Top Of The World Tour 2023

[SeRoX]

Tonight's Finland concert is cancelled due to safety reasons. 

[?]

Tonight's Finland concert is cancelled due to safety reasons. 

Can confirm, I heard through the grapevine that the stage was deemed unsafe.

Anyway, long time no post! I went to see them here in Tampere last night after a 6-year break, because for once they were coming to my hometown. JLB sounded a little pitchy and out of breath a lot of the time, and PMU and Caught in a Web were pretty brutal vocally. The sound was also a little rough, though slightly better than when I saw Ghost at the same arena last year. Transcending Time is the only song off the latest album that really resonates with me, so it was a bummer that it wasn't played, but for the most part the setlist was pretty solid and I enjoyed getting to hear 6:00 and the Six Degrees sections live, so the overall experience was more on the positive side. The Count was a great ending and James nailed it, making it my highlight of the night.

[Ben_Jamin]

I just snapped too, that JLB is doing the ending vocals for TCOT now since there are no backing vocals. That makes me happy and it's the main concern I had about JLB just letting the backing vocals do all the work.

[EPIC Outro]

So are there really NO backing tracks at all this leg? Or are they just lower in the mix?

[Schurftkut]

i've watched plenty videos from all venues they did so far, and yes, no backingvocals whatsoever from a tape. Just Petrucci doing his best in certain sections.  there's the gong for 6doit by Jordan, but i don't think that counts because MM does hit a gong there ^^

[Setlist Scotty]

So are there really NO backing tracks at all this leg? Or are they just lower in the mix?

AFAIK, no taped backing vocals at all. 

[TheBarstoolWarrior]

bring on the video recording 

It should be done every tour.

[Ben_Jamin]

Nevermind, scratch what I said. JLB still doesn't sing the ending. But I also love it because when everyone sings it's sounds amazing. I had hoped others would've sang along at the shows I saw it at, but couldn't notice.

[EPIC Outro]

Wow, I need to watch some of these videos. I saw them last leg with the backing tracks. They seemed to be a pretty big part of that show. I'd really love to see them without all the extra production.

[Schurftkut]

i just noticed they have a night off before the day i see them, which would otherwise have been the 3rd night in a row. i was kinda worried about james about that but now it seems much better :-)

[EPIC Outro]

If James is teasing something cool for the Stockholm show... I doubt it will happen, but it would be the ultimate string of epics ever if they expanded the Six Degrees selection to include the entirety of disc two.

Wishful thinking, but still!

[Architeuthis]

i've watched plenty videos from all venues they did so far, and yes, no backingvocals whatsoever from a tape. Just Petrucci doing his best in certain sections.

John Petrucci actually sounds pretty good singing harmonies with James and has a pleasant tone. I like it much better than the backing tracks. 

[Schurftkut]

If James is teasing something cool for the Stockholm show... I doubt it will happen, but it would be the ultimate string of epics ever if they expanded the Six Degrees selection to include the entirety of disc two.

Wishful thinking, but still!

where is he teasing what?

[cminor]

where is he teasing what?

I think it is a reference to

Is it possible they'll record a DVD for Stockholm date?

https://fb.watch/irnW8JIJoP/


It seems that video is down. It was sent by offical DT fb account. James was in the video and said that, Stockholm concert has a big surprise and will be a memorable evening.

[Schurftkut]

ah tnx i missed that

[geeeemo]

where is he teasing what?

I think it is a reference to

Is it possible they'll record a DVD for Stockholm date?

https://fb.watch/irnW8JIJoP/


It seems that video is down. It was sent by offical DT fb account. James was in the video and said that, Stockholm concert has a big surprise and will be a memorable evening.

I don't hear anything that sounds like an announcement. Sounds typical of what James would say promoting a show.

[SwedishGoose]

I don't hear anything about a big surprice there....

Oh well. I will see on monday. Got a ticket for the golden circle so should be able to get close to the stage.

[Deadeye21]

They've just announced Japanese dates. Please god tell me this means Australian dates are on their way.

[Mladen]

Here's a nice, wholesome video - a bit of an on-stage birthday celebration for John Myung two weeks ago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQEId2v-lw0

[SwedishGoose]

On my way home after the concert in Stockholm.

It was just a normal concert. Same setlst, no cameras....


Good setlist but I can agree that LaBrie is not on top form. Some songs work better than others but on the whole a bit disappointing.

[jadiggerdt]

On my way home after the concert in Stockholm.

It was just a normal concert. Same setlst, no cameras....


Good setlist but I can agree that LaBrie is not on top form. Some songs work better than others but on the whole a bit disappointing.

It's a shame to say it, but DT is getting more and more boring with each tour that goes by, I see the interest is decreasing more and more. Half-full venues. Maybe take a couple of years off from touring. But DT must make money like everyone else. Unfortunately, James is completely done. Low parts are usually good, but on the high notes it becomes uncomfortable to listen to. If DT is to base the setlist on James's voice going forward, it will only be songs alla Anna Lee

[Dani Helios]

On my way home after the concert in Stockholm.

