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

[Awaken]

Sleeping Giant - my #45 - Highest ranked song from AVFTTOTW, loved this one from first listen
The Enemy Inside - my #88 - Strong single/intro to DT12, though I don't revisit it often
Surrender to Reason - my #83 - right on target. way easier on the ears than TEI, my #4 from the album

[Zydar]

85. Sleeping Giant

Although I listened to AVFTTOTW one more time before I did my rankings, I still can't remember anything from this song. Did not rank.

84. The Enemy Inside

This, on the other hand, has been a favourite since album release. A catchy single with a cool riff. I had it at #58.

83. Surrender To Reason

A great song with lots of fine melodies, especially that guitar melody running through the song and going into the solo. It took my #60 spot.

[TAC]

85. Sleeping Giant
Highest Finish: 4 (jonny108)
Number of Lists appeared on: 37 (Animal, Awaken, bosk1, CanuckChum, Cool Chris, Dave_Manchester, devieira73, Dittomist, Dream Team, DTwwbwMP, geeeemo, hefdaddy42, jeff_kinsley, JiM-Xtreme, jonny108, KevShmev, King Puppies and the Acid Guppies, Lethean, lucasembarbosa, mariner, Metro, MustActFastToCoverUp, nobloodyname, NoFred, PixelDream, Podaar, ReaperKK, ReaPsTA, Revenge319, romdrums, Setlist Scotty, SwedishGoose, TAC, The Realm, Toro, Trav86, Wim Kruithof)

84. The Enemy Inside
Highest Finish: 10 (Animal)
Number of Lists appeared on: 48 (Animal, Awaken, Ben_Jamin, bosk1, CanuckChum, Cool Chris, Dave_Manchester, devieira73, Dittomist, DragonAttack, Dream Team, DTwwbwMP, energythief, Evermind, Fonzie, hefdaddy42, Jamesman42, jammindude, jeff_kinsley, jonny108, lightningbolt, lucasembarbosa, mariner, Metro, MirrorMask, MoraWintersoul, Mosh, MustActFastToCoverUp, nobloodyname, NoFred, OpenYourEyes311, Peter Mc, pg1067, PixelDream, ReaperKK, Revenge319, Setlist Scotty, Stadler, TAC, The Realm, Toro, twosuitsluke, Vmadera00, WardySI, weirdo, Wim Kruithof, wolfking, Zydar)

83. Surrender To Reason
Highest Finish: 12 (Vmadera00)
Number of Lists appeared on: 42 (Awaken, Ben_Jamin, bosk1, CanuckChum, Cool Chris, Dave_Manchester, devieira73, Dittomist, Dream Team, energythief, Evermind, geeeemo, hefdaddy42, Indiscipline, Jamesman42, jammindude, jeff_kinsley, jingle.boy, jonny108, JPZealot, KevShmev, King Puppies and the Acid Guppies, lightningbolt, lucasembarbosa, Metro, Mladen, Mosh, nobloodyname, OpenYourEyes311, pg1067, porcacultor, ReaPsTA, romdrums, Setlist Scotty, SwedishGoose, TAC, The Realm, Toro, twosuitsluke, Vmadera00, WardySI, Wim Kruithof, wolfking, Zydar)

I had Sleeping Giant at #41.

This took a while to unpack but I think this is a great song. So happy to have seen it live this summer. A real highlight.

I had The Enemy Inside at #28.

I think I like this song a little ore with every listen. It's aged really well.

I had Surrender To Reason at #69.

I kind of thought I'd have this a little higher, but I suppose it's right where it should be.




