for an entire album earns huge points for me.  And to me, both I&W and Awake, despite multiple A+ moments, have some serious valleys as well. 

[gzarruk]

1.  Six Degrees
2.  SFAM
3.  ADTOE
4.  DT12

I ended up voting for these 4 as well

[bosk1]

In the grand scheme, SDoIT was the last "pure" DT album, where prog, metal, and rock were equals

  I don't think this is even remotely correct.     

So what I hate on Losing Time/Grand Finale is the finale part itself. The song is great up through where James sings "a behavior that kept her alive." Then it goes off the rails and comes off like a Broadway number or something. If I could play producer on that track, I'd have JP come in with a solo at that point instead, and then have the band jam out on the groove from the verse with a fade out. Let the whole thing quietly fade off into something a little darker.

I'm not criticizing your taste.  But what I have a problem with in that (aside from the fact that I just like the stuff that comes after) is that that misses the lyrical and thematic climax of the song.  You are left with just a mishmash of stories of different types of mental illness with no overarching point, and stripping out the poignant thread that connects them all.  And while it would still be a really good song, it loses its overall emotional impact with that thematic climax being gutted from it.

[KevShmev]

The MM era has been very good, but I don't think any of the albums touch the greatness of I&W, Awake, Scenes or 6DOIT, all of which are legit great albums with no weak or average spots. 

I know I've said this before, but to me, the consistency of ADTOE and DT12 are what put them ahead of I&W and Awake.  The two Mangini-era albums might not have as many "A+ moments" as I&W and Awake, but treading consistently in A-/B+ territory or better for an entire album earns huge points for me.  And to me, both I&W and Awake, despite multiple A+ moments, have some serious valleys as well.

Not surprisingly, I do not agree, as I think I&W and Awake are both about as perfect as you get, but I would agree that neither ADTOE nor DT12 have any weak spots, but each have something I ding them for in the context of this discussion, the mix in the case of ADTOE, and the lack of any major high highs on DT12.  DT12 is pretty consistent, but if I had to pick what I think is the best song from every DT album and then rank them in order of preference, my pick from that album (Surrender to Reason) would likely rank 14th out of 14 (yes, even behind my pick from the debut).

[CrimsonSunrise]

I&W
Awake
6DOIT
FII

[TAC]

I&W
SFAM
Awake
ADTOE

[nick_z]

The MM era has been very good, but I don't think any of the albums touch the greatness of I&W, Awake, Scenes or 6DOIT, all of which are legit great albums with no weak or average spots. 

I know I've said this before, but to me, the consistency of ADTOE and DT12 are what put them ahead of I&W and Awake.  The two Mangini-era albums might not have as many "A+ moments" as I&W and Awake, but treading consistently in A-/B+ territory or better for an entire album earns huge points for me.  And to me, both I&W and Awake, despite multiple A+ moments, have some serious valleys as well.

What do you consider the most serious valleys in these two albums?

[bosk1]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

[geeeemo]

SFaM
ADTOE
Six Degrees
Octavarium

[KevShmev]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

I actively dislike this post.

[TAC]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

The only sentence in this post that actually makes any sense.

[Dedalus]

I&W
SFAM
SDOIT
ADTOE

[Herrick]

Now I shall ponder upon what are my next favorite 4.

The top 4 are easy.

The bottom 4 are also pretty easy:  FII, TA, SC and BC&SL

That leaves WDADU, TOT, 8VM, ADTOE, DT12 and DOT

Out of those six, TOT and 8VM are defintely in the top four (which probably means overall spots 5 and 6).  I'd say the other two spots go to ADTOE and DT12.

I'm still not sure. I shall ponder upon this over the next few days.

[HOF]

I'm not criticizing your taste.  But what I have a problem with in that (aside from the fact that I just like the stuff that comes after) is that that misses the lyrical and thematic climax of the song.  You are left with just a mishmash of stories of different types of mental illness with no overarching point, and stripping out the poignant thread that connects them all.  And while it would still be a really good song, it loses its overall emotional impact with that thematic climax being gutted from it.

But that's part of what bugs me about it. The explanation of the theme just always felt like kind of lazy story telling/songwriting. Tell the story through the songs themselves, don't give us a cliff notes summary at the end. They sort of do the same thing on Octavarium (the song) and that always bugged me too!

[hefdaddy42]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

The only sentence in this post that actually makes any sense.

I tend to agree with this.

[HOF]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

The only sentence in this post that actually makes any sense.

I tend to agree with this.

Yeah, I like it but do agree that Caught in a Web is more OK than awesome. But it was the first DT song I ever heard way back in 94 or maybe early 95 on the radio, and it stuck with me even though I only probably heard it a couple of times before the DJ who played it was sacked (not really, but it wasn't something that stuck in the rotation!).

