Dream Theater Top 100 countdown - 2024 Version! (#01 Up!)

[SwedishGoose]

Octavarium was my number 3. Such a beast of a song I love how it starts of with this pink floydesque intro and then just builds and builds. The whole song is awesome  there is not one part I would trim or change. Brilliant from start to finish.

My ranking so far

1 Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (9)
2
3 Octavarium (4)
4
5 Take the Time (17)
6 Another Day (38)
7 Space-Dye Vest (30)
8 One Last Time (46)
9 Trial of Tears (6)
10

11 The Dance of Eternity (33)
12 The Spirit Carries On (26)
13 Surrounded (20)
14 Home (5)
15 Voices (7)
16 Pull Me Under (14)
17 The Mirror (27)
18 Finally Free (19)
19 The Silent Man (66)
20 Illumination Theory (25)
21 Caught In a Web (51)
22 6:00 (34)
24 Scarred  (12)
25 Fatal Tragedy  (13)
27 Wait For Sleep (44t)
28 Through Her Eyes  (74)
32 Awaken the Master (81)
33 Sleeping Giant (85)
35 Beyond This Life (24)
36 Strange Deja Vu (18)
37 Our New World (93)
38 Innocence Faded (42)
40 Lifting Shadows Off a Dream (35)
41 A View from the Top of the World (49t)
44 The Great Debate (53)
45 To Live Forever (76)
46 Under a Glass Moon (16)
47 Lie (47t)
48 Erotomania (40)
50 Answering the Call (75)
54 Beneath the Surface (64)
56 The Count of Tuscany (10)
57 Pale Blue Dot (62)
59 Transcending Time (90)
63 Bridges In the Sky (23)
64 Sacrificed Sons (63)
65 The Looking Glass (92)
66 Hollow Years (59)
61 At Wit's End ( 37)
62 Stream of Consciousness  (39)
73 As I Am (43)
74 The Root of All Evil(36)
75 The Alien (69)
76 Breaking All Illusions (8)
77 A Nightmare To Remember (49t)
78 Misunderstood (31)
81 Behind the Veil (89)
86 Peruvian Skies (44t)
87 Surrender To Reason (83)
88 Ytse Jam (67)
89 Forsaken (95)
90 The Glass Prison (15)
91. The Gift of Music (98)
94. Never Enough (100)
96 Endless Sacrifice (29)
99 These Walls (54)
100 Honor Thy Father (71)


Highest ranker of
8 One Last Time (46), 1 Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (9)

Not rated
Wither (99), Vacant (97), Afterlife (96), S2N (94), A New Beginning (91), This is the Life (88), New Millennium (87), Constant Motion (86), The Enemy Inside (84), Only a Matter of Time (82), I Walk Beside You (80), The Shattered Fortress (79), A Fortune In Lies (78), The Best Of Times (78), Lost Not Forgotten (73), Fall Into the Light (72), The Dark Eternal Night (70), The Killing Hand (68), Raise The Knife (65), The Ministry of Lost Souls (61), The Bigger Picture (60), Outcry (58),  Hell's Kitchen (57), On The Backs Of Angels (56), Panic Attack (55), Barstool Warrior (52), This Dying Soul (47t), Disappear (41), Overture 1928 (32), Lines In The Sand (28), In the Presence of Enemies (22),  Blind Faith (21), In the Name of God (11)

Rated: 64
Not rated: 33

[TheOutlawXanadu]

I'm surprised! I thought 8VM would be #1. I'm genuinely curious as to what the order of the final three will be!

[Stadler]

I'm surprised! I thought 8VM would be #1. I'm genuinely curious as to what the order of the final three will be!

I am too, but I have my guess. 

I think my number 17, then my number 103, then my number 10.

[Metro]

Love Octavarium

[DragonAttack]

4.  Octavarium (#8)  if just for 'The Razor's Edge' segment on 'Score'.  We always play it near home after returning from NYC and other trips (inserting James' 'Thank you, New York' from 'Metropolis' immediately after).  One of my favorite air guitar tunes!  For my dream set list, that would always be the finale.

[Evermind]

Octavarium - #8 - amazing song. Would've been even higher if not for Medicate section which is good but not great. Otherwise a fantastic song. Pity I didn't have a chance to see at live.

[Awaken]

Rank - song - my rank
6 - Trial of tears - 16 - the highlight of FII, love the atmosphere in this one
5 - Home - 20 - great tune on a great album
4 - Octavarium - 3 - bucket list live tune, really really hoping they bring this one back soon!

[hefdaddy42]

Octavarium is an incredible achievement.  I had it at # 2, which surprised me a little.  But that's fine.

Seeing this live with the orchestra at Radio City Music Hall was one of the highlights of my concert-going life.

[devieira73]

Octavarium (my #9) is an incredible composition and maybe, what I find most interesting about it, the only one from DT that, almost exclusively, emulates a very classic prog vibe, leaving behind all 80's, 90's or more modern DT influences. As a controversial opinion, I must say that I LOVE the lyrics (not only the lyrics but also the way they are rhythmically phrased) on part III - Full Circle (12:15-18:27) - it's an amazing homage to the classic rock bands IMO.

