Overture 1928

[bosk1]

Recently re-listened to Overture 1928, and was struck by how brilliantly it works, both as a true overture, and as a finely constructed piece of music.

Yeah, I've listened to it a million times.  But in watching Doug Helvering's reaction video to the entire SFAM album, this was the first time in a very long time that I really listened to it with a critical ear.  Since SFAM, a lot of albums I have listened to have overtures.  Neal Morse is perhaps the most prolific writer of overtures in recent memory.  But what often jumps out at me in overtures in progressive, or metal, or rock music in general is that the overtures often are great at introducing the musical themes of an album (which is the whole point of an overture), but aren't great pieces of music on their own and sound kind of like they are just copy-and-paste with hastily-contructed transitions.  In contrast, Overture 1928 not only does a fantastic job of introducing major musical themes (and linking back to themes from Metropolis pt. 1), but it also does some other things particularly well:  (1) it internally reuses musical ideas and evolves them, and (2) it revisits musical themes in a way that make it feel like a cohesive piece of music on its own rather than a collection of "copy/paste; insert transition"; and (3) it has great transitions that sound logical rather than abrupt.

So, maybe it doesn't need its own thread.  But I have a newfound appreciation and wanted to throw it out there if others are inclined to discuss.

[lovethedrake]

Have always considered it to be their best instrumental song.  SFAM is my favorite album by DT and one of my favorite albums so this is not news to me of course.  Regression, which I love despite being a total pigs on the wing ripoff and then the build up to Overture 1928 and the way the guitars come crashing in after the drum build up is just brilliant.

This brings me to an interesting point... I always felt like DT was heavily influenced by Pink Floyd in the 90's. I would love it if that side of them would come back.  I like DoT a lot but still miss some of the more atmospheric aspects of DT.   I also think James really shines when he sings like Waters/Gilmore.   Peruvian Skies intro, Spirit Carries On, Regression, etc....

Anyways, back to overture 1928... its amazing.

[geeeemo]

Have always considered it to be their best instrumental song.  SFAM is my favorite album by DT and one of my favorite albums so this is not news to me of course.  Regression, which I love despite being a total pigs on the wing ripoff and then the build up to Overture 1928 and the way the guitars come crashing in after the drum build up is just brilliant.

This brings me to an interesting point... I always felt like DT was heavily influenced by Pink Floyd in the 90's. I would love it if that side of them would come back.  I like DoT a lot but still miss some of the more atmospheric aspects of DT.   I also think James really shines when he sings like Waters/Gilmore.   Peruvian Skies intro, Spirit Carries On, Regression, etc....

Anyways, back to overture 1928... its amazing.

I too have been hoping for more atmosphere like you are saying.

[Chino]

One of DT's best tracks imo.

[Buddyhunter1]

Works well as both a song and an overture, like you said. Same with Dystopian Overture (which is honestly my favorite song from The Astonishing, if I had to pick one). Both are leagues better than Overture from 6DOIT, imo.

[smegolas]

Have always loved it. It works so great as a stand alone track. Honestly, I wish DT would do more music like this as they are so good at it. It doesnt all need to be so complicated.

[Revenge319]

Overture 1928 (and the whole of the Metropolis Part 2 album, really) is just one of those things where I think about it and say, "It's good, but it's not THAT good". And then I listen to it again and say, "Oh, this actually IS that good!"
I definitely agree that Overture 1928 works well as both an overture and a standalone song.

[zappafrank2112]

A true overture in the sense of the word, rivaled only by 2112

[NoFred]

Works well as both a song and an overture, like you said. Same with Dystopian Overture (which is honestly my favorite song from The Astonishing, if I had to pick one). Both are leagues better than Overture from 6DOIT, imo.

Agreed 100%

[Dublagent66]

I've been waiting for this reaction from Doug.  Was gonna check it now, but decided to wait until tonight when I'm stoned and drunk.   

[dparrott]

It's perfection.  Fun, high energy, groovy, not overly prog, all musicians slay it, great riffs, I love it to death.

[Dream Team]

Always have loved the song, best instrumental . And eff Pink Floyd.

[KevShmev]

Overture 1928 is awesome.  Flows well, does a great job at featuring some of the major themes without feeling like they went out of their way to cram as many in as possible, and is very melodic.  Great, great song.

[BeatriceNB]

Have always considered it to be their best instrumental song.  SFAM is my favorite album by DT and one of my favorite albums so this is not news to me of course.  Regression, which I love despite being a total pigs on the wing ripoff and then the build up to Overture 1928 and the way the guitars come crashing in after the drum build up is just brilliant.

This brings me to an interesting point... I always felt like DT was heavily influenced by Pink Floyd in the 90's. I would love it if that side of them would come back.  I like DoT a lot but still miss some of the more atmospheric aspects of DT.   I also think James really shines when he sings like Waters/Gilmore.   Peruvian Skies intro, Spirit Carries On, Regression, etc....

Anyways, back to overture 1928... its amazing.

Not only in the '90s. Goodnight Kiss is essentially a The Wall leftover (alternatively, it's Don't Leave Me Now + ABITW 2 solo). Octavarium -album and song- has lots of Pink Floyd references (on top of my head, Shine On intro, High Hopes birds/bells, Welcome To The Machine soundscapes, Great Gig weird pitch shift in the end of the song, and more I can't remember). The intro to Spirit Carries On in Score is as close you can get to Coming Back To Life without playing the song itself. Systematic Chaos has the Shine On-style bookends separation using wind sound effects.
The solo section in Breaking All Illusions is pretty Pink Floyd-esque too.