[romdrums]

Awake
SDOIT
Images
D/T

[kirksnosehair]

Wow, it's nice to see ADTOE getting some love here.  I still spin that one at least once or twice a month.

[TAC]

Wow, it's nice to see ADTOE getting some love here.  I still spin that one at least once or twice a month.

Defintely! Tons of great tunes.

[pg1067]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

Wow...I wouldn't say I actively dislike AD, but I frequently skip it.  I've also never been able to get into UAGM (although I agree it has its moments).

The track that has NEVER clicked for me on Awake is Innocence Faded, and I actively dislike The Mirror (Lie is a bit better but not great).  I seem to like CIAW better than most, and the rest of the album is stellar.

For me, ADTOE is an album that epitomizes inconsistency.

[geeeemo]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

Wow...I wouldn't say I actively dislike AD, but I frequently skip it.  I've also never been able to get into UAGM (although I agree it has its moments).

The track that has NEVER clicked for me on Awake is Innocence Faded, and I actively dislike The Mirror (Lie is a bit better but not great).  I seem to like CIAW better than most, and the rest of the album is stellar.

For me, ADTOE is an album that epitomizes inconsistency.

I don't actively dislike any songs in I & W, but am just not as into them as other songs on other albums. I don't choose to listen to this album very often.
On Awake, I too actively dislike Innocence Faded and Erotomania. SDV is cool, but only every once in a while. I can't for the life of me understand the grand love for this song! (other than of course everyone has different tastes) 

[kirksnosehair]

Agree on Space Dye Vest - I don't get it either.  Definite skip every time I listen to Awake.

[gzarruk]

Wow, it's nice to see ADTOE getting some love here.  I still spin that one at least once or twice a month.

Defintely! Tons of great tunes.

Great return to form after the last few MP era albums
The self-titled deserves more credit than it gets, too. I think that one and ADTOE complement each other perfectly.

SDV is cool, but only every once in a while. I can't for the life of me understand the grand love for this song! (other than of course everyone has different tastes) 

Same here, it's a good song and it fits the tone of the album, but it's not that great.

[Elite]

Oops, I accidentally voted for my four least favourite ones

[DTA]

SDV is cool, but only every once in a while. I can't for the life of me understand the grand love for this song! (other than of course everyone has different tastes) 

I absolutely love it, and I guess it's because when I first heard it back in 1999ish, none of the music I was listening to had a song quite like it. I was into metal and some prog, but those bands had more traditional sounding ballads whereas SDV was this electronic-based mood piece with a really strong theme. At this point, I've heard a million songs like it so the novelty has worn off, but to me, it's still DT's best ballad after Disappear (though Out of Reach comes close to both) and my initial positive feelings toward it still somewhat remain.

[Volante99]

Images , Awake, Scenes are the obvious choices for me.

4th place is more difficult- Six Degrees probably deserves it but I gave it to ADToE- easily the best album of the Mangini era- it's like the "Casino Royale" of the DT discography; both a return to the roots while pushing the band forward in a new direction.

[Volante99]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

The only sentence in this post that actually makes any sense.

I tend to agree with this.

Haha pretty much. I think he points out some legit weaknesses though. Another Day sounds painfully dated. Take the Time, Surrounded, and UaGM are all choice cuts in my book though.

Regarding Space Dye Vest- I can't make up my mind about this one- on one hand it's an interesting, heavy song, but I think LaBrie's voice doesn't suit this style of music, and brings it down a peg. Innocence Faded is a cheese fest redeemed by a REALLY good outro and Lifting Shadows is a good 3 minute song, not a good 6 minute song.

[WilliamMunny]

On I&W, I actively dislike Another Day.  Surrounded and Take the Time are just so-so songs that I could take or leave, and UAGM has its moments, but isn't much better to me overall.  (the other four songs on the album, however, are stellar)

On Awake, I actively dislike Space Dye Vest.  No interest in Lifting Shadows are Innocence Faded.  Caught in a Web is just "okay." 

Still VERY good albums overall, and as I think I said above, they would be my #5 and #6.  But they are both uneven and not nearly as consistently strong as ADTOE or DT12, despite higher peaks.

The only sentence in this post that actually makes any sense.

I tend to agree with this.

Haha pretty much. I think he points out some legit weaknesses though. Another Day sounds painfully dated. Take the Time, Surrounded, and UaGM are all choice cuts in my book though.

Regarding Space Dye Vest- I can't make up my mind about this one- on one hand it's an interesting, heavy song, but I think LaBrie's voice doesn't suit this style of music, and brings it down a peg. Innocence Faded is a cheese fest redeemed by a REALLY good outro and Lifting Shadows is a good 3 minute song, not a good 6 minute song.

I want to preface this with the following: this is NOT a dig at you, Volante99 - I dig your posts and appreciate your insight. But, something you just wrote got me thinking...