[jammindude]

Octavarium is an incredible achievement.  I had it at # 2, which surprised me a little.  But that's fine.

Seeing this live with the orchestra at Radio City Music Hall was one of the highlights of my concert-going life.

Me too, and me too.

[hefdaddy42]

Octavarium is an incredible achievement.  I had it at # 2, which surprised me a little.  But that's fine.

Seeing this live with the orchestra at Radio City Music Hall was one of the highlights of my concert-going life.

Me too, and me too.

[pg1067]

Number 4:

04. Octavarium
Highest Finish: 1 (CanuckChum, geeeemo, jingle.boy, jonny108, King Puppies and the Acid Guppies, Metro, Mosh, PixelDream, ReaPsTA, Trav86, weirdo, Wim Kruithof, wolfking)
Number of Lists appeared on: 66 (Adami, Animal, Awaken, axeman90210, Ben_Jamin, bosk1, CanuckChum, CharlesPL, Cool Chris, Dave_Manchester, devieira73, Dittomist, DragonAttack, Dream Team, DTwwbwMP, energythief, Evermind, Fonzie, geeeemo, hefdaddy42, Indiscipline, Jamesman42, jammindude, jeff_kinsley, JiM-Xtreme, jingle.boy, jonny108, JPZealot, KevShmev, King Puppies and the Acid Guppies, Lethean, lightningbolt, lucasembarbosa, mariner, Metro, MirrorMask, Mladen, MoraWintersoul, Mosh, MustActFastToCoverUp, nobloodyname, NoFred, OpenYourEyes311, Peter Mc, pg1067, PixelDream, Podaar, porcacultor, ReaperKK, ReaPsTA, Revenge319, romdrums, Setlist Scotty, Stadler, SwedishGoose, TAC, The Realm, Toro, Trav86, twosuitsluke, Vmadera00, WardySI, weirdo, Wim Kruithof, wolfking, Zydar)

The first half of Octavarium is one of the best things DT has ever written. The song takes a bit of a nose dive in the second half but overall I really enjoy it.

I had Octavarium at #6, but it's a mixed bag.  From the synth solo starting at 12:15 to the end, it's one of the greatest things ever written, and that's good enough to get it in my top 10.  However, the Continuum intro might be the most boring thing in the band's catalog.  The intro to the song proper is cool, and the "Someone Like Him" and "Medicate" sections are fine, but they're nothing special.  If, instead of going into the synth solo, they had tagged on a 30 outro at the end of "Medicate" and ended the song, I probably wouldn't have ranked it in my top 100.

Octavarium dropped two spots from #3 in the prior countdown.

And I now know that my top 3 will be the consensus top 3 (which were 1, 2 and 4 in the prior countdown).  We'll see if I can nail them in order.



List                                                    Not Ranked         
100  This Dying Soul (47T)                  Never Enough (100), The Gift of Music (98), Our New World (93), A New Beginning (91), New Millennium (87), Sleeping Giant (85), Awaken the Master (81), The Best of Times (77), To Live Forever (75T)
99  I Walk Beside You (80)                  Answering the Call (75T), Lost Not Forgotten (73), Fall into the Light (72), Honor Thy Father (71), Raise the Knife (65), The Great Debate (53), Peruvian Skies (44T), Disappear (41), The Mirror (27)
98  Far from Heaven (NR)
97  This Is the Life (88)
96  Prophets of War (NR)
95  A Rite of Passage (NR)
94  The Ones Who Help to Set the Sun (NR)
93  Lines in the Sand (28)
92  The Ministry of Lost Souls (61)
91  Build Me Up; Break Me Down (NR)
90
89  Under a Glass Moon (16)
88  Another Day (38)
87  Innocence Faded (42)
86  Lie (47T)
85  In the Presence of Enemies (22)
84  Forsaken (95)
83
82  Erotomania (40)
81  The Spirit Carries On (26)
80
79  Vacant (97)
78  Wait for Sleep (44T)
77  The Silent Man (66)
76
75  A Fortune in Lies (78)
74
73  A Nightmare to Remember (50)
72
71  These Walls (54)
70
69  At Wit's End (37)
68  The Shattered Fortress (79)
67  The Dark Eternal Night (70)
66  Pale Blue Dot (62)
65  Transcending Time (90)
64
63  Space-Dye Vest (30)
62
61  Beneath the Surface (64)
60  Hell's Kitchen (57)
59  Afterlife (96)
58
57  Surrender to Reason (83T)
56
55  The Alien (69)
54  The Root of All Evil (36)
53  The Bigger Picture (60)
52  Trial of Tears (6)
51  Pull Me Under (14)
50
49  As I Am (43)
48  A View from the Top of the World (49)
47  Lifting Shadows off a Dream (35)
46  Behind the Veil (89)
45  The Glass Prison (15)
44  On the Backs of Angels (56)
43  Ytse Jam (67)
42  One Last Time (46)
41  Through Her Eyes (74)
40  The Dance of Eternity (33)
39  The Enemy Inside (83T)
38  Hollow Years (59)
37
36  Caught in a Web (51)
35  Barstool Warrior (52)
34  Endless Sacrifice (29)
33  Outcry (58)
32  6:00 (34)
31  The Looking Glass (92)
30  Bridges in the Sky (23)
29  Misunderstood (31)
28  S2N (94)
27  Wither (99)
26  Finally Free (19)
25  Overture 1928 (32)
24  Beyond This Life (24)
23  Take the Time (17)
22  Surrounded (20)
21  Strange Deja Vu (18)
20  Voices (7)
19  Sacrificed Sons (63)
18  Constant Motion (86) (high ranker)
17  Only a Matter of Time (82)
16  The Count of Tuscany (10)
15  The Killing Hand (68)
14  Panic Attack (55)
13  Illumination Theory (25)
12  Breaking All Illusions (8)
11  Stream of Consciousness (39)
10  Fatal Tragedy (13)
9  Blind Faith (21)
8  In the Name of God (11)
7  Scarred (12)
6  Home (5)
5  Octavarium (4)
4  Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (9)
3
2
1