List                                                    Not Ranked         
100                                                      Wither
99                                                        Vacant
98                                                        Our New World
97                                                        The Looking Glass
96                                                        Transcending Time
95                                                        Behind The Veil
94                                                        New Milenium   
93                                                        Constant Motion
92
91
90  Forsaken
89
88
87
86
85
84
83
82
81
80
79
78
77
76  S2N
75
74  Afterlife
73  This Is The Life
72
71
70
69  Surrender Of Reason
68
67
66
65
64
63
62
61
60  Never Enough
59  A New Beginning
58
57
56
55
54
53
52
51
50
49
48
47
46
45
44
43
42
41  Sleeping Giant
40
39
38
37
36
35  The Gift Of Music
34
33
32
31
30
29
28  The Enemy Inside
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1

[Lonk]

85. Sleeping Giant
Highest Finish: 4 (jonny108)
Number of Lists appeared on: 37


84. The Enemy Inside
Highest Finish: 10 (Animal)
Number of Lists appeared on: 48

83. Surrender To Reason
Highest Finish: 12 (Vmadera00)
Number of Lists appeared on: 42

85. Sleeping Giant: NR. Came out at 101. It's fine, but nothing special.

84. Enemy Inside: #84 for me (right on target). When this album came out, and the epic were the only tracks that clicked with me. This song dropped a lot in the last 10 years, but I still enjoy it when it plays.

83: Surrender To Reason: Mark me down as surprised that 1) I'm the highest ranker and 2) this ranked so low. Lately, this is the only song I listen to from this album on any consistent basis. Everyone is great on this track. Also, the last chorus/bridge with the harmonized vocals and JP playing the melodic solo

[CharlesPL]

85. Sleeping Giant - none
84. The Enemy - none
83. Surrender To Reason - none

[Stadler]

NR   Sleeping Giant
NR   Surrender To Reason
154. S2N
145. Vacant
138. Wither
123. Never Enough
121. Afterlife
----
96.  Behind The Veil
85.  Constant Motion
80.  The Enemy Inside
59.  The Gift of Music
46.  A New Beginning
44.  Forsaken
41.  The Looking Glass
36.  New Millenium
33.  Transcending Time
28.  Our New World
5.    This Is The Life

[SwedishGoose]

Sleeping Giant a top ranking song from AWFTTOTW for me (33). I have one higher. There are some really tasty parts here. Rudess elevates it for sure.
The Enemy Inside did not rank for me. I did the ranker from memory had I taken the time to listen as I do now it might have ranked in the lower 10s (99 -100) possibly.
Surrender to Reason ranked at nr 87 for me. Listenig to it now it's probably where it should be. Nice enough song but Dream Theater has many that connect better with me.


My ranking so far

33 Sleeping Giant (85)
37 Our New World (93)
59 Transcending Time (90)
65 The Looking Glass (92)
81 Behind the Veil (89)
87 Surrender To Reason (83)
89 Forsaken (95)
91. The Gift of Music (98)
94. Never Enough (100)



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)

[Indiscipline]

Sleeping Giant: didn't make the cut, couldn't fight the Ranker

The Enemy Inside: didn't make the cut, couldn't fight me and the Ranker

Surrender to Reason: 33. Everything I love about DT is perfectly balanced here and nothing is showed off. Maybe Mangini's most exquisitely musical studio performance in the catalogue.


The Score so far:

21 - A New Beginning
33 - Surrender to Reason
36 - This Is the Life
45 - Vacant
46 - The Gift of Music
68 - Our New World
71 - Behind the Veil
72 - The Looking Glass

Not Rated: Never Enough, Wither, Afterlife, Forsaken, S2N, Transcending Time, New Millennium, Constant Motion, Sleeping Giant, The Enemy Inside

[Animal]

Sleeping Giant (73)  This was an early favorite from A View. I enjoy the jazzy feel and instrumental sections a lot. The vocal parts are not aging so well, though.

The Enemy Inside (10)  I didn't expect to have my Stadler moment so early! I gotta say it is very convenient as, seeing my ranking in Reaper's update,  I didn't have to look up the song in my list to see how I had ranked it. By DT standards, this is a simple and straightforward, but I just love it.

Surrender to a Reason (NR)  Possibly a victim of the chaotic ranking process.

[bosk1]

I had The Enemy Inside at #28.

I think I like this song a little ore with every listen. It's aged really well.

Yeah, it's pretty metal. 

[TAC]

I had The Enemy Inside at #28.

I think I like this song a little ore with every listen. It's aged really well.

Yeah, it's pretty metal. 

Kingshmetal!!

[King Postwhore]

You rang?   

