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Dream Theater => Dream Theater => Topic started by: RoeDent on November 08, 2013, 12:45:04 PM
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On November 11th, it will be 10 years since Train of Thought was released. Just a thread for your reflections and thoughts on this anniversary.
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I remember this album getting tons of criticism when it was first released.
I also remember being one of those criticizing the crap out of it. :lol
Fortunately, despite its flaws, it did grow on me over time, and I now enjoy most of it.
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Not my favorite DT album but it does have a couple of gems on it. In the name of god is epic!
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I was impressed by how much metal was in it. Some of the solos were subpar compared to other albums. It's like JP was trying to see how many notes he can cram in. I love Endless Sacrifice, one of their best songs ever.
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Solid album, albeit lacking in diversity and thus not one of my favorites. I like it more than the subsequent three albums and DT12 though.
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At one time it was one of my favourite albums, although I find it hard to listen to all the way through, partly because it's a heavy onslaught all the way through with little breather room (although there is a bit) and because the production is a bit subpar. The guitar sounds a a bit muddy and the I'm not a big fan of the vocals. The songs themselves are great though, ITNOG is one of my favourite DT songs and so is ES. The two albums surrounding it I think are much better, but that's probably because I prefer more dynamic albums from Dream Theater, not to mention the solos are a bit over-the-top, that being by DT standards. :lol There's very little room for feel in the solos, bar maybe the first one in SOC. Most of the songs still have a level of emotion in them though, which is good, and DT is the only band I listen to that can make a full-on metal album and have piano featured in 5 out of 7 songs. :metal
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Amazing album.
Some notes:
- Endless Sacrifice is, and will always be amazing. I love the verses just as much as, if not more than the hook. The verses do an outstanding job of painting a grim, dark, haunting and lonely setting.
- With that said about ES, I do wish they would have cut maybe 2-3 minutes or so out of the instrumental section. It is an awesome instrumental part, but I'm not always in the mood to listen to it for its entirety.
- I don't listen to Vacant much, but I still love it (if that makes any sense). I think it is because it is "mood music". You really need to be in a certain mood to listen to such a devastatingly sad song. See also: Disappear.
- As I Am kicked ass for a long time, but I wore it out and never was able to get back into it.
- In The Name of God is one of my personal fav. DT songs. Top 3 best endings to a DT song.
- Could never really get into This Dying Soul. It didn't really have any melodies or riffs that appealed to me.
- Stream of Consciousness is one song that I rarely listen to. I don't know why...it is a really great piece. I think it's one of those songs, like The Count of Tuscany, where I will eventually end up getting into it like 10 years after it came out.
- I may be in a pond with very few other fish here, but I have always loved Honor Thy Father. The main riff KICKS ASS. MP shines too. With some songs, there will be a kickass riff which only plays 1 or 2 times in the song. This song avoids that, as the main riff pops back up many times in the song. One reason that I love it.
Happy anniversary ToT!
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I must have known this was coming up. I've had it on on and off all day today.
I remember it being impossible to find in the Austin area. I think I had to hit 3 Best Buy's to get a copy..
8VM was even worse! I Couldn't find it locally, had to order it on amazon.com
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My no.1 album. :metal
Endless Sacrifice is great and I wouldn't change anything about it. The instrumental section rocks.
SoC is my favourite instrumental.
ITNOG imho has the best ending out of any DT song (on par with TCOT).
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I have really mixed feelings about this album. I guess my ranking of the songs would help me define it a bit:
In The Name of God
Endless Sacrifice
Vacant+Stream of Consciousness
As I Am
This Dying Soul
Honor Thy Father
That might take up some space, but that's how it goes for me. In the Name of God is Top 10 DT for me. It was love at first listen, if you will. Endless Sacrifice is a great piece, excellent heavy piece with one of my favorite early 00s performance by JLB, plus I love how interesting the instrumental section is. The "over the distance we try to make sense" part might be my favorite part of the whole album. Vacant+Stream of Consciousness (the only way I listen to either) is great, but the latter drags on for too long, so it eventually becomes uninteresting. As I Am is a cool song to listen to every now and then, but I have to feel in the mood. The solo to it is amazing, though. I used to dislike This Dying Soul a lot more. It has grown on me since it's rather decent and the JP/JR unison is unique, but still can't stand the rapped parts. Ugh. And, well, Honor Thy Father is one of the worst DT songs have done in my opinion. Way too long for its purpose, weak attempt at doing an "angry" song and the about-decent solo doesn't help it as much as a great solo could have.