[Revenge319]

Octavarium - My ranking: #2

When I first got into Dream Theater back in 2016, I loved all the few songs I'd been listening to at the time (Metropolis Part 1, On the Backs of Angels, Constant Motion, Panic Attack). Then one day I saw Octavarium on YouTube while listening to one of these songs, and I noticed the song was 24 minutes long. I'd never seen a song that long before, so naturally I was interested just from that alone. After listening to it, I was so fascinated by it. I'd never heard anything like it, and that's still true to this day. Octavarium is one of my all-time favorite songs, it is a truly remarkable piece of music. All five movements are perfect, I don't even know how I could rank them. Medicate and Intervals would probably be fighting for first place; Medicate is gorgeous, and this song would still be guaranteed a spot in my top five if it was just Medicate. Intervals is very short, but the buildup and release is immensely awesome. And even then, Razor's Edge might beat them both just for being the greatest ending to any Dream Theater song, maybe any song period.


2. Octavarium (+0)
3. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (+3)
4. Voices (+3)
5. The Count of Tuscany (+0)
6. Illumination Theory (-2)
7. Disappear (+1)
8. Blind Faith (+5)
9. The Glass Prison (+0)
10. The Best of Times (-7)
----------------------------
11. In the Presence of Enemies (+3)
12. A Nightmare to Remember (-1)
13. Erotomania (-1)
14. Space-Dye Vest (+5)
15. Misunderstood (+1)
16. Finally Free (-6)
17. This Dying Soul (+10)
18. The Shattered Fortress (+6)
19. Trial of Tears (+1)
20. Breaking All Illusions (-2)
21. The Ministry of Lost Souls (-4)
22. The Spirit Carries On (-7)
23. The Silent Man (+0)
24. The Dark Eternal Night (+9)
25. Beyond This Life (+3)
27. In the Name of God (+8)
29. Lines in the Sand (+16)
30. Hell's Kitchen (-8)
32. A View From the Top of the World
33. Surrounded (-12)
34. Outcry (+36)
35. Constant Motion (+29)
36. Fatal Tragedy (+15)
37. A New Beginning (-7)
38. The Great Debate (+0)
39. Pale Blue Dot (-8)
40. Sleeping Giant
41. Endless Sacrifice (+21)
42. The Root of All Evil (-10)
43. Home (-17)
46. Fall Into The Light (-10)
47. Barstool Warrior (-13)
48. The Bigger Picture (+0)
49. The Mirror (+9)
51. Ytse Jam (+4)
52. These Walls (+31)
56. Bridges in the Sky (-10)
58. S2N (+1)
59. The Enemy Inside (-10)
61. Awaken the Master
63. The Gift of Music (-2)
64. As I Am (+16)
65. Strange Deja Vu (+13)
66. Stream of Consciousness (-16)
67. Panic Attack (-15)
68. On the Backs of Angels (+20)
69. 6:00 (+24)
70. Another Day (-27)
71. Transcending Time
73. At Wit's End (-7)
75. Pull Me Under (-1)
77. Hollow Years (-2)
78. The Killing Hand (-37)
80. Wait For Sleep (-23)
83. The Dance of Eternity (+12)
84. This is the Life (-12)
87. A Fortune in Lies (+18)
88. I Walk Beside You (+31)
89. Never Enough (-18)
90. Wither (-4)
93. Vacant (+4)
94. Through Her Eyes (-13)
97. Innocence Faded (-8)
98. Lie (+19)
100. Our New World (+3)
----------------------------------
105. Answering the Call
109. The Alien
112. Beneath the Surface (-2)
113. Under A Glass Moon (+10)
116. Caught in a Web (+14)
122. Lost Not Forgotten (-9)
123. Behind the Veil (-2)
124. Peruvian Skies (+2)
126. Take the Time (+10)
130. The Looking Glass (+1)
131. Forsaken (-4)
137. Sacrificed Sons (-15)
139. Only a Matter of Time (-10)
141. Lifting Shadows Off A Dream (-25)
142. Afterlife (-7)
143. One Last Time (-4)
145. Scarred (-17)
147. Surrender to Reason (-10)
148. New Millennium (-8)
149. Honor Thy Father (-7)
----------------------------------
Unranked: To Live Forever, Raise the Knife

