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Dream Theater => Dream Theater => Topic started by: bosk1 on February 09, 2016, 08:40:08 AM
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Just realized that there isn't a thread for this song. Not that we NEED a thread for each song, but since we do actually have separate threads for quite a few of them, and since this has been such a standout song for me since I got my first album teaser a few months back, I thought I'd start one.
To me, this may be one of the most "typical DT-sounding" songs on the album. But that does not stop it from being a standout track. I love how it starts off with the pomp of the arrival of the Imperial Family, but then shifts to soft piano at the end to set up the transition to When Your Time Has Come (which I also really love). In fact, let me just say that I pretty much love everything about this song.
Once we got the entire album and I can now better put it into context of the entire story, I like it even more. Before the album dropped and we did not have a clear picture of the plot, I would not have imagined that, so early in the story, Nafaryus would have been aware of Gabriel and would have publicly gone to visit him. That was not at all where I thought the story was going. But it is actually a pretty cool setup for the conflict, and it works well within the context of the song.
Now for a bit of other interesting plot/lyric analysis, which I posted in another thread. This may be completely wrong in terms of what was intended, but I think it works really well in any case:
Along similar lines, it hit me that Savior in the Square as a song title has a double meaning. I mean, who is the "savior" that it is referring to? The obvious answer is Gabriel. But I think it also perhaps refers to Faythe. From a literary standpoint, she fits the "savior" role. Notwithstanding Gabriel's miraculous power, she is the one who ultimately takes the actions that avert war, which saves countless lives. And in the process, she inadvertently sacrifices her own life, only to be "resurrected" by the hymn of 1,000 voices as the people rediscover the power of music. Not sure whether JP intended the "savior" title to refer to her, but it certainly fits, and fits rather well.
Anyhow, whether or not anyone agrees with the bit about the song title, discuss away.
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This is one of those songs that doesn't work that well on its own due to the wealth of ideas but on the context of the plot it works wonders. I love how to love theme sneaks up in the end of the songs and how it helps introduce When Your Time Has Come. Great stuff.
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I really like this song a lot, and it was one of the first I heard before I got the full album.
The guitar lead at the start over the acoustic section is catchy and has a nice vibe to it. Then the pompous trumpet bit leading into a good heavy section, and then it gets really epic once it hits "brother worry not today". That change is just awesome, along with that whole outro. :tup
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I loved this song ever since I first heard it. To me, the first minute and a half is the most beautiful musical passage they've done since Hell's Kitchen.
''But silence quickly falls as Lord Nafaryus arrives'' :metal
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It has the best Nafaryus line:
"Please don't stop on my account"
What an arrogant SOB!
And the Daryus line is gold too:
"Do as my father says!"
What an ass!
And bosk, the song does not start with the pompous entrance. It starts with the most beautiful guitar intro in the album. ;)
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And bosk, the song does not start with the pompous entrance. It starts with the most beautiful guitar intro in the album. ;)
Oh, I know. I wasn't talking about the literal beginning of the song, but focusing more generally on the first major "movement" of the song as a whole. Sorry if my not being more precise was a bit confusing. You are correct.
And I also love those two lines you pointed out in the lyrics. I like James' vocal delivery on those as well. IMO, he really sells those lines.
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Love this song, "I will share my music and they will soon be on their way" gave me chills cause it made me think of the Dream Theater concerts I've been to and how I always left wishing they played more and it was too soon done.
"So I'll treat them all to sonic ecstasy", that's JP talking IMO :)
The horses are the only downside if I have to find one, far in the distant future where hovering drones transmit sound waves to sooth/suppress human emotions; the emperor travels on a horse..
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I love the horses. It makes the royal family more arrogant. :lol
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"So I'll treat them all to sonic ecstasy", that's JP talking IMO :)
It's not a big deal, but that line bothered me slightly from the start. It just came across as a little arrogant for him to say that. As I said, not a big deal worth arguing over though.
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Before the album dropped and we did not have a clear picture of the plot, I would not have imagined that, so early in the story, Nafaryus would have been aware of Gabriel and would have publicly gone to visit him. That was not at all where I thought the story was going.
Neither did I. To me, Nafaryus and Gabriel would have met much later, maybe at the end of the second Act, in some sort of battle or violent event.
Also: hello, Bosk. I browsed through this forum for more than 2 years, and as far as I can tell, you are some sort of legend here.
The horses are the only downside if I have to find one, far in the distant future where hovering drones transmit sound waves to sooth/suppress human emotions; the emperor travels on a horse..
Never noticed the horses! I guess I'll pay more attention next time.
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"So I'll treat them all to sonic ecstasy", that's JP talking IMO :)
It's not a big deal, but that line bothered me slightly from the start. It just came across as a little arrogant for him to say that.
