Black Clouds & Silver Linings: Reactions

[Zook]

Zook, come on, man.  Don't post those stupid "disclaimers" with your videos.  You're better than that.

A few of my vids have already been taken down, so it's a precaution thing.

Well, a "precaution" would actually keep your videos from being taken down.  "I don't own this music" disclaimers will not do that.  #truestory

I don't think those other videos had the disclaimer, but since there's so little music used this time around opposed to full songs or over 10 minute edits, I shouldn't have a problem. Why is this a problem for you? I only put the "disclaimer" in the description and not the video itself.

[theseoafs]

It's not a problem for me; I just thought you should know that whether you acknowledge you're committing copyright infringement in the video's description will have absolutely no bearing on whether your video is deleted. 

[Zook]

What happened to that fair use law crap?

[Ben_Jamin]

Haha...


ANTR is pretty good all around. The harsh vocal part is alright, although it'd be cool to have JLB in the background. After that comes the unnecessary instrumental bit. I always think it's gonna go back into the chorus but then forget that part is there. 

AROP is alright, but not my favorite song, it rocks live and I enjoy it then, but won't really listen to it otherwise. It is better than Constant Motion though.

Wither is among their best ballads. It's a cool mix of Anna Lee, Disappear, and The Answer Lies Within, with a Queen influence.

TSF, although I enjoy it a lot and think it'd be better live, feels a bit rushed causing some transitions to be rough. The whole concept of the end song is great but it wasn't executed the best. It does remain my favorite AA Suite song though.

TBOT I love it but the intro is fucking loud. The influences he and his father shared reflected in the music is a pretty cool idea. You can feel it's memorandum feel until it gets towards the end where the lyrics seem on the spot rushed in sort of way, which explains the constant use of day. It could've been shortened there a bit letting the solo come in earlier.

TCOT, other than the lyrics and delivery of the verses, musically its good. It soars and travels nicely like going through a storm only to come out alive with the sun shining.

Overall, it still is a good album. Not my favorite but I still listen to its songs, the length of them being a con to this great album.

[theseoafs]

What happened to that fair use law crap?

It was a myth.  Posting a video on Youtube with audio to which you don't have rights isn't legal.  Saying stuff like "I don't own these songs" or "no copyright infringement intended" doesn't make it legal magically, in the same way that writing "no stealing intended" on the hood of your stolen car doesn't make it legal to steal a car.

[jonnybaxy]

You would probably have to clear the use of audio/video with their retrospective owners.

[gmillerdrake]

Listened to BC&SL's for the first time in a year I'd say....yeah....i guess it was that long. Wow..anyway, I couldn't help but realize and notice just how much better and album ADTOE is than BC&SL. To me at least. I like TCOT and there are parts of ANTR I like...I mean it's not like I despise BC&SL......but for my money ADTOE is far superior to BC&SL.

that is all.....carry on.....

[bosk1]

Just bumping this because I am listening right now unintentionally and felt the need to comment.  What I mean by "unintentionally" is, I was listening to The Astonishing and planned to listen to some Symphony X afterward, but BCSL is next on the play list, and although I did not plan to listen to it, I didn't immediately click over to SX, and a bit into ANTR, I decided to just let this one play.  Or rather, I decided to let my abbreviated version of the album play--as with SC, I cut out the couple of songs I don't really care for, and just have an abbreviated play list for this one.  I eliminated Wither and The Best of Times, and I have to say that I like the flow of the album MUCH better, although admittedly, that makes it even shorter.  And given that it is now only 4 songs, it feels like an EP despite still being almost an hour long. 

Anyhow, just wanted to say the following:  Initially when the album came out, I think I overrated it a bit.  But after that, I think it is fair to say that my assessment underrated the album significantly.  ANTR is SO close to being a flawless song.  AROP is pretty good, and often overlooked.  TSF is outstanding, even if flawed.  And now that we have Illumination Theory doubling down on the structure of "mellow section in the middle of a long epic that emotionally takes you out of the flow of the song," I have gotten used to it and am not bothered nearly as much as I used to be.  This album still does not compare to some of the band's best.  But that said, it is outstanding and there is definitely a lot to like.

[Enigmachine]

Just bumping this because I am listening right now unintentionally and felt the need to comment.  What I mean by "unintentionally" is, I was listening to The Astonishing and planned to listen to some Symphony X afterward, but BCSL is next on the play list, and although I did not plan to listen to it, I didn't immediately click over to SX, and a bit into ANTR, I decided to just let this one play.  Or rather, I decided to let my abbreviated version of the album play--as with SC, I cut out the couple of songs I don't really care for, and just have an abbreviated play list for this one.  I eliminated Wither and The Best of Times, and I have to say that I like the flow of the album MUCH better, although admittedly, that makes it even shorter.  And given that it is now only 4 songs, it feels like an EP despite still being almost an hour long. 