[TAC]

Number 4:

04. Octavarium
Highest Finish: 1 (CanuckChum, geeeemo, jingle.boy, jonny108, King Puppies and the Acid Guppies, Metro, Mosh, PixelDream, ReaPsTA, Trav86, weirdo, Wim Kruithof, wolfking)
Number of Lists appeared on: 66 (Adami, Animal, Awaken, axeman90210, Ben_Jamin, bosk1, CanuckChum, CharlesPL, Cool Chris, Dave_Manchester, devieira73, Dittomist, DragonAttack, Dream Team, DTwwbwMP, energythief, Evermind, Fonzie, geeeemo, hefdaddy42, Indiscipline, Jamesman42, jammindude, jeff_kinsley, JiM-Xtreme, jingle.boy, jonny108, JPZealot, KevShmev, King Puppies and the Acid Guppies, Lethean, lightningbolt, lucasembarbosa, mariner, Metro, MirrorMask, Mladen, MoraWintersoul, Mosh, MustActFastToCoverUp, nobloodyname, NoFred, OpenYourEyes311, Peter Mc, pg1067, PixelDream, Podaar, porcacultor, ReaperKK, ReaPsTA, Revenge319, romdrums, Setlist Scotty, Stadler, SwedishGoose, TAC, The Realm, Toro, Trav86, twosuitsluke, Vmadera00, WardySI, weirdo, Wim Kruithof, wolfking, Zydar)

I had Octavarium at #2!
Just an amazing song. It's so cleverly written as to represent a lifetime, both musically and lyrically. Simply a stunning piece of work.


List                                                    Not Ranked         
100                                                      Wither
99                                                        Vacant
98  6:00                                               Our New World
97                                                        The Looking Glass
96  The Root Of All Evil                          Transcending Time
95  Lie                                                  Behind The Veil
94                                                        New Millenium   
93  Caught In A Web                              Constant Motion
92  The Glass Prison                               The Shattered Fortress
91                                                        To Live Forever
90  Forsaken                                         Answering The Call
89                                                        Honor Thy Father
88                                                        The Silent Man
87                                                        Hell's Kitchen
86  Zydar                                              The Great Debate
85  Pale Blue Dot                                   As I Am
84                                                        Misunderstood
83                                                        The Mirror
82                                                        Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence
81                                                        Home
80  Awaken The Master
79  On The Backs Of Angels
78  Stream Of Consciousness
77  A Nightmare To Remember
76  S2N
75  These Walls
74  Afterlife
73  This Is The Life
72  Beyond This Life
71  Pull Me Under
70  One Last Time
69  Surrender Of Reason
68
67
66
65  Sacrificed Sons
64  Beneath The Surface
63  Through Her Eyes
62  The Bigger Picture
61  I Walk Beside You
60  Never Enough
59  A New Beginning
58  Wait For Sleep
57  Illumination Theory
56  The Spirit Carries On
55  Under A Glass Moon
54  Barstool Warrior
53
52  Finally Free
51  Erotomania
50  In The Name Of God
49  Strange Deja Vu
48  Bridges In The Sky
47  Blind Faith
46
45  Overture 1928
44  Panic Attack
43  Innocence Faded
42  The Ministry Of Lost Souls
41  Sleeping Giant
40
39  A View From The Top Of The World
38  At Wits End
37  Fall Into The Light
36  In The Presence Of Enemies
35  The Gift Of Music
34  The Dance Of Eternity
33  Peruvian Skies
32  Lifting Shadows Off A Dream
31  Ytse Jam
30  Trial Of Tears
29
28  The Enemy Inside
27  Voices
26  Only A Matter Of Time
25  Surrounded
24  Raise The Knife
23  Hollow Years
22  The Dark Eternal Night
21  Outcry
20  This Dying Soul
19
18  A Fortune In Lies
17
16  The Alien
15  Fatal Tragedy
14  The Best Of Times
13  Endless Sacrifice
12
11  Lost Not Forgotten.
10  Take The Time
9  Breaking All Illusions
8  Lines In The Sand
7  Disappear
6  The Count Of Tuscany
5  Space Dye Vest
4  The Killing Hand
3  Scarred
2  Octavarium
1




77-20

[MirrorMask]

I'm surprised! I thought 8VM would be #1. I'm genuinely curious as to what the order of the final three will be!

I think it's gonna be a tight race between the long one and the whaa, whaa, whaaa one.

[OpenYourEyes311]

Trial of Tears was my #88. Home was #3! Octavarium was my #2!!

Great batch of songs. As others who were there have said, I will cherish being able to see Octavarium at RCMH, along with my #1 song just a few songs prior. Just an absolutely incredible night. I sure hope they bring this song back out on tour for the 20th/40th Anniversary... obviously culminating in a live release called TWO SCORE.