True, but as often happens in musicals where a lot of the exposition comes in the form of lines sung by the characters, I think perhaps that is done for the benefit of further explaining to the audience that his gift of music is something that is actually supernatural and isn't merely "he is born a gifted musician." In a perfect world, that is shown by a narrator and through plot exposition rather than having his character just tell us; but, again, as if often the case in this sort of storytelling format, not every plot detail is executed in a way that ultimately may have been the most optimal. Heck, that's why they have early screenings of movies, so that the writers can get feedback from people who are not emotionally invested in the film to see which of their ideas actually work as intended, and which ones need to be retooled. There just isn't really the opportunity to do that in the music industry with the budgets and time constrains musicians work under. They would basically have to demo the entire album, have listening parties with several focus groups, and then take that feedback, rework the album, and then re-record it. That just isn't happening.
Anyway, probably too much of a tangent, but I just got going and couldn't stop myself, so... :lol
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"So I'll treat them all to sonic ecstasy", that's JP talking IMO :)
It's not a big deal, but that line bothered me slightly from the start. It just came across as a little arrogant for him to say that.
True, but as often happens in musicals where a lot of the exposition comes in the form of lines sung by the characters, I think perhaps that is done for the benefit of further explaining to the audience that his gift of music is something that is actually supernatural and isn't merely "he is born a gifted musician." In a perfect world, that is shown by a narrator and through plot exposition rather than having his character just tell us; but, again, as if often the case in this sort of storytelling format, not every plot detail is executed in a way that ultimately may have been the most optimal. Heck, that's why they have early screenings of movies, so that the writers can get feedback from people who are not emotionally invested in the film to see which of their ideas actually work as intended, and which ones need to be retooled. There just isn't really the opportunity to do that in the music industry with the budgets and time constrains musicians work under. They would basically have to demo the entire album, have listening parties with several focus groups, and then take that feedback, rework the album, and then re-record it. That just isn't happening.
Anyway, probably too much of a tangent, but I just got going and couldn't stop myself, so... :lol
Yeah, as I said, not a big deal. It just felt like Ahrys was the one most confident in Gabriel's talents, with Gabriel being a bit more humble about whether or not he was really all that. But then he was like "I shall treat you all to sonic ecstasy, because you only know the top 40 mainstream NOMAC stuff".
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Also: hello, Bosk. I browsed through this forum for more than 2 years, and as far as I can tell, you are some sort of legend here.
Well, hello. :)
I wouldn't say "legend." :lol I just think that when you have a large online community like this, whoever is in charge of running it probably gets an undue amount of focus sometimes.
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"I shall treat you all to sonic ecstasy, because you only know the top 40 mainstream NOMAC stuff".
:rollin
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This track is one of my favorites as well. I love the line "please don't stop on my account". I just picture Nafaryus so damn suave as he says that. The line "DO AS MY FATHER SAYS" is also really cool. I'm not sure who says that, but I hope it's Faythe.
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The line "DO AS MY FATHER SAYS" is also really cool. I'm not sure who says that, but I hope it's Faythe.
I think that's Daryus actually.
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The best intro on the album. It gets me every time. The clean guitar melody gets stuck in my head every time I hear it. The heavy riff is perfect for Nefaryus' lines. The applause transition into WYTHC is perfect. The whole three song run from Nefaryus through When Your Time Has Come is just killer. Definitely a highlight of both acts.
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Also: hello, Bosk. I browsed through this forum for more than 2 years, and as far as I can tell, you are some sort of legend here.
Well, hello. :)
I wouldn't say "legend." :lol I just think that when you have a large online community like this, whoever is in charge of running it probably gets an undue amount of focus sometimes.
Mr. 1: The man, the legend.
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The line "DO AS MY FATHER SAYS" is also really cool. I'm not sure who says that, but I hope it's Faythe.
I think that's Daryus actually.
That's not at all as cool, but it works I guess.
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The line "DO AS MY FATHER SAYS" is also really cool. I'm not sure who says that, but I hope it's Faythe.
I think that's Daryus actually.
That's not at all as cool, but it works I guess.
At this point, Faythe is still in awe at the shitty conditions the villagers have to live in. Also, nothing about her character seems like she'd ever say that.
Also, it makes more sense when you see the Track descriptions:
"After an uncomfortable pause, Prince Daryus looks at Gabriel and with a threatening tone says, 'Do as my father says…savior!'"
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Haven't read any track descriptions.
I was hoping Faythe was the one to say that because it makes it a change in her as a character when she turns, which makes for an at least somewhat more interesting arc. It would show that she was raised as a spoiled child, as she totally would be, but still eager to hear Gabriel sing since she's had her music player a while and wants to hear it for real.
