*Official* A View from the Top of the World discussion thread

[The Letter M]

So according to the piano pattern - are they going to do a live DVD for this album ?

I'd absolutely hope so. *This* album deserves it like few others IMHO.

What piano pattern?

Hopefully this shows up.

-Marc.

[Kotowboy]

Yes that. Hence no dvd for Astonishing but maybe one for A View.

[geeeemo]

So...maybe I am a little slow but, I never feel completely comfortable with the first listen.  I find there is almost too much going in my head to completely tune in and enjoy it.  It is almost like I am trying to listen too hard and force love on the first listen.  The melodies almost never click on the first couple of listens.  I do not want them to just crank out the same old thing every album and they don't disappoint there....otherwise I would already be used to the sound/feel/melodies...right?  For example, the first time I listened to SFAM I walked away unsatisfied and didn't come back for quite awhile....looking back does anyone here think that wasn't insane?  I certainly do.

Many DT songs are like this for me. But, I don't think it's ever been most of the songs on the entire album.
The prog elements I like are the long songs, story-telling and the great instrumentals within the songs. I feel like there are more of the other proggy elements here that I wonder if I relate to.
There is a Lot going on here. And I haven't sorted out anything. It will take a while.
I hope the lyrics and their melodies grow on me. This is the area I am least sure about. That said, there is some Mind-blowing music here.
Looking forward to driving to work and listening in the car and then in my office all day!

A side note. I dream about DT last night. It made no sense. I was with JLB and MM. I was working with them on something. Don't know what. It was fun

[Ben_Jamin]

I feel like I may need to duck after posting this, but the intro to Awaken the Master reminds me of .... Raw Dog 

It is there heaviest, deepest, thick riffs since Raw Dog. So I agree with you on that, and I felt that Raw Dog would've been amazing live, just for the energy it can express for the crowd in a live show. 

[lovethedrake]

Bosk,

Now that the album has been released.... what was the album you thought this most compared to?

[Kotowboy]

Bosk,

Now that the album has been released.... what was the album you thought this most compared to?

Yes that. For me it's Octavarium Over Time.

[goo-goo]

Yes that. Hence no dvd for Astonishing but maybe one for A View.

Interesting. Thanks for the explanation.

[bosk1]

Kowtow, now that it's out, I'm curious to know what you think about the "slow" section in the title track. 

[King Postwhore]

Kowtow, now that it's out, I'm curious to know what you think about the "slow" section in the title track.

I love the piano section. JR's playing on the piano breaths.  I always love when he plays the piano.

[bosk1]

Bosk,

Now that the album has been released.... what was the album you thought this most compared to?

I mentioned this in the other thread.  As I said, it doesn't remind me of any of their prior albums.

Oh, and I also made comments awhile back that I would reveal my initial impressions for what other things "in the DT family" that this album reminded me of.  I was very careful in my language when I said "in the DT family."  And the reason for that is that, at least initially, my first impressions as far as "what does this most remind me of?" were NOT other DT albums.  My initial reactions as far as drawing parallels with sound would be:  LTE, JP solo albums, and JLB solo albums.  My mind went to those three before any DT albums.  Not that it doesn't sound like DT, or that I haven't since drawn parallels with other DT albums.  I have.  But that is where my mind was initially drawn.

[TheSoylentMan]

I haven't listened yet, but I cracked up when I saw this writeup on Youtube Music:

This is their first album to be recorded at their own studio, DTHQ, as well as their first since Black Clouds & Silver Linings to include fewer than nine tracks, and the first since Dream Theater to both contain a track of at least ten minutes in length and end with the longest track.

Did DTF write the press for this? 

[ReaPsTA]

In terms of other albums, parts of it actually remind me of the Astonishing. The very last vocal part in Sleeping Giant could have easily been on that album. There are a lot of parts of the Astonishing that were very good it's nice to see them integrated properly into the overall DT song.

Otherwise I kind of agree with Bosk sound wise this is a bit of a different animal. JR leveled up his keyboard tones a lot and while a lot of the JP guitar tropes are still there, there's something about the style of the riffs that feels fundamentally different than before.

[nobloodyname]

Despite being 70 minutes I thought it flew by quite fast.

Agree with this every time I listen. Last DT album that had the same effect on me was Octavarium.

[TAC]

I feel like I may need to duck after posting this, but the intro to Awaken the Master reminds me of .... Raw Dog 

It is there heaviest, deepest, thick riffs since Raw Dog. So I agree with you on that, and I felt that Raw Dog would've been amazing live, just for the energy it can express for the crowd in a live show. 

Raw Dog is awesome!!

[ReaPsTA]

I haven't listened yet, but I cracked up when I saw this writeup on Youtube Music:

This is their first album to be recorded at their own studio, DTHQ, as well as their first since Black Clouds & Silver Linings to include fewer than nine tracks, and the first since Dream Theater to both contain a track of at least ten minutes in length and end with the longest track.