Anyhow, just wanted to say the following:  Initially when the album came out, I think I overrated it a bit.  But after that, I think it is fair to say that my assessment underrated the album significantly.  ANTR is SO close to being a flawless song.  AROP is pretty good, and often overlooked.  TSF is outstanding, even if flawed.  And now that we have Illumination Theory doubling down on the structure of "mellow section in the middle of a long epic that emotionally takes you out of the flow of the song," I have gotten used to it and am not bothered nearly as much as I used to be.  This album still does not compare to some of the band's best.  But that said, it is outstanding and there is definitely a lot to like.

What's wrong with Wither / The Best of Times? I really like those.

[TAC]

What's wrong with Wither / The Best of Times? I really like those.

Was wondering the same thing. TSF would be the first thing cut IMO.

[cramx3]

Album is great as is, IMO of course.

[OpenYourEyes311]

I love Wither. Best of Times is close to the bottom of my DT rankings. But I would never cut any songs from any of their albums.

Black Clouds is not my favorite album, but it's solid throughout. Count of Tuscany is right up there with the best songs they ever wrote.

[bosk1]

What's wrong with Wither / The Best of Times? I really like those.

Nothing is "wrong" with them.  But as I have posted many times, I just don't care for either one of them and lost interest when I listen to them.  I am generally more of a "rockers" than "ballads" guy, especially when it comes to DT.  And DT has so many "ballads" that I like better than Wither.  I just don't find it interesting.  And TBOT similarly doesn't strike a chord with me either.  The subject matter as a whole is really cool, and I identify with other songs touching on similar things (e.g. ACOS and Take Away My Pain, which are among my favorite DT songs).  But I just don't connect with this song, partly because the music itself does not move me, and partly because the things MP mentions are so specific to him that it is hard for me to identify.  If you like them, great.  But for me, this is one of the very few instances of a DT album where there is a big enough chunk of material on the album that I don't care for, that the album as a whole impacts me a lot harder if I remove those songs.

[Outcrier]

New car smell was strong with this one at that time (same year of release).

[Kotowboy]

• Initially I was a bit crestfallen at there only being 6 tracks on it.

• I loved it straight away and played the two songs that leaked over and over.

• I used to play the whole album on the stereo whilst lying on the sofa in the dark. 

• Nowadays I think Nightmare is way too long and that The Count of Tuscany is not as good as Octavarium but way better than Illumination Theory.

• I got the three disc version which had that super-shitty thin digipack.

[Enigmachine]

What's wrong with Wither / The Best of Times? I really like those.

Nothing is "wrong" with them.  But as I have posted many times, I just don't care for either one of them and lost interest when I listen to them.  I am generally more of a "rockers" than "ballads" guy, especially when it comes to DT.  And DT has so many "ballads" that I like better than Wither.  I just don't find it interesting.  And TBOT similarly doesn't strike a chord with me either.  The subject matter as a whole is really cool, and I identify with other songs touching on similar things (e.g. ACOS and Take Away My Pain, which are among my favorite DT songs).  But I just don't connect with this song, partly because the music itself does not move me, and partly because the things MP mentions are so specific to him that it is hard for me to identify.  If you like them, great.  But for me, this is one of the very few instances of a DT album where there is a big enough chunk of material on the album that I don't care for, that the album as a whole impacts me a lot harder if I remove those songs.

Fair enough, that sounds reasonable. I just wouldn't remove tracks from albums.

[bosk1]

Yeah, I usually don't either.  But SC and BCSL were both cases where I liked a lot about those albums, but found myself not wanting to listen to them very often, and just removing the tracks I don't care for made me want to listen to them a LOT more.  I haven't done that with any other albums.

[Kotowboy]

Recently I listened to The Dark Eternal Night after a long break and it was like hearing it fir the first time. 

Colossal track.

[Metro]

Didn't care for this one much at first. It grew on me a bit after seeing some of the songs live.

Almost 7 Years later and it hasn't aged that well. It's a lower-tier album for me. Not the worst, certainly not the best, it just exists. Nightmare and TCOT are still great songs(When you look past the lyrics) but I rarely ever listen to the rest of the album. Hell, I don't think I've heard Rite of Passage in 4 years.

[Dublagent66]

Not caring for TBoT I can understand.  Wither on the other hand, don't get it.  One of DT's best power ballads.

Anywho, I really don't listen to SC or BC&SL very often anymore.  But, when I go back to revisit those albums, oh man...what a treat!  Those were good times and marked the end of a fantastic era.

[SebastianPratesi]

I didn't care much for "A Rite Of Passage" and "Wither" either, but the rest of it was really cool to me at the time. Currently, I still love "A Nightmare To Remember" (which I have a lot of fun playing on guitar) and the intro to "The Count Of Tuscany", of course.

Plus, when I bought it and listened to it for the first time (exactly 10 days after release date), I felt happy with the overall sound/mix. I didn't like Systematic Chaos too much in that regard. This one, however, has my favourite sound on a DT album (especially the guitars, which do sound like chocolate cake to me).

Yeah, I usually don't either.  But SC and BCSL were both cases where I liked a lot about those albums, but found myself not wanting to listen to them very often, and just removing the tracks I don't care for made me want to listen to them a LOT more.  I haven't done that with any other albums.