[Mladen]

Neither Sleeping giant nor The Enemy inside made it to my list, but I do like the latter quite a bit. It was an entertaining single and a cool live track.

Surrender to reason was my #62. It's probably my 2nd favorite song on the self titled album. I agree with Vmadera00 on that final chorus, it's brilliant.

[hefdaddy42]

85 Sleeping Giant - I like this song quite a bit more than the consensus here, ranking it at # 43.  Just a great, great song.  All of the classic DT song qualities are here, and the song sounds extremely fresh to my ears.

84 The Enemy Inside - Again, I appear to like this one a little more than the consensus, ranking it at # 61.  Heavy and aggressive, with a driving beat, great riffage, interesting dynamics, and good lyrics and a great JLB performance as well.  Nothing not to like IMO.

83 Surrender to Reason - On the other hand, this one barely made my list, at # 98.  If I look at the individual properties of this song, I should probably like it more than I do, but for some reason, the sum of the parts doesn't hit me the way I would have thought it would.  *shrugs*

[OpenYourEyes311]

83. Surrender To Reason

Kind of surprised to see this song so low. I thought it was more liked around these parts. I think this is a great, straight ahead song from DT. Killer drums from MP and blistering solo from JP.

Hopefully soon!

[twosuitsluke]

Two out of three today and surprisingly, its the two from D12.

I had Sleeping Giant at 119. It's fine, but is it really better than Wither? I think not. I much prefer Mastodon's version! This is me when I try to think of anything else positive to say about this song...

Staring down, staring down
Nothing comes to mind
Find the place turn the water into wine

But I feel I'm getting nowhere
And I'll never see the end...

SO I WIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTHHEERRRRRRRRR
AND RENDER MYSELF HEEEELPLESSSSS...

I had The Enemy Inside at #35 and Surrender To Reason at #62. Both quality songs from one of my favourite DT records.

My ranking so far:

13. Wither
20. Never Enough
29. Constant Motion
30. A New Beginning
35. The Enemy Inside
45. The Looking Glass
49. Forsaken
55. Behind the Veil
62. Surrender to Reason
83. This is the Life
86. Our New World
100. New Millennium

Not ranked:

109. Vacant
113. Afterlife
119. Sleeping Giant
123. Transcending Time
125. S2N
140. The Gift of Music

[Lonk]

I had Sleeping Giant at 119. It's fine, but is it really better than Wither? I think not. I much prefer Mastodon's version!

[twosuitsluke]

I had Sleeping Giant at 119. It's fine, but is it really better than Wither? I think not. I much prefer Mastodon's version!

Right?! It's a terrible cover, sounds nothing like the 'Don.

[Evermind]

Sleeping Giant - not ranked - I think I have one song from AVFTTOTW on my list and this isn't it. I've listened to the album once more in preparation to this but still not terribly familiar with the material. This was one of the harder songs to grasp and I think it could benefit from additional listens.

The Enemy Inside - #66 - solid metal song. Good chorus. Definitely ahead of CM or TDEN in my book.

Surrender to Reason - #63 - also a very solid song. Definitely like it although the lyrics seemed typical JM on release and not in a good way. Really expected to see it on DT12 tour (not disappointed in what we've got but wonder why they didn't play it).

[Revenge319]

Sleeping Giant - My ranking: #40
Not as good of a vocal performance as Bladecatcher, but a nice attempt nonetheless. Sleeping Giant was my favorite song on AVFTTOTW for a while, though recently another song has taken first place on the album. The music fits with the idea of a metaphorical sleeping giant very nicely. It's got this sound that simultaneously feels angry, and as though it's exercising caution because it's aware of what's hiding beneath. The chorus is very good, as is all the instrumental parts, big and small. It took some time for the songs on this album to grow on me, but I enjoyed Sleeping Giant right away.

The Enemy Inside - My ranking: #59 (-10)
A classic Dream Theater song right here. I don't think they've ever made a song with this structure that I don't enjoy. The Enemy Inside is a great song on its own, but I think Jordan really helps elevate it with the keyboards despite them mostly being in the background.

