Now that the MM era is finished, how would you rank those five albums?

[DTiwbwMP]

1. A Dramatic Turn of Events A
2. DT12 B+
3. Distance Over Time C
4. A View From The Top Of The World C-
5. The Astonishing F-

[Jamesman42]

1. A Dramatic Turn of Events A
2. DT12 B+
3. Distance Over Time C
4. A View From The Top Of The World C-
5. The Astonishing F-

This is pretty accurate.

[Dream Team]

F- implies no musical merit whatsoever which is a ridiculous opinion. It's not worse than St Anger or a million other crappy albums one could name.

[Jamesman42]

That's the one I'm not sure on, I haven't given that album any good listens besides one.

[TheBarstoolWarrior]

F could just mean a musical failure for that person. I kinda feel that way about the Astonishing. I would rate all the other Mangini era albums either A, A-, or B+

[DTiwbwMP]

F- implies no musical merit whatsoever

EXACTLY THIS! IMO, it's a complete DISASTER that has ZERO "musical merit"! But that's MY OPINION. NOT yours, which is fine

[durga2112]

I voted "The worst years of DT", but hear me out! I'm... well, not as young as I used to be. I mean, none of us are, but I was a teenager when I started listening to DT, and that was when Awake was released. I saw the video for "Lie" on TV and was absolutely blown away by it. Awake has remained my favourite album of all time to this day. As time has gone by, I've had less and less time to listen to music as a primary activity (e.g. just lying in my bed and listening to the same album on repeat for hours on end); instead, it's almost always on as an accompaniment while I do something else - working, cooking, housework, driving, etc. So while I still listen to everything the band releases, the importance of each new album to my life becomes less and less. I still love listening to DT and they'll likely always be my favourite band, but I'm not likely ever going to get that same feeling I got when the opening drum fill of "6:00" came roaring through my speakers, or hearing "Erotomania" for the first time and realizing that I had been playing it at roughly half its tempo while trying to learn it from a Guitar World magazine. 

tl;Dr I still love the Mangini era, just not as much as the eras that came before it.

Here's roughly how I would rank their albums - notice how it generally trends with release order:

Awake
FII
I&W
SFAM
TOT
8VA
6DOIT
WDADU
AVFTTOTW
SC
BC&SL
ADTOE
TA
DT
D/T

[Dream Team]

EXACTLY THIS! IMO, it's a complete DISASTER that has ZERO "musical merit"! But that's MY OPINION. NOT yours, which is fine

Sure,OK. But it undeniably has some of James' best vocals - that's worth an F-? Some of their best melodies. It's fine if you don't like the sum of the parts but to say there's no musical merit, I can't wrap my head around it. What are some of the other F- albums you have listened to?

[TheOutlawXanadu]

Fired up D/T on my way to work this morning. First off, the fact I was able to get through five whole songs is pretty sweet. There are some DT albums where I can't even get through three on my drive. Obviously there's nothing wrong with longer tracks but it is nice to have an album with more songs flying by. I've also really come to appreciate the more straightforward, almost rock and roll approach it takes. Whether it's the bouncy solo in Room 137, the slapping bass of S2N, or the Deep Purple-inspired Viper King... This record is just a fun, easy listen.

On a side note, while I understand the complaints that the Mangini era often sounded too "same-y" compared to the early years, whenever I pop in any of the albums, I always notice things that are a bit different or unique. I think these albums do bring a lot to the table... You just have to get to know them a bit.

[Dream Team]

Just to conclude my previous thoughts, an F- implies the band can't actually play their instruments properly and the singer is constantly off-key (we're talking studio here  ). But whatever, I'm done trying to explain the concept.

[Tyrannosaurus Chicken]

I'm glad I resurrected this thread; it's been interesting to read people's thoughts. The old man in me finally learned how to use the search function, thanks to the help of another forum member. Now I won't start redundant threads 

[WilliamMunny]

I'm glad I resurrected this thread; it's been interesting to read people's thoughts. The old man in me finally learned how to use the search function, thanks to the help of another forum member. Now I won't start redundant threads 

You used it and it worked?