I also think that, other than the last three songs, there is not a good flowing in the album due to how long the songs are. They are all pretty much in the same mood and it is, at least for me, tiring to the ear.
I don't think it's among their best efforts at all, but definitely not their worst, and it does serve a purpose of catching a different audience's attention and having some angrier and heavier songs in their repertoire.
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I remember checking the cd stores every day for a month waiting for them to get TOT in. The day came when I finally found it and remember taking it home and just being blown away from start to finish. Still my fav DT album.
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This was the album that helped ease me into DT after I first discovered them. I was used to listening to more straightforward metal and remembered searching to find which of their albums was "the heaviest". It was my favourite DT album for some time until I finally began to appreciate the majesty of I&W.
It's still my second favourite DT album and ItNoG is a top 4 track for me.
1. ItNoG
2. ES
3. TDS
4. AIA
5. SoC
6. HTF
7. Vacant
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TOT was the instigator in eventually making DT my favourite band. A top tier album for me and I love it to this day even more than the first time (which blew me away).
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I think Train of Thought is one of the most important albums of their career. I remember the first time I listened to it when it came out. It was exactly what I had hoped from Dream Theater at that point. It all takes place in the same 'music world', but I wouldn't say it's monotone. They added enough depth too with the beautiful Vacant/SoC/ITNOG ending sequence.
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1. ItNoG
2. AIA
3. ES
4. HTF
5. SOC
6. TDS
7. Vacant
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1. HTF (This would fall well into the controversial opinions thread :biggrin:)
2. TDS
3. ES
4. AIA
5. ITNOG
6. SOC
7. Vacant
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I think it has a very important role in their career aswell. I'm generalising here, but it seems ToT draws certain people in that might not have listened to other DT material as it stands, but after hearing an artist's music slightly crossing over into other 'musical realms' (as I'll put it), it encourages the listener to discover more music by the band. Train of Thought had this effect on me, while I was discovering DT this album just stood out as something I could listen to and digest properly and it left me wanting more. Perhaps this is why it starts off as a favourite album then drops a few places to some of the more dynamic albums down the track.
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Good album to drive to. And it's certainly consistent.
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It's the album that got me into DT. Probably a few other people too.
Octavarium was the album that really sealed the deal.
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I was obsessed with this album at one point. I'm kind of worn out on Dream Theater in general now, but especially this album. Still, I can't remember the last time I listened to the whole thing, so I'll have to get around to doing so again through the week.
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It's the album that got me into DT. Probably a few other people too.
Octavarium was the album that really sealed the deal.
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I liked it more when I got it on the ninth grade, but I was having a metal phase. I think the album is too heavy. It's not how I like my DT albums to be, I need more melody and joy. Also, I think heavier songs could have used some guest vocalist or more MP, because JLB is kinda off his comfort zone. But on the other hand, he sounds much better on Elements of Persuasion. My least favourite DT album with BC&SL.
Vacant and Stream of Consciousness are amazing though. And Honor Thy Father kicks ass.
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This was the first DT album that came out while I was a fan, and the first one I anticipated the release. I remember hearing As I Am on the radio before I got the album (lolradio) and being taken back by the heavier edge.
Then I remember the first spin of the album while watching the original Transformers Movie, and having it line up eerily well. I didn't start them simultaneously, but Vacant lined up perfectly with the death of Optimus Prime scene.
And I had no idea TDS was a continuation of TGP, so it wasn't until it got to the reprisal heavy riff half way through that it clicked. That was one of those cool moments when you're a new fan and don't know these things.
Still an album I really enjoy when I'm in the mood for heavier stuff, and As I Am and ITNOG are still top DT songs in my book. :tup
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So Blob this was your "Dark Side Of The Moon" with the "Wizard Of Oz" moment. :lol
Trippy.