[The Realm]

Octavarium - my rank 13. There is no denying this is a great song that contains some brilliant musical moments and some good lyrics but to call it an all time great prog epic is a bridge too far for me. Kind of happy it finished 4th overall as the remaining 3 songs are better than Octavarium in every way.

[Wim Kruithof]

I am too, but I have my guess. 

I think my number 17, then my number 103, then my number 10.

Looks like part V is about you and me... it's what we seem to live in.

[Jamesman42]

25. Illumination Theory (91st) DREAM THEATER, IF YOU'RE READING THIS, DO MORE STUFF IN THE VEIN OF THE LAST FEW MINUTES OF THIS SONG. SO GOOD.
24. Beyond This Life (88th) I'm a SFAM hater, what can I say? It's an okay song though.
23. Bridges In The Sky (8th) This song could be top 5 but the intro is too long, it's otherwise a stellar song. When JLB sings "crossing bridges in the sky", it's so good.
22. In The Presence Of Enemies (28th) Cool epic on a weird album. I don't like the Dark Master part. Everything else is good. Odd song for DT, though.
21. Blind Faith (42nd) Easily the worst track of SDOIT but still just fine.
20. Surrounded (25th) What a lovely song. Just, so bouncy but then a bit serious. DT does this style of song nicely.
19. Finally Free (76th) SFAM, yeah....
18. Strange Deja Vu (89th) Lol. The "uncanny strange deja vu" does pop into my mind at times.
17. Take The Time (19th) The energy in this song is really vibrant. JLB is having fun and the music is good.
16. Under A Glass Moon (67th) It's a fine song, with a cool intro. It's always been the weakest or second weakest track on IaW to me, though.
15. The Glass Prison (3rd) This is 15th and I am shocked. I know some of the songs remaining, but I thought this was one of the most favored songs. Interesting. Anyway, this song is just pure gas for a long time.
14. Pull Me Under (77th) This and UAGM are fine songs, but they can swap being the worst or 2nd worst on the album, but they have stiff competition. Also surprised this is so high, is it because it's their most famous song?
13. Fatal Tragedy (90th) What a canyon between my ranking and the consensus. Yeah, it's a SFAM song, for some reason that album doesn't gel with me.
12. Scarred (69th) It's a fine song, but I often forget how it even sounds when I see it talked about.
11. In The Name Of God (13th) Hell yeah. I avoided this song for a while when this album was the new stuff, IDK why, I just was loving the rest of the album and this was the last song. It is pretty much flawless. I love the choir at the end, subtle enough to enjoy (and JLB's screaming as well).
10. The Count Of Tuscany (6th) This (and several other songs) are what DT do best in the modern era (I am thinking post-8VM). You can have the metal in "prog metal" but don't leave behind the prog, or the beautiful melodies and tight compositions. The intro might be a top 5, maybe a top 3 DT intro, musically speaking. The ending is great, it's fun to sing and play on the acoustic (capo on 4th fret).
09. Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence (4th) I hate ranking this as a single song. Like others, this is a collection of 8 different ideas/tracks/songs, but they're all great songs (maybe besides Goodnight Kiss, that one is decent). But since we have to bow to the wishes of the almighty band, here we are. Not my actual 4th favorite, but yeah, each part is a great picture of different mental illnesses. Favorites include Solitary Shell, The Test..., and Losing Time.
08. Breaking All Illusions (11th) 3rd best song from the MM era. It just slaps, and it does it better than Learning to Live.
07. Voices (40th) Excellent song, but 7th?! Wow. But I think I get it, it's not a prog epic but an emotional song with a lot of good stuff.
06. Trial Of Tears (31st) Great song from a weird era. Not on the hype train to be 6th best, that is pretty mind-blowing to me.
05. Home (65th) I don't get why people rate this so highly. I deduced it would be in the top 6, and I gave it a listen today and...yeah, there is some powerful music happening there, I can kinda see it being a big hit, but to make top 5, I don't know what I am missing.
04. Octavarium (2nd) This song is one of the best songs ever made to me. Intervals is especially awesome, but every part is its own little world, and I love visiting each part each time.

[Dave_Manchester]