Surrender to Reason - My ranking: #147 (-10)
At this point, I think I get what people enjoy about this song, but it just doesn't have much that interests me. The acoustic section is nice but I feel like it's cut short, and the rest of the song that follows isn't memorable.

----------------------------

35. Constant Motion
37. A New Beginning
40. Sleeping Giant
58. S2N
59. The Enemy Inside
63. The Gift of Music
71. Transcending Time
84. This is the Life
89. Never Enough
90. Wither
93. Vacant
100. Our New World

[MirrorMask]

Sleeping Giant didn't make my cut. Didn't really connect with it, there's nothing I strongly dislike on View, but the album didn't really have much staying power with me.

The Enemy Inside barely made it at 99. Good song, it's a testament to DT's quality that I can find something nice to see even to songs I ranked so low.

Surrender to Reason is another song I would never say I dislike, but it just didn't make my cut. I can survive without it being played live. Maybe I would enjoy it live however, who knows.

[jingle.boy]

Sleeping Giant ... NR, along with all other tracks from A View
The Enema Inside ... NR - as far as singles go, not the worst from the Roadrunner era, but not the best either.  I don't think I ever considered it for the Top 100, but if I had, it probably would have just missed.  Having just listened to it now, it's better than I remember, but still not Top 100 material.
Surrender to Reason ... 79.  Good tune.  One I enjoyed listening to

Also, I've started curating a Spotify playlists as songs are revealed - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1qZDwbh6xzExhXc5Af8NLR?si=eaf2201d98054e02

The WDADU, CotC, and other non-album tracks might be difficult, since those aren't on Spotify.  Anything from WDADU, I'll just use the LNF Archive of WDADRU.

[ReaperKK]

Sleeping Giant ... NR, along with all other tracks from A View
The Enema Inside ... NR - as far as singles go, not the worst from the Roadrunner era, but not the best either.  I don't think I ever considered it for the Top 100, but if I had, it probably would have just missed.  Having just listened to it now, it's better than I remember, but still not Top 100 material.
Surrender to Reason ... 79.  Good tune.  One I enjoyed listening to

Also, I've started curating a Spotify playlists as songs are revealed - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1qZDwbh6xzExhXc5Af8NLR?si=eaf2201d98054e02

The WDADU, CotC, and other non-album tracks might be difficult, since those aren't on Spotify.  Anything from WDADU, I'll just use the LNF Archive of WDADRU.

You mind if I put that link in the OP?

[devieira73]

An interesting sequence of songs in the last 2 days, most scratching or inside my Top 50:

This Is The Life (my #94) is my least favorite from the bunch, but like others said, it's a very well written song. The keyboards are beautifully arranged.

I always loved A LOT New Millennium from the start (my #20) and always baffled me that it's a song far from the consensus between the fan base.

Constant Motion (my #35) and The Eneny Inside (my #52) are among the best from its albums and are great heavy singles and engaging live songs.

Sleeping Giant (my # 43) has a great Scenes era vibe, really cool, showing a lot of the great chemistry the band achieved in the last Mangini albums.

Surrender to Reason (my# 87) is more a solid to good song to me, but what really elevates this one is the KILLER (althoug a bit short) and very spontaneous solo section.

[jingle.boy]

Sleeping Giant ... NR, along with all other tracks from A View
The Enema Inside ... NR - as far as singles go, not the worst from the Roadrunner era, but not the best either.  I don't think I ever considered it for the Top 100, but if I had, it probably would have just missed.  Having just listened to it now, it's better than I remember, but still not Top 100 material.
Surrender to Reason ... 79.  Good tune.  One I enjoyed listening to

Also, I've started curating a Spotify playlist as songs are revealed - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1qZDwbh6xzExhXc5Af8NLR?si=eaf2201d98054e02

The WDADU, CotC, and other non-album tracks might be difficult, since those aren't on Spotify.  Anything from WDADU, I'll just use the LNF Archive of WDADRU.

You mind if I put that link in the OP?

Knock yourself out. 