Huzzah! 

[TheOutlawXanadu]

Just to conclude my previous thoughts, an F- implies the band can't actually play their instruments properly and the singer is constantly off-key (we're talking studio here  ). But whatever, I'm done trying to explain the concept.

I feel like if you're a Dream Theater fan, or at least have some respect for the general kind of music they make, giving really any of their albums an F- (save for maybe WDADU, which had some infamous recording issues) is just weird.

[gzarruk]

Not even WDADU (or TA) deserves an F- IMO

[DTiwbwMP]

Just to conclude my previous thoughts, an F- implies the band can't actually play their instruments properly and the singer is constantly off-key (we're talking studio here  ). But whatever, I'm done trying to explain the concept.

For ME, I hate and despise almost EVERYTHING about TA! Maybe an F would have been a better grade . Sorry to have offended you It's not that important. Just MY grade.

[DTiwbwMP]

WDADU is LIGHT YEARS better than TA!

[Dream Team]

For ME, I hate and despise almost EVERYTHING about TA! Maybe an F would have been a better grade . Sorry to have offended you It's not that important. Just MY grade.

You haven't offended me my man, just trying to understand the reasoning.

[GalacticGuitarist87]

1. DT12 Illumination Theory alone is one of the best DT songs

2. A Dramatic Turn of Events

3. Distance Over Time

4. A View From the Top of the World

5. The Astonishing

[jayvee3]

I actually really loved the Mangini era, and believe that there are a couple of underrated gems, particularly D/T and the self titled...

ADTOE: A. Outstanding album, Breaking all illusions is a top 3 all-time song for me, and is solid from start to finish.

Dream Theater: B+. Such an underrated album. Love the drumming, IT and the Bigger picture are particularly fantastic.

The Astonishing: A-. I'm in the camp that love this one. Divisive for many, but a favourite of mine. JLB is fantastic.

D/T: A-. I think this is their most underrated album, and I think people gave it the opinion that it was "safe" after TA. Given its own chance to shine, I think it's awesome.

AVFTTOTW: B. Really enjoy it when I listen to it, and has some great moments. Love the title track, but the ending just makes me feel they missed an epic outro. But an enjoyable one without being mind boggling 👍

[BeatriceNB]

A Dramatic Turn of Events: I find this one really enjoyable, there's several nice melodies and James sounds great. It has Breaking All Illusions, which I think is DT's best song (tied with Octavarium). I really like the artwork and the booklet, too.

DT12: even if some lyrical themes are quite dark, I particularly like the happy sound from this album. Looking Glass and Surrender To Reason are very Rush-like, something I appreciate. Very concise yet diverse album.

The Astonishing: I'm in the great debate (ha) of picking this or Awake as my favourite Dream Theater album, as I think both are perfect, for different reasons. Ambitious record, with some unique moments throughout, as well some of the most beautiful in the whole discography.
I will always dream with a live, staged version with different singers for each character...
TA is also a masterclasses by Mangini in drums orchestration.

Distance Over Time: John Petrucci's solo in Out Of Reach is one of his best, one of the most beautiful, tear-jerking ones I have ever heard, incredibly melodic and narrative, the dictionary definition of a perfect lead guitar tone. Everything else before and after it is not worth mentioning.

A View From The Top Of The World: I think this one overstays its welcome, because I find it tiring by the time I reach the epic, and the mix and master don't help at all in that regard.
It also feels like every song is the long Prog Metal song, even Transcending Time, the Rush tribute song in the album, refuses to end and has this weird Stream Of Consciousness-like "blender solo" (iykyk reference there). It also is a very busy song on every instrument, more than Rush it's The Mars Volta! Not a bad album, but I haven't listened to it in full since it released, I rather listen to individual songs (particularly the epic, Sleeping Giant and The Alien; sometimes I listen from Sleeping Giant up to the epic)

Overall, I pick the "best years of DT" option because the ADTOE-DT12-TA streak is, to me, comparable to the WDADU-I&W-Awake streak in terms of my enjoyment and love for the albums. But unlike the '90s era, there's nothing nowhere as awful* as FII and SFAM in the Mangini era.