1. This Dying Soul
2. In The Name of God
3. Stream of Consciousness
4. Blind Faith
5. Breaking All Illusions
6. Disappear
7. Endless Sacrifice
8. Octavarium
9.
10. Trial of Tears
11. Home
12. Outcry
13. Misunderstood
14. Finally Free
15. Bridges in the Sky
16. Voices
17. The Count of Tuscany
18. The Glass Prison
19. Erotomania
20. As I Am
21. The Great Debate
22. The Shattered Fortress
23. Answering The Call
24. In The Presence of Enemies
25. Lines in the Sand
26. Surrounded
27. Awaken The Master
28.
29. Pull Me Under
30. The Root of all Evil
31. Illumination Theory
32. Forsaken
33. A View From The Top Of The World
34. Lifting Shadows Off A Dream
35. At Wits' End
36. Beneath The Surface
37. Innocence Faded
38. Peruvian Skies
39. Take The Time
40. Fatal Tragedy
41. The Best of Times
42. On The Backs of Angels
43. Scarred
44. Beyond This Life
45. The Mirror
46. Panic Attack
47. Lie
48. Another Day
49. The Alien
50.
51. Behind the Veil
52. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
53. These Walls
54.
55. The Ministry of Lost Souls
56. Sleeping Giant
57. Fall Into The Light
58. Pale Blue Dot
59.
60. Sacrificed Sons
61. Honor Thy Father
62. New Millennium
63. Overture 1928
64. Barstool Warrior
65.
66. Hell's Kitchen
67. Space-Dye Vest
68. 6:00
69. The Bigger Picture
70. The Spirit Carries On
71. Transcending Time (my lowest ranked song from View)
72.
73. I Walk Beside You
74.
75. Never Enough
76. Hollow Years (#TeamBudokan by the way)
77.
78.
79. Caught In A Web
80. Strange Deja Vu
81.
82.
83.
84.
85.
86. Surrender To Reason
87.
88. Vacant (lowest ranked song from ToT)
89. The Dance of Eternity
90.
91. One Last Time
92. The Looking Glass
93. A Fortune In Lies
94. Ytse Jam
95. Afterlife
96. Under A Glass Moon
97.
98. Constant Motion
99.
100. The Enemy Inside


I had Octavarium at #8 (which I just realised is quite fitting). Not keen on the Shine On You Crazy Diamond homage at the start, but everything from the Firth of Fifth keyboard solo homage onwards is great. Overall, it's a wonderful homage (see what I'm doing here?) to the great music of yesteryear, but with enough of DT's own identity to keep it mostly fresh. Great, great, great guitar solo at the end too. I think this'll be the epic that gets played on MP's first tour back, which I'm assuming will be in 2025 and hence 20 years after the album was released. 

[Animal]

I had Octavarium at #6, but it's a mixed bag.  From the synth solo starting at 12:15 to the end, it's one of the greatest things ever written, and that's good enough to get it in my top 10.  However, the Continuum intro might be the most boring thing in the band's catalog.  The intro to the song proper is cool, and the "Someone Like Him" and "Medicate" sections are fine, but they're nothing special.  If, instead of going into the synth solo, they had tagged on a 30 outro at the end of "Medicate" and ended the song, I probably wouldn't have ranked it in my top 100.

This sums up how I feel about the song a lot better than my own write-up.

[Fonzie]

My no 8 too. I am sooo cool. Great song.
I never realised that it was routinely divided up in to (named) sections. I always just appreciated it as a whole.

Can't argue with the last 3. They're alll in my top 20, and I'm a noob to this whole ranking thing; there was no group bias going on.

This has been a blast. This current DT tip I'm on is like a solid 10 weeks now, and I just wanna play em all back to back again!  What a band, eh ?!?

[wolfking]

Up until this countdown, This Dying Soul was my number one, but over the last two years, Octavarium has grown on me more again.  I always loved it but I think it's the quintessential prog metal epic.  A lot of bands (DT included) have tried to do 20 plus minute songs where they always feel like pieces thrown together.  A few bands have nailed it for me (Green Carnation, Edge of Sanity, Insomnium to a degree) but Octavarium is the perfect example a song that just builds from start to finish and really cements itself as a single epic piece.  Nothing is disjointed, nothing is not supposed to be there, it's a incredible 24 minute ride.  The whole buildup to the 'trapped inside this Octavarium' part just gives me chills and sends me cold, the atmosphere is incredible and like nothing I've quite heard before.  Followed by Razors Edge, it's just perfect.


List                                                        Not Ranked         
100                                                    The Gift of Music
99 The Best of Times                          A New Beginning
98 Constant Motion                             New Millenium
97                                                     Sleeping Giant
96 A Fortune in Lies                            Awaken the Master
95 The Alien                                       To Live Forever
94 Our New World                               The Killing Hand
93 This is the Life                                Ytse Jam
92 Disappear                                       The Silent Man
91 Hollow Years                                   Raise the Knife
90 Sacrificed Sons                               Beneath the Surface
89 Only A Matter of Time
88 Vacant
87
86 Through Her Eyes
85
84 Stream Of Consciousness
83
82 Transcending Time
81
80
79 Pale Blue Dot
78 Wither
77 Lines in the Sand
76
75 The Ministry of Lost Souls
74 The Enemy Inside
73 One Last Time
72 Peruvian Skies
71 Forsaken
70 Lost Not Forgotten
69
68
67 S2N
66 Fall Into the Light
65
64 The Looking Glass
63 Panic Attack
62 Surrounded
61 On the Backs of Angels
60 Beyond This Life
59 Trial of Tears
58 Afterlife
57 Caught In A Web
56 Breaking All Illusions
55 Visions
54 The Great Debate
53 A Nightmare to Remember
52 Erotomania
51 Answering the Call
50 The Spirit Carries On
49 Space-Dye Vest
48 The Shattered Fortress
47 Finally Free
46 As I Am
45 Bridges in the Sky
44 The Dark Eternal Night
43
42 Never Enough
41 Wait For Sleep
40
39 Strange Deja Vu
38 Six Degrees of Inner Turbulance
37 The Bigger Picture
36 Outcry
35 Take the Time
34 Lie
33 The Root of All Evil
32 I Walk Beside You
31
30 A View From the Top of the World
29 Surrender to Reason
28 Barstool Warrior
27 Another Day
26 Lifting Shadows Off A Dream
25 Endless Sacrifice
24 Innocence Faded
23 Misunderstood
22 Under A Glass Moon
21 In the Presence of Enemies
20 Behind the Veil
19 Honor Thy Father
18 Pull Me Under
17
16 In the Name of God
15 Fatal Tragedy
14 The Count of Tuscany
13 These Walls
12 At Wit's End
11 The Mirror
10 Scarred
9 Home
8 The Glass Prison
7
6 Blind Faith
5 Illumination Theory
4
3
2 This Dying Soul.
1 Octavarium