[bosk1]

I don't have my list handy at work to say specifically where I ranked those, but they all did fairly well.  I think Sleeping Giant is my highest ranked from View (it's my favorite, so it should be, but using the ranker might have inadvertently got something else ahead of it and I might not have noticed), and I like the other two songs a lot as well.  I know I've expressed my love in the past for the section with Jordan's steel drum patch, and I still love that part.  Jordan using a synthesized steel drum patch over the top of a metal guitar riff was something I had no idea I needed until this song. 

The Enemy Inside was one that didn't hit for me right away, but grew on my over time.  In fact, I remember going to a show early on in that tour during the first leg where JP asked me what I thought of the lead single, and I struggled a bit with what to say because it was obvious that he was really proud of it, but I just wasn't really feeling it at all yet at that point.  But again, I came to really like and appreciate it.  Chad, I'm surprised that it didn't rank at all for you.  I mean, I get tastes and all that.  But given other stuff that you like, I'm just surprised that this one didn't even make the list, since it seems fairly consistent with things I think you would listen to.

Surrender to Reason is good.  I rank it somewhere in the middle for that album, and the album as a whole is my 4th favorite from the band, so...

[MirrorMask]

I wonder if at the end we'll get some additional stats for the songs that didn't make it. There has to be quite some songs that didn't make the cut but are in several top 50 lists, right? 

[porcacultor]

86. Constant Motion - 50. Perhaps my favorite LaBrie + Portnoy duet! Like a very average Metallica tribute band, but better 

I brought this back down to earth for you.

hey, what's life without a little exaggeration here and there? It's tough because I'm generally sick of Metallica, but hypocritically on my part when Dream Theater tries to cop their style I have no problem with it.

Anyway, moving on now:

85. Sleeping Giant - Didn't make the cut (but barely did, at 105!)
84. The Enemy Inside - Didn't make the cut (114)
83. Surrender To Reason - 42. Thought it'd go higher! Can't decide between this one and Looking Glas regarding which one I most want to hear MP playing.

[jingle.boy]

The Enemy Inside was one that didn't hit for me right away, but grew on my over time.  In fact, I remember going to a show early on in that tour during the first leg where JP asked me what I thought of the lead single, and I struggled a bit with what to say because it was obvious that he was really proud of it, but I just wasn't really feeling it at all yet at that point.  But again, I came to really like and appreciate it.  Chad, I'm surprised that it didn't rank at all for you.  I mean, I get tastes and all that.  But given other stuff that you like, I'm just surprised that this one didn't even make the list, since it seems fairly consistent with things I think you would listen to.

I dunno... there's something about the chorus that just rubbed me wrong when it first dropped, and maybe I just have an unconscious bias against it for that reason.  Like I said, upon spinning it today, it was more enjoyable than I remember it being any other time I listened to it.  By-and-large, I'm not a big fan of the "singles" that were released before the albums they were from dropped.  I'm probably being unfairly harsh towards it, but this isn't any hotter of a take than Luke has provided us with other tunes. 

[twosuitsluke]

[pg1067]

85. Sleeping Giant

84. The Enemy Inside

83. Surrender To Reason

I didn't rank Sleeping Giant.  It's just kind of there - neither good nor bad.

The Enemy Inside ranked at #39 for me.  I tend to forget about it among the other gems on DT12, but every time I listen, I'm like, "wow...this is REALLY good!"  It ranked at #56 in the prior countdown, so this is a pretty big fall.

Surrender to Reason came in at #57 for me.  It's the least of the triumvirate with Behind the Veil and The Bigger Picture but still really good.  It ranked at #58 in the prior countdown, so another pretty big fall.



