Great topic!
Since the majority of the members here (and DT fans in general) are younger,it's good to know who has been a
long time fan,and especially since SFAM (my first album of them,and my favorite of all times!)
November 1999 i bought the album.Never had heard anything like that before (or prog in general).My first couple listens were a huge disappointment.
But ,although i don't know why,i kept on revisiting it and it grew on me listen by listen.
Fast forward to summer of 2000. 14/7 (for Europe),7/14 (for US),7 of July for all
Rockwave festival,Athens,Greece.2 greek acts were about to open the show,DT were just before the headliners Iron Maiden (had just released Brave New World,Dickinson and Smith had come back and the anticipation for them was huge.)
October '99 i had seen Maiden live in Athens,and as much as i wanted to see them again,i wanted DT to perform their new album in its entirety.
Which would not happen if they weren't the headliners.
Some days before the big day,news were spreading around that Gers (one of their 3 guitarists) had fallen off the stage in a previous show and had broken his arm
(or,at least,he wouldn't be able to perform in Athens).
Bingo!
Now DT were about to have the central spot in the lineup.On Thorns I Lay were first,Septic Flesh were next,and In Flames replaced DT just before the headlining act.
After having seen all 3 groups playing their strongest sets,time had already come.From 21:30 to 22:00 many people on stage were preparing the show.Instrument technicians,lighting,soundcheck,all these things.
And finally,lights go off,the clock starts to tick and the pre-recorded voice of the hypnotherapist is heard.Crowd goes nuts.
Petrucci enters the stage with shorts,Portnoy behind his kit,Myung is the silent robot we all know,with his looooong hair,
Rudess on his first appearance on Greece.
Overture 1928 begins.The sound is crystal clear,the music is superb.Listening to the album that had gotten me all winter long,
with my new musical heroes performing it was like an orgasm.Guitar solos are just mesmerizing.Did i mention i had a musical crush on Petrucci?
Strange DejaVu,and finally LaBrie on stage.All five of them,in front of me,i could see everyone of them very clearly.
I am peeing my pants from joy,excitement and relief.
For the next 100 minutes,SFAM is taking us through a journey.My emotions skyrocketed.Through her eyes made me literally cry.
When the album is over,i can't believe what i just saw.
But i see on stage Petrucci taking his 6 string off and someone passing him the 7 string.
The Mirror.F@@@ck!!!My head is spinning uncontrollably.I can't see anything with my hair in front of my face.
I shout all the lyrics.My throat hurts.After that,i remember them playing
Just let me Breathe
Acid Rain ,the first part of it (sick sick sick)
Caught in a new Millenium
Pull me Uder/Metropolis PT1
And finally.....The trooper.
I cannot describe what happened when we heard the riff.Panic attack!
And after 2 hours,Dream Theater left the stage,leaving us all in shock at what we had encountered..
After that,i saw them again,2 days in a row in 2002,6/11 and 7/11 in Athens.
The show after those,in Istanbul would be the last of the SDoIT tour.
And,finally,my last DT show was July 1 of 2007,in the Rockwave festival again.Promoting Systematic Chaos,and they were second to
Heaven and Hell (Dio,Iommi and the gang).
It's a long time i haven't seen them since.
But,to be honest,they aren't the same bad they were before.The dreamy factor may have gone away (at least for me),their latest offerings haven't caught my attention,i haven't bought their last 2 albums at all (and i have bought all their previous,singles,LTE,
Rudess-Petrucci acoustic,G3 lives etc).
And Systematic Chaos,for me,shouldn't have released in the first place under the name of Dream Theater.
But with all these having said,every new album is an opportunity to remember the magic back then,when a new album would come in my hands,
the ritual listening to it for the first time in headphones and so on.
I hope the new album will be something refreshing,and something i will enjoy very much.
I know that i may have bored you,but it was something i felt like sharing with y'all.
I will never forget the magical moments DT has given me through the years.
And i am forever grateful to them,for having made such a big impact on my musical taste,and on my life altogether.
The journey never ends..
Thanks for reading!