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So Blob this was your "Dark Side Of The Moon" with the "Wizard Of Oz" moment. :lol
Trippy.
Hell yeah, king! :lol Except that this one actually worked. :biggrin:
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I remember loving how heavy As I Am was but over time I've played this album less than others in their discography.
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I really like the album, but I think the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. I really enjoy listening to the album the whole way through, but I very rarely listen to any of the songs on their own.
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Second album I heard, love the heavy vibe :metal Endless Sacrifice and Honor Thy Father are my favorites.
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It's a good album, but a little one-dimensional for my taste (I'm not really an all out metal guy). The high points for me is definitely ITNoG and SoC, and also As I Am. I would rank it in the lower half of the DT albums.
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It not one of my favorite albums, but an album I enjoy and like probably more than the average DT fan, maybe because I am more of a metal fan than a prog fan so the metalness of this album is something I really like.
My song rankings:
Endless Sacrifice
In The Name of God
As I Am
Stream of Conciousness
...
Honor Thy Father
This Dying Soul
Vacant
Theres a pretty big difference between the top four and the bottom three for me.
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Endless Sacrifice gives me the chills. The song really clicked with me when I was in a long distance relationship. Loving every single moment of it, from JP's beeps in the chorus, to Jordan's piano fill in the awesome instrumental section. As I Am is my second favorite, always manages to pump me up. I often put it in right after waking up, especially if I'm in a hurry. I care a lot less for the rest of the album, all the other songs have some flaws in them. Probably JLB's least best studio effort, besides ADTOE (gotta use euphemisms here, he's great on every album).
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My second favorite Dream Theater album. :metal
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This was the band's latest album when I became a fan, between the release of TOT and LAB. While I loved the sounds of SFAM and SDOIT (as well as IAW), I found TOT to be a bit of a change. Its heaviness was it's greatest strength and biggest detractor as well. It took me awhile to get into the heaviest aspects of DT, despite loving tracks like "Home", "The Great Debate", and "The Glass Prison". The first three tracks sunk in EASILY for me - "As I Am" was the single-sounding short track with a great chorus and solo; "This Dying Soul" was the sequel/continuation to "The Glass Prison" so I naturally enjoyed it; and "Endless Sacrifice" was a great power ballad with a cool, but whacky instrumental section.
The closing epic was astonishing and while it took me a bit to get into some parts of it, I enjoy it immensely! The pairing of "Vacant"/"Stream Of Consciousness" was amazing to me, the soft strings and minimal instrumentation was emotionally touching, then moving in to the epic instrumental that moved through so many grooves and themes.
The ONE track I had the most trouble with was "Honor Thy Father", and it took me YEARS to really get in to it. At first, I enjoyed some of the riffs, but it just felt like a CHORE to listen to, despite being one of FIVE tracks over 10 minutes long on the album. I like it a lot more now, but it took me awhile to get here.
As a whole, I really enjoy this album and I say it has aged well enough over its 10 years of existence. It forms a wonderful trilogy of albums from SFAM to SDOIT to TOT. It's a natural follow-up to the then-growing heaviness that DT was experimenting with, but they would tone that back a bit for the following albums. It's still one of their better albums, great in the mid-tier of their body of work.
-Marc.
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Amazing, amazing album. :metal :metal :metal
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Great album! It's the only one that I can put on any time and not want to skip a single track. It never gets old. :metal
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I remember getting this at the now defunct Vigin Megastore in Downtown Disney for the drive home. Took me a while to get into, even with its metal leanings.
It also came out at an odd time where mikes were babies and my DT fandom was quite distracted.
I actually missed this tour, and the one preceding it, and it wasn't until Live At Budokan came out that I got reimmeresed in DT.
I love many of the songs on TOT, but when I want to hear them! I listen to LaB. I actually just ran through all of DT's albums last week, and there's something flat about TOT. I hardly ever listen to it because of that.
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This one is def a special one for me because it was the first DT album that I listened to.
Still rocks to this day :metal
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Ah, yes, ToT was my first DT album as well. Still has a special place in my heart!