Did DTF write the press for this? 

ololololol

It's in the Wikipedia article either an algorithm pulled it or some poor intern

So according to the piano pattern - are they going to do a live DVD for this album ?

I'd absolutely hope so. *This* album deserves it like few others IMHO.

What piano pattern?

[note theory image]

Hopefully this shows up.

-Marc.

This is incredible

[TAC]

That intro to Awaken The Master is wicked!

[krands85]

So...maybe I am a little slow but, I never feel completely comfortable with the first listen.  I find there is almost too much going in my head to completely tune in and enjoy it.  It is almost like I am trying to listen too hard and force love on the first listen.  The melodies almost never click on the first couple of listens.  I do not want them to just crank out the same old thing every album and they don't disappoint there....otherwise I would already be used to the sound/feel/melodies...right?  For example, the first time I listened to SFAM I walked away unsatisfied and didn't come back for quite awhile....looking back does anyone here think that wasn't insane?  I certainly do.

It always takes me a good few listens to really get comfortable with new music. I can get a general idea after maybe 4 or 5, then a few more until I can really be confident on how I feel about tracks and the album as a whole.

The idea of judging music after just 1 listen - especially this genre of music - is completely alien to me (no pun intended!). I find it quite sad to see people completely write an album off or say it sucks after hearing it once, as even songs that have done nothing for me at first I have grown to enjoy. It feels like people could be missing out by not giving things a proper chance sometimes, that's all up to them though of course!

In saying that, I'm also surprised when people say things are 10/10 after one listen too. But it's cool, we all listen to and experience things differently I guess!

[Glasser]

Parts of this album do sound very familiar - but not in a "we've run out of ideas" way. It's more like they're celebrating every era of the band. On their Fifteenth album...


Anyway - i've got a 1 hour bus ride later today so will listen to it again.

Ahhhh cool! So if you remember I said numerous times that the style of the album scopes their entire career you understand what I am feeling. Kewl! 

[rab7]

In terms of other albums, parts of it actually remind me of the Astonishing.

There's a certain part in Awaken the Master that sounds like The Path That Divides, starting after "I won't betray him"

[brents319]

I feel like I may need to duck after posting this, but the intro to Awaken the Master reminds me of .... Raw Dog 

Only appreciation being thrown from me.  Raw Dog is greatness!

[hefdaddy42]

In terms of other albums, parts of it actually remind me of the Astonishing. The very last vocal part in Sleeping Giant could have easily been on that album. There are a lot of parts of the Astonishing that were very good it's nice to see them integrated properly into the overall DT song.

Otherwise I kind of agree with Bosk sound wise this is a bit of a different animal. JR leveled up his keyboard tones a lot and while a lot of the JP guitar tropes are still there, there's something about the style of the riffs that feels fundamentally different than before.

I just finished my first listen, and I agree. The album as a whole doesn't remind me of any other DT album, but there are components that remind me of The Astonishing, specifically how great Labrie sounds and the wonderful use of piano and other voices by JR.

All in all, I was very impressed. Possibly the best DT album of the Mangini era (and he sounds like a motherfucking thunder god, BTW). While I really admired the band's approach on Distance Over Time with more focused and disciplined songwriting, this album is Dream Theater unleashed, but without any songs sounding bloated. Also, IMO, the two singles are clearly the least of the songs on this album.

[ReaPsTA]

Also, IMO, the two singles are clearly the least of the songs on this album.

Kind of agree.

IM definitely comes in last. It's not a bad song. And I think packaging it as a second single really hurt views of it/its reputation. Taken in the context of the album, it's a nice cooldown after The Alien and ATC being such high energy.

I think at least for now though the Alien is being ignored a bit because we all know it and the rest of the album is a fresh new thing to chew on. Maybe I like TA more than most of the forum, but I think it will sit aside the other tracks well.

[Kotowboy]

Kowtow, now that it's out, I'm curious to know what you think about the "slow" section in the title track.

I like it way more than Illumination theory. It fits the song and doesn't sound like it just happens.

I can't say much as I'm at work now and having to type on my phone. 😅. But yeah I like it all.

[Herrick]

Nice. I just bought the album from Amazon and it won't show up in my Amazon player for download. Cool.

My amazon cd preorder is delayed out of stock and it seems there is no "autorip" so no download :/

That sucks. I haven't bought a CD in many years but I thought Amazon offers the digital version along with a CD purchase.

I finally figured out how to download the album from their music player. They changed it up for whatever reason.

[BlacklistJones]

I plan on tossing an extensive personal review of my own after a handful more of playthroughs, but here's a few thoughts:

- Sleeping Giant is effervescent. There is so much life, and momentum, pulsing through this track. It's ambitious, wildly bi-polar, with an unpredictable landscape of twists and turns - a specific example of this is the dramatic changes between the first and second runs of the chorus. For me, this is the strongest lyrical and progressive presentation on the album. There's something overwhelming about it, but it's that kind of beautiful chaos that makes me come back. I want to be overwhelmed, and the boys succeeded here.