*I just want to sound dramatic; I respect people who like those albums, even if I can't understand why

[Ben_Jamin]

The Astonishing: I'm in the great debate (ha) of picking this or Awake as my favourite Dream Theater album, as I think both are perfect, for different reasons. Ambitious record, with some unique moments throughout, as well some of the most beautiful in the whole discography.
I will always dream with a live, staged version with different singers for each character...
TA is also a masterclasses by Mangini in drums orchestration.

I dream the same. A big broadway style musical. With their being a book now, they can draw on it to expand the music onto the stage. Some musical moments in the songs could be altered too, an example I can imagine is altering Brother Can You Hear Me? entirely. The song would still be in tact, but it would include dialog and certain other changes.

Hadestown is one of my all time favorite broadway plays. I heard the actual cd album around the time it was released and said this would be an excellent musical play...I was righy, and was so excited I got to see it for myself, that was a dream come true for me. The song Wait For Me is entirely different from the cd version as are some of the others. I love how they expanded, altered, and added songs just for the musical.

I would suggest checking out Hadestown, the cd and the broadway play, if you are into that stuff.

[BeatriceNB]

A View From The Top Of The World: I think this one overstays its welcome, because I find it tiring by the time I reach the epic, and the mix and master don't help at all in that regard.
It also feels like every song is the long Prog Metal song, even Transcending Time, the Rush tribute song in the album, refuses to end and has this weird Stream Of Consciousness-like "blender solo" (iykyk reference there). It also is a very busy song on every instrument, more than Rush it's The Mars Volta! Not a bad album, but I haven't listened to it in full since it released, I rather listen to individual songs (particularly the epic, Sleeping Giant and The Alien; sometimes I listen from Sleeping Giant up to the epic)

Since I posted this, I have been spinning A View, and I think I finally got it. I wouldn't put it above ADTOE or DT12, because I truly love those albums and, honestly, I'm quite nostalgic for them, and their complementary live albums are amazing. But now it definitely can hang out with the cool kids of the Mangini era

[TheBarstoolWarrior]

Since I posted this, I have been spinning A View, and I think I finally got it. I wouldn't put it above ADTOE or DT12, because I truly love those albums and, honestly, I'm quite nostalgic for them, and their complementary live albums are amazing. But now it definitely can hang out with the cool kids of the Mangini era

This is a great example for why you should listen to Parasomnia more than once! 

[Trav]

I think I did this before, but I recently redid my full ranking so I'll post the Mangini albums, with their rank amongst themselves, overall ranking, a score, and the best and worst song.

1. A Dramatic Turn of Events (2011)

Overall: 6th
Score: 8/10
Best Song: "Breaking All Illusions"
Worst Song: "Build Me Up, Break Me Down"
A solid rebound after Portnoy's departure, proving they could still deliver.

2. A View from the Top of the World (2021)

Overall: 11th
Score: 7/10
Best Song: "A View from the Top of the World"
Worst Song: "Answering the Call"
A solid modern album. Technically brilliant.

3. Dream Theater (2013)

Overall: 12th
Score: 6.5/10
Best Song: "Illumimation Theory"
Worst Song: "The Looking Glass"
Moments of brilliance but overall lacking impact.

4. Distance Over Time (2019)

Overall: 13th
Score: 6.5/10
Best Song: "Pale Blue Dot"
Worst Song: "S2N"
Once again, a solid effort, but nothing groundbreaking.

5. The Astonishing (2016)

Overall: 15th
Score: 5.5/10
Best Song: "A New Beginning"
Worst Song: "Act of Faythe"
Ambitious scope, but poor execution  Overstays it's welcome.

