I have tired, on multiple occasions, to get into Pain of Salvation...largely inspired by the way their fan base has written about the band over the years.
Unfortunately, nothing has clicked. Most recently, I gave their last record ('Panther'?) a listen when it came out, but again, I literally can't remember a single thing about it. I like Daniel's voice, and I 'like' the idea of the band...hell, I even like their album covers, but I suspect I'm just starting at the wrong spot. If the first thing I ever heard from DT was The Astonishing, I'm not sure that I'd have become a fan.
If anyone who's a fan wants to post a quick 'ranking' or 'where to start first' list, I'd love to give POS another shot.