Also I thought it was Faythe becuase LaBrie sings it so high.
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This track followed by WYTHC was my "Oh yeah, I'm all in" moment on first listen to this album. I love the stylistic range in this song, which all feels motivated by the drama.
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@BlackInk: But there is nothing to indicate that her character would have ever acted that way. It fits Daryus' character to a tee and sets up that is content in the role of his father's lackey because he wants his father's approval. It would not have made sense for it to have been Faythe.
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The intro to this song is beautiful and I wish it went on for another 5 minutes...
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The applause transition into WYTHC is perfect.
I rememeber I first listened to the song when it was uploaded to the official YouTube channel, so I didn't have the lyrics. I first thought that song was some sort of flashback to Arhys' and Evangeline's wedding. The applause, the people cheering, the happy vibe of the music...
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Well, hello. :)
I wouldn't say "legend." :lol I just think that when you have a large online community like this, whoever is in charge of running it probably gets an undue amount of focus sometimes.
Well, I lurked a lot during the Spring/Summer of 2013, when the self-titled album was about to be released. If I remember correctly, one Noxon was asked a lot about his opinion on the album (he had been given a copy, but wasn't sure what to think about it, right?), and one Weymolith was in charge of the chat with the band, with fans sending questions.
So you, BlobVanDam, those other guys... they were the names I read the most here, so I always thought you were all a legend in one way or another.
Anyway, happy to join.
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Along similar lines, it hit me that Savior in the Square as a song title has a double meaning. I mean, who is the "savior" that it is referring to? The obvious answer is Gabriel. But I think it also perhaps refers to Faythe. From a literary standpoint, she fits the "savior" role. Notwithstanding Gabriel's miraculous power, she is the one who ultimately takes the actions that avert war, which saves countless lives. And in the process, she inadvertently sacrifices her own life, only to be "resurrected" by the hymn of 1,000 voices as the people rediscover the power of music. Not sure whether JP intended the "savior" title to refer to her, but it certainly fits, and fits rather well.
I'll stretch it a bit more and make it cornier: Not only they serve both as saviors of the Northern Empire, but also Saviors from each other. Faythe inspired Gabriel and helped him to be sure of himself, to really make him believe that a change and a revolution is possible through him. Gabriel showed Faythe the other side of a world she thought she knew, as well as revealing her the power of Music she had discovered as a child. Both were described as being lost and isolated until they saw their Savior in the Square.
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The soft piano line after the dissonant section (3:30 or so) is one of the most beautiful short and sweet piano moments on the entire album. It's as if time is slowing down as Gabriel's eyes fall on Faythe, and he is captivated by her beauty.
In fact, this whole track plays out like a soundtrack to a movie scene - very perfectly, I must say.
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Along similar lines, it hit me that Savior in the Square as a song title has a double meaning. I mean, who is the "savior" that it is referring to? The obvious answer is Gabriel. But I think it also perhaps refers to Faythe. From a literary standpoint, she fits the "savior" role. Notwithstanding Gabriel's miraculous power, she is the one who ultimately takes the actions that avert war, which saves countless lives. And in the process, she inadvertently sacrifices her own life, only to be "resurrected" by the hymn of 1,000 voices as the people rediscover the power of music. Not sure whether JP intended the "savior" title to refer to her, but it certainly fits, and fits rather well.
I'll stretch it a bit more and make it cornier: Not only they serve both as saviors of the Northern Empire, but also Saviors from each other. Faythe inspired Gabriel and helped him to be sure of himself, to really make him believe that a change and a revolution is possible through him. Gabriel showed Faythe the other side of a world she thought she knew, as well as revealing her the power of Music she had discovered as a child. Both were described as being lost and isolated until they saw their Savior in the Square.
Then it should be Saviors in the Square. :lol
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@BlackInk: But there is nothing to indicate that her character would have ever acted that way. It fits Daryus' character to a tee and sets up that is content in the role of his father's lackey because he wants his father's approval. It would not have made sense for it to have been Faythe.
Well, when I thought that it was Faythe saying that there were definetely a sign that she would. But yeah, if it's not then there's no sign.
I don't know, I just thought the line sounded cooler in my head when it was supposed to be delivered by this young girl.
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"So I'll treat them all to sonic ecstasy", that's JP talking IMO :)
It's not a big deal, but that line bothered me slightly from the start. It just came across as a little arrogant for him to say that. As I said, not a big deal worth arguing over though.
Always bothered me a little bit too. It helps to think of his comment more as a slight against the Imperial family (given "they only know the noise machines") and less as arrogance.