[hunnus2000]

I need to say something about the MM era: he wrote excellent parts and his style was extremely complementary to the music. I've said before that I think the MM era is more assessable to the average listener because, I think, that MP's contributions was/is overrated. I mean Glass Prison ain't the great of a song. I love it but that's because I'm a DT fan and would never play it for a person that I am trying to recruit. I used to think that MM had big shoes to fill, now I think that MP has bigger shoes to fill.

[hefdaddy42]

Differences in personality, technique, and approach aside, the biggest difference between Mangini and Portnoy within Dream Theater is that Portnoy plays lead drums, while Mangini plays supporting drums.

[hunnus2000]

Differences in personality, technique, and approach aside, the biggest difference between Mangini and Portnoy within Dream Theater is that Portnoy plays lead drums, while Mangini plays supporting drums.

Ummmm, OK.................?

[Trav]

Differences in personality, technique, and approach aside, the biggest difference between Mangini and Portnoy within Dream Theater is that Portnoy plays lead drums, while Mangini plays supporting drums.

Technically only on Six Degrees. All of the other albums Portnoy played Rhythm Drums.

[Dream Team]

Ummmm, OK.................?

I don't understand your reaction . . . Hef is 100% accurate. Mangini INTENTIONALLY plays that way, he's said so himself.

[King Postwhore]

Differences in personality, technique, and approach aside, the biggest difference between Mangini and Portnoy within Dream Theater is that Portnoy plays lead drums, while Mangini plays supporting drums.

Mangini was very much in the Neil Peart style.  He was a metronome.  Portnoy's style has more swing, pocket presence. 

[TheBarstoolWarrior]

Mangini was very much in the Neil Peart style.  He was a metronome.  Portnoy's style has more swing, pocket presence. 

I couldn't agree less with this analysis. 

[TheHoveringSojourn808]

Mangini was very much in the Neil Peart style.  He was a metronome.  Portnoy's style has more swing, pocket presence. 

Great post. this sums it up for me as well

[TAC]

I need to say something about the MM era: he wrote excellent parts and his style was extremely complementary to the music. I've said before that I think the MM era is more assessable to the average listener because, I think, that MP's contributions was/is overrated. I mean Glass Prison ain't the great of a song. I love it but that's because I'm a DT fan and would never play it for a person that I am trying to recruit. I used to think that MM had big shoes to fill, now I think that MP has bigger shoes to fill.

I like this post.

I think I did this before, but I recently redid my full ranking so I'll post the Mangini albums, with their rank amongst themselves, overall ranking, a score, and the best and worst song.

1. A Dramatic Turn of Events (2011)

Overall: 6th
Score: 8/10
Best Song: "Breaking All Illusions"
Worst Song: "Build Me Up, Break Me Down"
A solid rebound after Portnoy's departure, proving they could still deliver.

2. A View from the Top of the World (2021)

Overall: 11th
Score: 7/10
Best Song: "A View from the Top of the World"
Worst Song: "Answering the Call"
A solid modern album. Technically brilliant.

3. Dream Theater (2013)

Overall: 12th
Score: 6.5/10
Best Song: "Illumimation Theory"
Worst Song: "The Looking Glass"
Moments of brilliance but overall lacking impact.

4. Distance Over Time (2019)

Overall: 13th
Score: 6.5/10
Best Song: "Pale Blue Dot"
Worst Song: "S2N"
Once again, a solid effort, but nothing groundbreaking.

5. The Astonishing (2016)

Overall: 15th
Score: 5.5/10
Best Song: "A New Beginning"
Worst Song: "Act of Faythe"
Ambitious scope, but poor execution  Overstays it's welcome.

I like how you formatted your post, especially showing the overall rank of each album.

[ReaperKK]

I just listened through the entire DT discography and I gotta say the MM album run is really solid. Even TA, which I initially hated, was better than I remember, it just needed some heavy editing

[King Postwhore]

I couldn't agree less with this analysis. 

Why, Mangini is technical.  Very precise.