List                                                    Not Ranked         
100                                                   Never Enough (100), The Gift of Music (98), Our New World (93), A New Beginning (91), New Millennium (87), Sleeping Giant (85)
99
98
97  This Is the Life (88)
96
95
94
93
92
91
90
89
88
87
86
85
84  Forsaken (95)
83
82
81
80
79  Vacant (97)
78
77
76
75
74
73
72
71
70
69
68
67
66
65  Transcending Time (90)
64
63
62
61
60
59  Afterlife (96)
58
57  Surrender to Reason (83)
56
55
54
53
52
51
50
49
48
47
46  Behind the Veil (89)
45
44
43
42
41
40
39  The Enemy Inside (84)
38
37
36
35
34
33
32
31  The Looking Glass (92)
30
29
28  S2N (94)
27  Wither (99)
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18  Constant Motion (86)
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1

[Lonk]

The Enemy Inside was one that didn't hit for me right away, but grew on my over time.  In fact, I remember going to a show early on in that tour during the first leg where JP asked me what I thought of the lead single, and I struggled a bit with what to say because it was obvious that he was really proud of it, but I just wasn't really feeling it at all yet at that point.  But again, I came to really like and appreciate it.  Chad, I'm surprised that it didn't rank at all for you.  I mean, I get tastes and all that.  But given other stuff that you like, I'm just surprised that this one didn't even make the list, since it seems fairly consistent with things I think you would listen to.

I dunno... there's something about the chorus that just rubbed me wrong when it first dropped, and maybe I just have an unconscious bias against it for that reason.  Like I said, upon spinning it today, it was more enjoyable than I remember it being any other time I listened to it.  By-and-large, I'm not a big fan of the "singles" that were released before the albums they were from dropped.  I'm probably being unfairly harsh towards it, but this isn't any hotter of a take than Luke has provided us with other tunes. 

I feel the same way.

I think for me is that it feels the lyrics don't compliment the melody, or vice-versa. Which that has been the case for some of the more recent DT songs.

[Jamesman42]

100. Never Enough (17th) I don't get how this is at 100. This song has many cool parts, especially the instrumental break.
99. Wither (66th) Solid song, when it hits, it's great but it doesn't always warrant a listen.
98. The Gift Of Music (92nd) It's alright. Past entry 82 on my list is stuff that just had to be ranked.
97. Vacant (70th) This song is so awesome on its own and how it leads into SoC
96. Afterlife (98th) See: The Gift of Music
95. Forsaken (87th) It's alright, live is good.
94. S2N (NR) Honestly just not familiar enough with this song yet.
93. Our New World (NR) See: S2N
92. The Looking Glass (54th) This is one of the better tracks off of DT12. Great chorus, surprised it is this low.
91. A New Beginning (NR) Couldn't tell you what album it's from.
90. Transcending Time I really don't like DT12 View at this time, with about 5 listens since returning to the forum last year. But this song stuck out and was good enough to make the list.
89. Behind The Veil (NR) See: A New Beginning
88. This Is The Life (33rd) This song is very underrated. It has a huge atmosphere to it and a great buildup to that final chorus.
87. New Millennium (NR) Not much of a fan of FII, and this song was always skippable to me.
86. Constant Motion (35th) Sometimes you need a straightforward song, DT does it great here, and the instrumental section with the bass and piano is cool as hell.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
85. Sleeping Giant (NR)
84. The Enemy Inside (36th) Great, straightforward song, and ranks right next to Constant Motion.
83. Surrender To Reason (64th) This was a mistake to place it at 64th, but by the time I was ranking stuff, I didn't care past a certain point. Relistening now and it's alright, should actually be in the 90s or off my list, so an oversight on my part.

[axeman90210]

Well, today's a big swing and a miss for me

Sleeping Giant- Not rated. A very meh song on a meh album.

The Enemy Inside- Not rated, one of my least favorite singles they've put out.

Surrender to Reason- Not rated, feels like this one probably should have snuck in to one of the last spots on my list though. Potential oversight on my part.

[Wim Kruithof]

I do follow one saying Sleeping Giant is a tough song, because it's the hardest pearl to digest from latest album. But I'll promise it's a pearl once you can open the shell, there 's so much in there to adore... it just takes a couple of listens.

My own 100:

094: S2n
093: Never Enough
088: Surrender to Reason
087: Forsaken
084: Constant Motion
078: Behind the Veil
077: Afterlife
068: The Enemy Inside
054: The Looking Glass
050: Wither
048: Transcending Time
041: Sleeping Giant

not rankend: #6 The Gift of Music / Vacant / Our New World / A New Beginning / This Is the Life / New Millennium