[/quote]

[Cool Chris]

#8 for me. I don't listen to it often, but it pure bliss every time I do.

[porcacultor]

6. Trial of Tears - #44 for me. Could've ranked much higher, still, what a killer track.

5. Home - #51 for me. Really surprised to see this one ranking the highest among SFAM tracks -- I tend to think of it more like a fun detour rather than an album highlight, but that's just me. And not a knock on the song! Ultimately it makes sense to see how highly it's regarded.

4. Octavarium - #33 for me. Sweet and fantastic. Something for everybody in it.

[DragonAttack]

Indeed, it's kind of ironic that four of us who have posted had this at #8.  More so if there were eight total <cue Twilight Zone theme >

[NoFred]

Octavarium (my #9) is an incredible composition and maybe, what I find most interesting about it, the only one from DT that, almost exclusively, emulates a very classic prog vibe, leaving behind all 80's, 90's or more modern DT influences. As a controversial opinion, I must say that I LOVE the lyrics (not only the lyrics but also the way they are rhythmically phrased) on part III - Full Circle (12:15-18:27) - it's an amazing homage to the classic rock bands IMO.

The bolded, completely agree. I'll always remember when it came out another poster on the home theater forums said "it sounds like they just toured with Yes" which is obvious in hindsight and isn't a bad thing. I objectively get how this could be their best work, it's difficult to say there's anything better. Though not my top five cause I'm partial to my DT metal, and that's the thing they didn't include here...

Love how it's a complete song, no obvious chapters parts or connecting points
Love how it takes its time especially at the start, very echoes in overall vibe to start then ends up at tear down the wall
Love how it's nuggets on top of nuggets buried beneath nuggetz
Love how it's the epic plus the album closer plus closes the album continuation started with SFAM... yet it's all seamless
—the idea of sampling both musically/lyrically all the previous tracks in a concise final bridge, was that done before this song? Wondering if they genuinely came up with the idea/execution

[Dittomist]

Under a Glass Moon- 45
Pure joy!

The Glass Prison-11
The total opposite of Under a Glass Moon, as not a single second could be described as joyous or uplifting. It's dark, angry, and bitter, and really hits the spot on days like today. Love the interplay between James and Mike on the mic. 

Pull Me Under- 18
I'll never forget the excitement of seeing the video for the first time on Headbanger's Ball because it really felt like I was being introduced to my new favorite band. It's a bummer they've only had one big hit but at least it was for a song as wonderful and appropriately representative as Pull Me Under. 

Fatal Tragedy- 9
Back in my mix CD days, this was often the song I chose to introduce people to my favorite band, and it probably gave a couple of them seizures. Is anyone else reminded of Megadeth's Hangar 18 in the final two minutes? 

Scarred- 2
I thought I was going to take the top spot here, and so kudos to Ben_Jamin  for going one step beyond. It hurts me to realize that for the first 50 or so times I listened to Awake, I was deprived of this masterpiece because I bought the cassette. James gets to really show off his range here, as his piercing screams of "I never lost my devotion, but somewhere fate went wrong" and melting desperation of "Do you feel you don't know me anymore? And do you feel I'm afraid of your love?" are equally powerful. This also has one of my favorite outros. 

In the Name of God- 25
Very happy to see this song get such a high ranking here! It's totally deserving.

The Count of Tuscany- 26
Yep, this song has it all! Puts me on a rollercoaster of emotions every time.

Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence- 4
This very easily could have been my #1 but I didn't think it would be fair to the others. I've always viewed this as 8 separate songs that happen to all be bangers, and so it would be like a handicap match.
I think I said earlier that Disappear was DT's saddest song but it's probably tied with Goodnight Kiss. It's absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking, and on its own, would have made my Top 10 list. 

Breaking All Illusions- 23
My 2nd favorite Mangini-era song, with Fall Into the Light being #1

Voices- 3
When I started making this list, I put this at the very top with no hesitation whatsoever because in my mind it's always been my favorite Dream Theater song. I ended up moving a couple others up and now that feels rather blasphemous. I think this is Labrie's all-time greatest performance, especially on that "Can you rid me of my secrets? Deliver us from Darkness?" part. 

Trial of Tears- 23
Well, this almost makes up for Anna Lee inexplicably missing from this countdown! Each member of the band really shines here and I'm sad that I've never gotten to see this performed before. 