I hear the term 'cheese' all the time, been hearing it for years, and I always think the same thing: what the hell does that mean?

I suppose it boils down to perception. I do not, nor have I ever cared how I appear to others when it comes to music. Music is a personal thing for me, and I refuse to apologize for liking anything. If Innocence Faded is 'cheesy,' (I presume bc of the '80's' metal leanings), then I suppose I love 'cheesy' music.

But I sincerely believe that term is rooted in perception, in that it's embarrassing to like overly-earnest, over-the-top performances reminiscent of music that some might deem 'hair metal.'

For me, I never saw the difference. I bought Slaughter's 'The Wild Life' and Nirvana's 'Bleach' on the same day. I must've missed the memo where one was cool and one wasn't, but for me, as a fan, both albums rocked, albeit, for different reasons.

I work with a guy who loves music, but there is so much he's never listened to because of the stigma he's attached to the music. One day, he comes in and goes, "Have you ever heard of Tesla?"

Um, duh...of course!

"That song 'Edison's Medicine' is amazing...I never listened to them because, you know, they're cheesy hair metal, but what a good song."

Talk about a face palm moment. I mean, listen to whatever you want, but I refuse to let media-coined terminology to dictate what I'm gonna check out next. I refuse to let what's 'cool' color what sounds 'good' to me.

Just my two cents, of course, but the term 'cheese' has always bothered me.

[Volante99]

I hear your point.

"Cheesy" is a pejorative but could also be viewed kind of neutrally. I basically use it as a catch all for over the top, dated, slightly silly, heavy handed. But you could level the same criticism over all of those adjectives. I say "cheese" here every once in awhile because DT (to my tastes) go a bit over the top occasionally; but that's kind of inherent to prog metal. Sometimes the "over the top" qualities hit the mark, sometimes it's a bit much for me (as in the case of Innocence Faded). LaBrie's vocal delivery, the "ahhhs", some of the keyboard parts, the fact that everything is drenched in that 90's Lexicon reverb. It's all "a bit much" to my taste.

There's nothing WRONG with liking a bit of dramatics in music, though. I can like "cheesy", I love hair metal, I love bad 80s horror and action movies, etc. I'm not implying that just because I think a song is over the top for my tastes that should take away your enjoyment of it.

[WilliamMunny]

I hear your point.

"Cheesy" is a pejorative but could also be viewed kind of neutrally. I basically use it as a catch all for over the top, dated, slightly silly, heavy handed. But you could level the same criticism over all of those adjectives. I say "cheese" here every once in awhile because DT (to my tastes) go a bit over the top occasionally; but that's kind of inherent to prog metal. Sometimes the "over the top" qualities hit the mark, sometimes it's a bit much for me (as in the case of Innocence Faded). LaBrie's vocal delivery, the "ahhhs", some of the keyboard parts, the fact that everything is drenched in that 90's Lexicon reverb. It's all "a bit much" to my taste.

There's nothing WRONG with liking a bit of dramatics in music, though. I can like "cheesy", I love hair metal, I love bad 80s horror and action movies, etc. I'm not implying that just because I think a song is over the top for my tastes that should take away your enjoyment of it.

For sure. I hear you, and I think, in your case, I get where you're coming from.

My post was more intended as an open-ended rant (after all, if not here, then where?) on a topic that I encounter all the time.

Literally everything you said is an opinion you formulated.....'silly' is something you are deciding.....which is cool, but for a lot of people, I think their view of 'silly' is informed by outside things.

Again, nothing takes away from my enjoyment, I just fear that the young-in's out there are missing out because they've allowed youtube to paint an entire decade as a 'pass'

(my 12-year old is literally never going to watch a movie from 80's, let alone a black & white film because, as his favorite twitch streamers like to say, that stuff is 'dated')

[gzarruk]

the "ahhhs"

This is something that Portnoy likes to include in pretty much every album he does nowadays and it bothers me a lot
Every time I listen to one of his new releases, specially post-DT, there's the obligatory "ahhhs" in there and I'm like "seriously, again? "

[jammindude]

Cheese is some thing that is different things to different people, but when it's really extreme everybody knows that it's pure cheese.

Manowar for example.

[Volante99]

the "ahhhs"

This is something that Portnoy likes to include in pretty much every album he does nowadays and it bothers me a lot
Every time I listen to one of his new releases, specially post-DT, there's the obligatory "ahhhs" in there and I'm like "seriously, again? "

I would bet it stems from his Beatles obsession actually. They DO seem to do it ALOT in NMB and Flying Colors- it's almost becoming a trope of the Portnoy brand of prog. I don't mind it but it doesn't seem to fit in DT.

[lovethedrake]

Top 4

SFAM
I&W
SDOIT

Huge drop off

Awake

Bottom 4 starting at bottom

ADTOE
SC
Octavarium
DT self titled