The funny thing was, unlike most people who had already heard DT prior to ToT and were surprised at how heavy it was, since I had never heard DT before this album, I was surprised when I started listening to previous albums and they weren't as heavy! haha
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This was the first DT album that came out while I was a fan, and the first one I anticipated the release. I remember hearing As I Am on the radio before I got the album (lolradio) and being taken back by the heavier edge.
Then I remember the first spin of the album while watching the original Transformers Movie, and having it line up eerily well. I didn't start them simultaneously, but Vacant lined up perfectly with the death of Optimus Prime scene.
And I had no idea TDS was a continuation of TGP, so it wasn't until it got to the reprisal heavy riff half way through that it clicked. That was one of those cool moments when you're a new fan and don't know these things.
Still an album I really enjoy when I'm in the mood for heavier stuff, and As I Am and ITNOG are still top DT songs in my book. :tup
Who listens to music while watching a movie?
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This was the first DT album that came out while I was a fan, and the first one I anticipated the release. I remember hearing As I Am on the radio before I got the album (lolradio) and being taken back by the heavier edge.
Then I remember the first spin of the album while watching the original Transformers Movie, and having it line up eerily well. I didn't start them simultaneously, but Vacant lined up perfectly with the death of Optimus Prime scene.
And I had no idea TDS was a continuation of TGP, so it wasn't until it got to the reprisal heavy riff half way through that it clicked. That was one of those cool moments when you're a new fan and don't know these things.
Still an album I really enjoy when I'm in the mood for heavier stuff, and As I Am and ITNOG are still top DT songs in my book. :tup
Who listens to music while watching a movie?
Obviously me.
That one time.
Don't be a party pooper, or I won't be your friend any more.
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Wow that time sure passed quick.
This one stayed atop my rotation for over a year. Very solid album. As time has passed I wish most songs were a couple minutes
shorter.
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One of my favorite album from DT, and yet I'm not really a "heavy-metal" fan!! :justjen
"In the name of god" worth the buy of the cd by itself, it's one of their (many :biggrin:) masterpieces!! :corn
1 - In the name of god
2 - This dying soul
3 - Endless sacrifice
4 - As I am
5 - Honor thy father
6 - Stream of counsciousness
7 - Vacant
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Time goes by so fast ._. It still feels like yesterday when I bought the album.
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This was the first DT album that came out while I was a fan, and the first one I anticipated the release. I remember hearing As I Am on the radio before I got the album (lolradio) and being taken back by the heavier edge.
Then I remember the first spin of the album while watching the original Transformers Movie, and having it line up eerily well. I didn't start them simultaneously, but Vacant lined up perfectly with the death of Optimus Prime scene.
And I had no idea TDS was a continuation of TGP, so it wasn't until it got to the reprisal heavy riff half way through that it clicked. That was one of those cool moments when you're a new fan and don't know these things.
Still an album I really enjoy when I'm in the mood for heavier stuff, and As I Am and ITNOG are still top DT songs in my book. :tup
Who listens to music while watching a movie?
Obviously me.
That one time.
Don't be a party pooper, or I won't be your friend any more.
Listening to DT while watching the original Transformers. I'd be hard-pressed to even think about something that sounds remotely as geeky. :lol
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Listening to DT while watching the original Transformers. I'd be hard-pressed to even think about something that sounds remotely as geeky. :lol
Thank you. I do my best. :lol :blob:
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always been one of my favorites, especially mix wise. I think the mix is really good, exactly what the style needed. Definitely slicker than anything heavy that came after it
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Train of Thought is very high on my list of Dream Theater albums. Definitely in the top 5. I love the angry and aggressive mood it sets and Petrucci's guitar playing is incredible. My only slight complaint about it is the relative lack of distinctive keyboard sounds.
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Train of Thought is very high on my list of Dream Theater albums. Definitely in the top 5. I love the angry and aggressive mood it sets and Petrucci's guitar playing is incredible. My only slight complaint about it is the relative lack of distinctive keyboard sounds.
Also JR is mixed a bit lower overall, which contributes to that I think. On As I Am, you could forget they even have a keyboardist until it gets to the bridge section, when the big strings come in.