Bosk, if I may ask: what tracks do you skip from Systematic Chaos? I might skip a few, too. But, recently, I've found myself liking the formerly 'weaker' tracks ("Prophets Of War", "Constant Motion", "Repentance"). "TMOLS", however, is one I need to skip less.

[bosk1]

Bosk, if I may ask: what tracks do you skip from Systematic Chaos? I might skip a few, too. But, recently, I've found myself liking the formerly 'weaker' tracks ("Prophets Of War", "Constant Motion", "Repentance"). "TMOLS", however, is one I need to skip less.

It is posted many times over on the forum, but:  I don't like Prophets or TMOLS at all.  And Repentance is sometimes a skip as well, although I think there are a lot of things to like about that song.  But the rest of the album is solid.  Heck, if you take away the weaker tracks on Images & Words and stack the top 5 tracks against the 5 keepers from SC, I would say it is about dead even.

[Cable]

This album is so good, and then bad. It is a sign of what the band was going through, so that is why I put it low. But it is much much better than my least favorite (SC). I was bumping Wither the other day, and it is a such a solid song. The video for it is cool.

I like a significant portion of all the songs as well, if not the whole song entirely. But there is enough WTF moments to drop the album.

[JiM-Xtreme]

I love this album. I always find myself drawn to the meatier songs of DT and this album consists almost entirely of them.

Totally agree with Bosk's comment about ANTR being a near-flawless song. TCOT, for me is one of the very best songs the band has ever made - I would place it at #2 or 3.

The only thing I really don't like is how the bass is almost totally inaudible in the mix. And MP's delivery on some of his backing vocals sounds rather silly - "JUSTICE! COURTESY! KINDNESS!" etc. but those are pretty minor gripes, all things considered.

[SebastianPratesi]

The only thing I really don't like is how the bass is almost totally inaudible in the mix. And MP's delivery on some of his backing vocals sounds rather silly - "JUSTICE! COURTESY! KINDNESS!" etc. but those are pretty minor gripes, all things considered.

Yeah. I've never cared too much for lyrics anyway, so the MP vocals never bothered. But, the bass is not only inaudible, but it's almost always doubling the guitars, and there's very few places where it gets to shine a bit (the intro to "AROP", and not much more). Unfortunately.

On another note: what does everyone think of the artwork/booklet? I know there has been a lot of discussion about some laziness with regards to a few details, like the shadow-less mouse in the cover. A few other 'nuggets' I've discovered over the years:

• The books in the cover were recycled in the self-titled (in the "The Looking Glass" page). Plus, both artworks have elephants standing on top of the books, so that has to have been intentional, right?
• The circles in the "A Rite Of Passage" pages were recycled in ADTOE (in the "Bridges In The Sky" pages. You can tell by the horizontal line in the middle of the right circle, and the 'mole' underneath the line).
• The bird in the "The Best Of Times" page is recycled from Octavarium (from the "The Answer Lies Within" page).

[Kotowboy]

MUTHA FUCKON KINDNESS

[SchecterShredder]

My top album after SFAM. ANTR is one of my favorite DT songs, and CoT is second only to Change of Seasons in my opinion. The only song I don't really care for much on the album is Best of Times.

[Kotowboy]

Best of Times has that amazing 3 minute solo.

A Nightmare to Remember is FAR too long and has that stupid tough vocal section. The beautiful Agony section does not make up for it in my opinion.

[de_fromage]

Lousiest album ever 

Nightmare is kind of fine except for MPs vocals, just heavy

Rite of passage is the mandatory single "hey, we like metallica, remember?"

Wither is a nice power ballady thing

TSF is the most lousiest of them all, they didn't even put any effort "let's just make a medley"

Best of times love that one for the meaning, makes me cry

Count of tuscany is the other lousiest of them all (also) they got the formula they just had to fill in the sections, ambient intro, build up, build up, "epic" instrumental, final conclusion that was supposed to be the hugest thing ever, still  Labrie couldn't get it at any moment his voice was plain and without any inflection or emotion.

still this one is on top of DT12.

[cramx3]

Opinions are like assholes...

[Mindflux]

Opinions are like assholes...

Stinky?

no.. Wait.

Brown?

waiiiiit.

Wrinkly!

[Outcrier]

Rite of passage is the mandatory single "hey, we like metallica, remember?"

[DoctorAction]

Ghastly record. Only ever spin TCOT. Joint worst album with Wdadu for me. Don't get the love for Wither either. A ballad about it being tough to write lyrics?! The artwork is nice, though.

[cramx3]

Opinions are like assholes...

Stinky?

no.. Wait.

Brown?

waiiiiit.

Wrinkly!

Only if you are old, then yes, wrinkly

[KevShmev]

I've listened to a lot of DT in 2016 so far, since I always go through a major DT listening phase after a new album drops, and if I had to guess, BC&SL is easily the album I revisit the least now.  Maybe it's because four of the six songs are so long, but I just don't go for this CD much at all anymore.