[BeatriceNB]

Always have loved the song, best instrumental . And eff Pink Floyd.

IKR, how dare they to be the only '70s Prog band that actually knew how to write good music 

[DTiwbwMP]

Overture 1928 is awesome.  Flows well, does a great job at featuring some of the major themes without feeling like they went out of their way to cram as many in as possible, and is very melodic.  Great, great song.

+1

[HOF]

I agree about this being a good composition and not just a good introduction to the album themes. Overtures in general can get really cheesy. But if you actually write an interesting piece of music and subtly slip in some album themes they can be really cool.

[Bertie_Wooster]

I kind of like the demo version better. I like how the drums smack you in the face at the beginning of the song

[Ben_Jamin]

Overture 1928 was a highlight of the Distant Memories tour. When the full band enters and the lights got brighter, that's when I knew that I was actually seeing the band play SFAM live in it's entirety. It almost feels like that's how most of the audience felt as well, as I remember a lot of guys around me air drumming and singing along to the melodies. Then it builds and transitions extremely well into Strange Deja-Vu, where JLB comes in.

[Volante99]

It's one of those quintessential DT songs for me highlights what the band is all about. Proggy, theatrical, and excellent solo-ing by JR and JP. You also got the "Alex Lifeson" chord.

[Architeuthis]

Always have loved the song, best instrumental . And eff Pink Floyd.

IKR, how dare they to be the only '70s Prog band that actually knew how to write good music 

Rush and Yes would like to have a word with you.. 😉

Overture 1928 is pretty hard to top, it just flows so nicely and so melodic.  I will have to say that I like Dystopian Overture just as much in it's own way and I like TA better than SFAM..   

[lovethedrake]

Always have loved the song, best instrumental . And eff Pink Floyd.

IKR, how dare they to be the only '70s Prog band that actually knew how to write good music 

Rush and Yes would like to have a word with you.. 😉

Overture 1928 is pretty hard to top, it just flows so nicely and so melodic.  I will have to say that I like Dystopian Overture just as much in it's own way and I like TA better than SFAM..   

Don't forget the best prog Band... Genesis.

[Stadler]

This brings me to an interesting point... I always felt like DT was heavily influenced by Pink Floyd in the 90's. I would love it if that side of them would come back.  I like DoT a lot but still miss some of the more atmospheric aspects of DT.   I also think James really shines when he sings like Waters/Gilmore.   Peruvian Skies intro, Spirit Carries On, Regression, etc....

I never quite thought of it in exactly that way, but I agree with this wholeheartedly.

[rab7]

Despite being the 4th song I heard on the album (and 5th DT song overall), I consider Overture 1928 to be THE song that truly got me into Dream Theater.

I remember the moment of sitting in my room, and just realizing "this is the music I've been looking for my whole life, and this is my new favorite band".

Because of this, overture 1928 will always have a special place in my heart. All that's been said about how it works as an introduction to themes and a standalone track, I also agree with 100%

[axeman90210]

One of my favorite from SFAM. As others have said, functions great both as an overture and a standalone piece of music, and I *love* Petrucci's leads.

Also, one of my favorite concerts in recent memory was when this was the first song at the NYC Shattered Fortress show. The crowd was so electric that night, I still get goosebumps thinking about how loudly the crowd sang along with the guitar solos.

[BeatriceNB]

Always have loved the song, best instrumental . And eff Pink Floyd.

IKR, how dare they to be the only '70s Prog band that actually knew how to write good music 

Rush and Yes would like to have a word with you.. 😉

Overture 1928 is pretty hard to top, it just flows so nicely and so melodic.  I will have to say that I like Dystopian Overture just as much in it's own way and I like TA better than SFAM..   

Don't forget the best prog Band... Genesis.

Rush are really good, although I'm not a fan of all of their work.
Yes and Genesis are essentially unlistenable for me.
But in all seriousness, King Crimson and Van Der Graaf Generator are the other two '70s Prog bands I enjoy, really good Jazz-y approach. Rush I enjoy too.

[pg1067]

Always have loved the song, best instrumental . And eff Pink Floyd.

IKR, how dare they to be the only '70s Prog band that actually knew how to write good music 

I'm with Dream Team.  Floyd blows.

[425]

Pink Floyd knew how to write good music, but all too often they decided to stop doing that and instead insert a bunch of sound effects or noise or Roger Waters political manifestos. I definitely put them behind Rush and Genesis, my favorite songwriters of the big 70s prog bands, and slightly behind Yes, who also combined the knowledge of how to write songs with a tendency to sometimes just not do that—although I prefer long sequences of instrumental noodling to the aforementioned Floydian substitutes for music.

As for Overture 1928: I had a similar thought while watching Doug's reaction, bosk. Reflecting back on my experiences with it, it's the rare prog overture that I really listen to as a composition in its own right, as opposed to just a part of the album. And it's one of the only ones where I don't find myself doing much of spotting "oh, yes, there's that theme from that song, and here's this theme from another one," outside of the obvious Metropolis Pt. 1 references at the beginning and in the "watches and thoughtfully smiles" melody. I could place most of the sections if I thought about it, but I always find myself just experiencing Overture 1928 as Overture 1928.