Home- 54
This song rocks but it does not belong anywhere near the top 5. It's craaaaazy that it ranked higher than Voices and Scarred. 

Octavarium- 6
That's more like it, people! 

[Wim Kruithof]

wolfking I agree on all terms, since it's my #1 all time song by any band. The only thing that may could have been different, is that the intro is a little too long for my taste. But that's just being a dick, the song is a ride I will never get tired or disjointed from.

But, I have to say, last couple of days I've listened to Learning to Live plenty of time and each listen it's getting better. That's unique and only on this level available in Dream Theaterland... here you can hear songs after a while and end on a completely different layer of beauty.

Although it's really fun to do, ranking songs therefore is near useless... it keeps on evolving over time.

[PixelDream]

My number 1! It was a toss between Scarred and Octavarium. The Intervals section in Octavarium delivers goosebumps every time and makes the album seem better than it actually is (every song gets represented with each interval and has a phrase dedicated to it).

The weird thing is that I'm not even totally crazy about classic prog like Genesis, and this epic is definitely mostly devoid of DT's prog metal sound. I still think it's their greatest achievement. When listened all the way through, the reprise of the Medicate Me theme at the end of the outro guitar solo delivers me the most satisfying feeling. It's awesome.

[wolfking]

wolfking I agree on all terms, since it's my #1 all time song by any band. The only thing that may could have been different, is that the intro is a little too long for my taste. But that's just being a dick, the song is a ride I will never get tired or disjointed from.

But, I have to say, last couple of days I've listened to Learning to Live plenty of time and each listen it's getting better. That's unique and only on this level available in Dream Theaterland... here you can hear songs after a while and end on a completely different layer of beauty.

Although it's really fun to do, ranking songs therefore is near useless... it keeps on evolving over time.

Early on I thought the intro was a little drawn out buy these days I love it and to doesn't feel overly long at all.

[wolfking]

The other moment that stops me in my tracks is that distorted Medicate Me melody Jordan plays during the second 'trapped inside this 8VM'.  Something about that gives me the most weirdest uneasy feeling.

[jingle.boy]

Indeed, it's kind of ironic that four of us who have posted had this at #8.  More so if there were eight total <cue Twilight Zone theme >

What would be fantastic is if 5 people had it rated at #8 :nuggetz:

Re 8vm... I remember when my very first listen to it, and it was such a slow build - after the chaos of the SS ending, it really caught me off guard.  24 minutes my very first thought was "Well, it's no A Change of Seasons".     Little did I know.  It didn't take too long before I realized it was at least as good as ACOS, and ultimately, better than (for me).

It's my #1 DT song, and my #1 Song of all time.  It is absolutely flawless in my ears.  Kade summed it up pretty good, but I'll also just add that it has the best keyboard solo in the DT discography, the best instrumental section, the best key/bass/guitar unison, and the best guitar solo.  It's James' best vocal delivery post-shrimp cocktail, and his scream from Score is one of the best live things he's ever done - especially considering it was 2.5 hours into the show.  And there's no studio touchup there, he does the exact same thing on the bootlegs I've heard from the shows leading up to Score.

I'd hoped this would place in the top two, but alas... it's not a terrible surprise the top-3 are what they are, and from the time of peak-JLB.

[ReaperKK]

Top 3:

03. A Change Of Seasons
Highest Finish: 1 (Adami, axeman90210, devieira73, Dream Team, hefdaddy42, jeff_kinsley, JPZealot, lucasembarbosa, pg1067, Revenge319, romdrums, Vmadera00)
Number of Lists appeared on: 64 (Adami, Animal, Awaken, axeman90210, Ben_Jamin, bosk1, CanuckChum, CharlesPL, Cool Chris, Dave_Manchester, devieira73, Dittomist, DragonAttack, Dream Team, DTwwbwMP, energythief, Fonzie, geeeemo, hefdaddy42, Indiscipline, Jamesman42, jammindude, jeff_kinsley, JiM-Xtreme, jingle.boy, jonny108, JPZealot, KevShmev, King Puppies and the Acid Guppies, Lethean, lightningbolt, lucasembarbosa, mariner, Metro, MirrorMask, Mladen, MoraWintersoul, Mosh, MustActFastToCoverUp, nobloodyname, NoFred, OpenYourEyes311, Peter Mc, pg1067, PixelDream, Podaar, porcacultor, ReaperKK, ReaPsTA, Revenge319, romdrums, Setlist Scotty, SwedishGoose, TAC, The Realm, Toro, Trav86, twosuitsluke, Vmadera00, WardySI, weirdo, Wim Kruithof, wolfking, Zydar)

Epic followed by another epic. ACOS is a great song through and through. It stay remarkably consistent throughout it's long runtime.

[axeman90210]

A Change of Seasons- My #1 with a bullet. The first 20+ minute prog epic I heard from any band, and still my favorite. Each section is unique while serving the whole piece, the band is firing on all cylinders, and the lyrics from MP are poignant. Not only my favorite DT song, my favorite song period.