But there are some cool keyboard sounds on there too, still a bit more inventive to my ears than sounds on recent albums. I especially love the big sliding portamento on the strings sound in SoC, where it slides from that rumbly low root note to the higher notes, creating that crazy synthetic string sound. One of my favourite things about the song.
That's one reason I really enjoy the Budokan versions of the ToT songs, because the keys are mixed much more present, from the xylophone type sound in the pre-chorus of As I Am, to the evil pads behind the spoken verse of This Dying Soul, which just elevate that section well above the studio version.
I also think it's great how well he manages to incorporate quite a bit of his piano work into such heavy songs. It works really well.
I do agree it's a bit cut back on the keys though, especially coming off of SFAM/SDOIT, which are JR's most keyboard driven albums with DT.
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But there are some cool keyboard sounds on there too, still a bit more inventive to my ears than sounds on recent albums. I especially love the big sliding portamento on the strings sound in SoC, where it slides from that rumbly low root note to the higher notes, creating that crazy synthetic string sound. One of my favourite things about the song.
Are you talking about the part near the end of the mellow middle section? Like right after the 7-minute mark? That always makes me think of screeching violins. Definitely a bad ass JR moment. :coolio
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Train of Thought is very high on my list of Dream Theater albums. Definitely in the top 5. I love the angry and aggressive mood it sets and Petrucci's guitar playing is incredible. My only slight complaint about it is the relative lack of distinctive keyboard sounds.
Well at least I seem to agree with you musically. :lol This is exactly how I feel. The heaviness is killer but I feel like some of the keyboard parts were there because they had a keyboardist, not necessarily because they fit the song.
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Train of Thought is very high on my list of Dream Theater albums. Definitely in the top 5. I love the angry and aggressive mood it sets and Petrucci's guitar playing is incredible. My only slight complaint about it is the relative lack of distinctive keyboard sounds.
*snip*
I do agree it's a bit cut back on the keys though, especially coming off of SFAM/SDOIT, which are JR's most keyboard driven albums with DT.
When I first heard the album I was seriously wondering if there were any keyboards even recorded for it. :lol But as the album played longer I started noticing the piano parts and some pads here and there. Then I read an interview somewhere and JR told the guy that the reason fans didn't "hear" the keyboards was because he was playing a lot of the same notes and riffs that JP was playing on guitar.
I actually think that's one of the things that makes the guitar sound so unique on that album :hat
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My only slight complaint about it is the relative lack of distinctive keyboard sounds.
That would be a problem with me, if it was the sign of a permanent change in direction. But usually, if a band decides to do something different for one album, but then returns to form in the following album, I tend to embrace the 'different' album, even if it may or may not lack certain things that I fell in love with about the band in the first place.
This is pretty much the case with Megadeth's "Risk" album. While it's not a spectacular album, I think it has plenty of great moments, and while not exactly a "Megadeth" album in terms of sound, I don't mind that, because they returned to their true form afterwards anyway.
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But there are some cool keyboard sounds on there too, still a bit more inventive to my ears than sounds on recent albums. I especially love the big sliding portamento on the strings sound in SoC, where it slides from that rumbly low root note to the higher notes, creating that crazy synthetic string sound. One of my favourite things about the song.
Are you talking about the part near the end of the mellow middle section? Like right after the 7-minute mark? That always makes me think of screeching violins. Definitely a bad ass JR moment. :coolio
Actually nope, although that bit's awesome too!
I just mean the main synth string part that comes in at 0:20. If you listen carefully between those high notes, you can hear a really low string sound (I'm talking sub-woofer low here), which is what creates that short slidey sound into the higher notes. It's subtle, but just adds that something extra.
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Vacant is, although not necessarily one of my favorites, probably one of the best songs DT have written, in my opinion.
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My first reaction to Train of Thought was the imaginative and contemplative album artwork. Couple years ago a local museum featured a large exibition of Jerry Uelsmann's photography, which naturally featured the "As I Am" print. The installation even credited the piece to Dream Theater. It was quite a marvel to enjoy a bit of Dream Theater on display in a museum.
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Vacant is, although not necessarily one of my favorites, probably one of the best songs DT have written, in my opinion.
I think it's the best song on that album, for sure.