It was just a normal concert. Same setlst, no cameras....


Good setlist but I can agree that LaBrie is not on top form. Some songs work better than others but on the whole a bit disappointing.

It's a shame to say it, but DT is getting more and more boring with each tour that goes by, I see the interest is decreasing more and more. Half-full venues. Maybe take a couple of years off from touring. But DT must make money like everyone else. Unfortunately, James is completely done. Low parts are usually good, but on the high notes it becomes uncomfortable to listen to. If DT is to base the setlist on James's voice going forward, it will only be songs alla Anna Lee

I'm not sure they've been getting more boring with each tour. Hell, the tour before this one was DoT and SFAM. The night I went to see that tour was absolutely packed and the show was incredible. I think a large part of it is simply that the touring economy is still bouncing back post-pandemic. Some people still don't feel confident in going to gigs, the budget won't be there quite as much, etc. Combine that with the fact the View tours haven't been "Evening with" and you've got effectively half the time to put in varied material. I think all things considered they're putting on the best show they can, and hopefully with some more anniversaries in the coming years we'll get some more interesting tours and setlists.

[EPIC Outro]

Does anyone here think DT are done with Evening With tours? If I'm not mistaken, even the Distance Over Time tour was shorter than their usual Evening With sets.

[hefdaddy42]

It's a shame to say it, but DT is getting more and more boring with each tour that goes by

Man, I don't know.  There are a lot of words that can be used to describe DT, especially live, but "boring" does NOT come to mind.

[cramx3]

On my way home after the concert in Stockholm.

It was just a normal concert. Same setlst, no cameras....


Good setlist but I can agree that LaBrie is not on top form. Some songs work better than others but on the whole a bit disappointing.

It's a shame to say it, but DT is getting more and more boring with each tour that goes by, I see the interest is decreasing more and more. Half-full venues. Maybe take a couple of years off from touring. But DT must make money like everyone else. Unfortunately, James is completely done. Low parts are usually good, but on the high notes it becomes uncomfortable to listen to. If DT is to base the setlist on James's voice going forward, it will only be songs alla Anna Lee

I'm not sure they've been getting more boring with each tour. Hell, the tour before this one was DoT and SFAM. The night I went to see that tour was absolutely packed and the show was incredible. I think a large part of it is simply that the touring economy is still bouncing back post-pandemic. Some people still don't feel confident in going to gigs, the budget won't be there quite as much, etc. Combine that with the fact the View tours haven't been "Evening with" and you've got effectively half the time to put in varied material. I think all things considered they're putting on the best show they can, and hopefully with some more anniversaries in the coming years we'll get some more interesting tours and setlists.

Considering how hard it is to get tickets for big shows these days, I disagree with this completely.  The touring economy is not the reason people aren't going to shows.  It may be the reason bands aren't making money though.  DT tours have been incredibly inconsistent the last 8 years or so.  Usually the second leg has poor attendance and the first leg is much better. 

Does anyone here think DT are done with Evening With tours? If I'm not mistaken, even the Distance Over Time tour was shorter than their usual Evening With sets.

It does seem their sets have gotten shorter and shorter over time. I feel like all this started around TA tour which was a shorter evening with format as well and then we saw poor crowds on the second leg of that tour.

[Nofire]

Went to the Stockholm show yesterday, and had a great time (as usual when watching DT)! Compared to the show in Partille last May, the energy was much better, both from the crowd and especially from James. In Partille, he seemed somewhat annoyed and didn't really appear as if he was having a great time (which is perfectly fine, everyone can have an off day, and from what I could tell behind me the crowd response wasn't very energetic). Yesterday, however, he seemed really energized from the start which was great to see! The vocals were fine by modern day DT standard as far as I could tell, but I haven't scrutinized any video recordings from the show (and don't really intend to).

One funny thing happened where he left the stage during AVFTTOTW, after the "I begin the blind ascent..." section, and forgot to come back for the "Like a blind man in a maze..." section, making JP the lead singer before JLB came running back to catch the last few before the instrumental section. You could clearly see the "nervous" looks from JP to the backstage area 

Another thing that stood out to me were how few guitars JP used during the show. Only 1 6-string and 2 7-strings as far as I could tell. Typically, my experience is that he regularly changes guitars, but I'm wondering if they're trying to reduce the logistic costs for the tour and only bring as many guitars as they really need? For example, during the last leg he used the 20th anniversary JP6 for 6:00, but now he just stuck to the same Majesty guitar used during TA preceding it. Maybe I'm overthinking this, but could this be one of the reasons for dropping ATM and ES from the set, seeing as that would add 4 more guitars to the freight for only 2 songs, given that each tuning needs a backup? I was a little bummed out that ES was one of the songs dropped, seeing as how that was the highlight of the Partille show for me, and the one song where the crowd (for once) really got into it. Other than that, I loved the set. Much prefer SG to IM, and ATC is more and more becoming my favorite song of the last album.