- It took two play-throughs of Transcending Time for me to really appreciate what was going on here. Someone else mentioned this, but it does feel like a song that you could connect "The Looking Glass" with - even as part of set-list. They aren't carbon copies of each other by any means, but they accompany one another very well. Jordan's playing on this track is fantastic.

- Every band has trademarks. Having been a fan of Dream Theater since Awake, trade-offs are just part of Dream Theater's machine. To expect that we aren't going to hear Ruddess/Petrucci guitar/key trade-offs is arguably insane - that being said, I think it happens a little bit too often on this record. Now, that's not to say that they aren't magnificent, because they are. As a general listener, I would just rather them be spaced out a bit more, is all.

- Awaken the Master is my second favorite track, so far, on the album. I need to dig into a bit more, but there are some great organ moments on here by Ruddess. I love the "Spinning through life...." part of this track.

- Overall, so far, the title track is excellent as I expected an epic from Dream Theater to be. Is it their best? No, probably not. I'm not blown out of the water by it, at least not yet. That being said, any twenty minute song deserves many, many, many play-throughs in order to fully digest it.

- Labrie sounds good. I have no complaints at all, really. I see comments of him playing it "safe" and I find myself questioning what that even means. Is it because of where he remains within his registry? What are we looking for here? "Queen of the Damned" Tate stuff? He remains where he is because it fits the song 95% of the time, to my ears. I'm quite impressed to what Labrie is still capable off, after thirty-plus years of doing this.

- So far, this absolutely beats out "Distance Over Time" and "Astonishing" in terms of quality. Whether it exceeds the s/t or A Dramatic Turn of Events remains to be seen. Many more listens to go from here.

I will say that this album is a very positive light directed towards a very dark time in the world. Regardless of where you're at in your own life, I think it's acceptable to say that we all needed this.

[Glasser]

Nice. I just bought the album from Amazon and it won't show up in my Amazon player for download. Cool.

My amazon cd preorder is delayed out of stock and it seems there is no "autorip" so no download :/

That sucks. I haven't bought a CD in many years but I thought Amazon offers the digital version along with a CD purchase.

I finally figured out how to download the album from their music player. They changed it up for whatever reason.

I just looked on Amazon, the CD shows in stock at $14.99

[LKap13]

Holy shit. This album is just something else. *Claps hands*

[Pax]

Just listened to the album for the first time. I will certainly have to listen to it more, but I felt kind of underwhelmed compared to what I expected from hearing The Alien when it came out. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it much more than their last album. Also, I was never bored, the album passed by very quickly (even though this might be due to the fact that I was interrupted and have had to make a 2 h pause between the first two tracks and the rest of the album).

What I found interesting is that almost every song starts amazingly. However, as they progressed, I was less and less impressed. I was mostly disappointed by the lack of those full-band instrumental gymnastics that DT was doing in the past. They do appear, but always feel too short. On the other hand, there's a lot of instrumental sections like guitar and keyboard solos but that's not what I personally want (I find it mostly filler material). All the solos made me feel like I was listening to a LTE album at some points. At some other points, it felt like a Haken album (pre-Vector) and this is a good thing.

This album is maybe the first time that I felt like I wanted DT to be instrumental band. And not because of LaBrie (he sounds amazing at 5:38 section of title track, reminds me of Images and Words), but because the writing for vocals felt so lackluster. Most of the time, the vocal melodies were so annoying and unnatural; it felt like they were there just because DT felt they needed to include vocals.

To end the post on a more positive note, I really enjoyed Answering the Call throughout (as well as The Alien, which I knew from before). I hope the album grows on me but for now it doesn't feel like I will end up loving it like some of their older stuff

[chwik]

Surprised nobody mentioned the blast beat unison section in the title track

[LKap13]

Right now, this album is feeling like it can be better than all their albums except images, awake, sfam, sdoit and maybe train

[Ben_Jamin]

I listened to it in my car and the low end is bliss. Thunderous and roaring toms and kicks, and the grooves. I really noticed this in Awaken The Master and the heavy parts of AVFTTOTW.

[illusionist]

Look what i just found

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tj5PfNWO_gc

[bosk1]

Nice!

[Lonk]

Listen to it a few times throughout the day, and each song continues to grow more and more for me except 1, Transcending Time. Not a bad song at all, but I think I need to listen to it a lot more before making a judgment. The rest of the album is pretty good. Would not be surprise if it becomes my 2nd favorite from the MM era.

Also, all my worries about the 8-string song are gone. The song rocks and sounds massive.

[JRuless]

Look what i just found

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tj5PfNWO_gc

Im very fond living in the same era as this man.