Looking forward to the next time DT passes through Stockholm, and I hope they stick to Annexet as a venue from now on. Both DT shows I've seen there (2014 & 2023) have been some of the best I've been to!

[bosk1]

Another thing that stood out to me were how few guitars JP used during the show. Only 1 6-string and 2 7-strings as far as I could tell. Typically, my experience is that he regularly changes guitars, but I'm wondering if they're trying to reduce the logistic costs for the tour and only bring as many guitars as they really need? For example, during the last leg he used the 20th anniversary JP6 for 6:00, but now he just stuck to the same Majesty guitar used during TA preceding it.

Interesting.  I could definitely see cutting the number to reduce costs and keep things simple.  But are you sure he only used 1 6-string?  He often carries a few that have the same or similar colors/finishes, so it may look like the same guitar if you don't notice him changing over between songs.  But I know he always has at least one backup for every guitar tuning/configuration.  I think maybe he might have made a couple of guitar changes that you didn't notice because the changeovers happened quickly and discretely, and the guitars looked similar.  But I could be wrong.  I know that it seemed like he was making more guitar changes in the Along for the Ride tour than others I can recall, but it seems to have tapered off again since then (on DT tours and his solo tour), so maybe he is just sticking to a couple of main instruments for as long as possible without switching unless necessary now. 

[Nofire]

Another thing that stood out to me were how few guitars JP used during the show. Only 1 6-string and 2 7-strings as far as I could tell. Typically, my experience is that he regularly changes guitars, but I'm wondering if they're trying to reduce the logistic costs for the tour and only bring as many guitars as they really need? For example, during the last leg he used the 20th anniversary JP6 for 6:00, but now he just stuck to the same Majesty guitar used during TA preceding it.

Interesting.  I could definitely see cutting the number to reduce costs and keep things simple.  But are you sure he only used 1 6-string?  He often carries a few that have the same or similar colors/finishes, so it may look like the same guitar if you don't notice him changing over between songs.  But I know he always has at least one backup for every guitar tuning/configuration.  I think maybe he might have made a couple of guitar changes that you didn't notice because the changeovers happened quickly and discretely, and the guitars looked similar.  But I could be wrong.  I know that it seemed like he was making more guitar changes in the Along for the Ride tour than others I can recall, but it seems to have tapered off again since then (on DT tours and his solo tour), so maybe he is just sticking to a couple of main instruments for as long as possible without switching unless necessary now.

I'm actually quite sure about my observation, since I stood right in front of him only a few meters away, so I had a good view of when he either left the stage or got handed something else. Of course, I assume he had a backup 6-string as well, and maybe it was the same color, so if he changed back from a 7-string he could well have been playing another identical 6-string. Although he did a lot of tuning between songs instead of just switching to a different guitar. It just struck me as interesting that the 2 songs with deviating tunings/configurations were ditched for this leg, since showcasing the 8-string would be a good "marketing opportunity" for his new signature product, and the fact that ES was a banger the last time around (my subjective opinion of course).

[DoctorAction]

Who's the support for these European dates? Are they all deffo not "evening with" shows, does anyone know? Thanks

[cramx3]

Who's the support for these European dates? Are they all deffo not "evening with" shows, does anyone know? Thanks

Arion is support for this leg of the Euro tour.

[DoctorAction]

Who's the support for these European dates? Are they all deffo not "evening with" shows, does anyone know? Thanks

Arion is support for this leg of the Euro tour.

Thanks!

[Peter Mc]

Just a quick question, are they still crazy loud?  Going to see them next week so am curious if plugs are needed.  Keeping away from set lists so don't want to go back through the thread.

[TheBarstoolWarrior]

I suspect the reduction in guitars was done to keep things a little more simple and cost efficient. I am looking at the setlist for the European shows and maybe most of the duration of the set requires a 7 string. He probably had a back up 6 string as well. At the beginning of the European leg he did a short Twitter video showing his 'steakhouse' 6 string Majesty and saying that he was bringing it. From some of the other audience footage of the show it looks like he played purple majesty - he has a new purple colored one on the market now - on Solitary Shell. I guess the tuning held up enough to do all the 6 string shows with one axe.

I also didn't realize they cut Awaken the Master. That seems to be a fan favorite so I would not be surprised to learn that this was part of the effort to simplify the rig for cross continental travel. You would need at least two 8 strings for just one song.

[Azyiu]

I also didn't realize they cut Awaken the Master. That seems to be a fan favorite so I would not be surprised to learn that this was part of the effort to simplify the rig for cross continental travel. You would need at least two 8 strings for just one song.

Just throw in a random Animals As Leaders song there to make it TWO songs then. 

[TAC]

I feel like with DT, we should be getting US tour dates any day now, no? They are done in Europe in a week and a half, and have only 3 dates announced in Asia. If they're touring this summer here, shouldn't those dates be coming soon?