Which of DT's three elements (pop, prog, and metal) do you like most?

[Ħ]

I have to say, I like pretty much all of them.  I think that DT blends the three very beautifully. 

[TheGreatPretender]

By "pop" do you mean the acoustic, lighter songs like Hollow Years?

[Ħ]

By "pop" do you mean the acoustic, lighter songs like Hollow Years?

Yeah, or like I Walk Beside You (which is heavy and electric), or possibly even 6:00, which is definitely very "catchy".

[jsem]

Pretty  poll. I picked all three.

[TheGreatPretender]

That's a little more clear. I'd still say the Prog/Metal gets my vote. I love their "pop" songs, but those are not the kinds of songs that would turn me into a DT fan if I were hearing them for the first time.
I love DT's combination of the energy of Metal, with the intricate and complex musicianship of 'Prog.' That's the main reason DT is my favorite band.

[EpicCookie]

prog/metal. It's a progressive metal band so that's pretty obvious

[Dreamer81]

That's a little more clear. I'd still say the Prog/Metal gets my vote. I love their "pop" songs, but those are not the kinds of songs that would turn me into a DT fan if I were hearing them for the first time.
I love DT's combination of the energy of Metal, with the intricate and complex musicianship of 'Prog.' That's the main reason DT is my favorite band.

This!!!

[GasparXR]

I really enjoy all three of them equally, but I picked prog on its own because I feel it is the most important part of the band's sound and ambition. Prog is what makes them different from a lot of artists, because most prog bands I find always have something different about their own music, even if they are the world's biggest DT or Pink Floyd or Rush fan.

[orcus116]

I guess prog. They don't do metal all that well.

[wammabe]

Prog, I've never considered DT a progressive metal band. Plus they don't need metal to make good music.

[Obfuscation]

I picked Prog/Metal.

[7thHanyou]

I'm holding off on my vote because I just don't know.

I like Dream Theater for the atmosphere their good music creates, and for their melodies.  The latter could easily fall into the pop category (though metal bands have strong melodies too--see heavy, doom, and power metal), but the former?  It's hard to say.  I like Dream Theater's music best when I can emotionally respond to it, and that can apply to anything they write.  For example, if I had to rank my top 5 songs, they'd probably be:

Innocence Faded, Learning to Live, The Spirit Carries On, Lifting Shadows off a Dream, A Change of Seasons

How could I classify that?  I don't even know if I could distill the core elements that make me like those songs.  Good melodies, maybe, but there's more to it than that.  There's also great lyrics, great atmosphere, and just a general power to it all that's intangible.

I listen to a lot of prog, and maybe this is something prog bands do best.  I'll consider voting for that.

[ubit]

Prog, I've never considered DT a progressive metal band. Plus they don't need metal to make good music.

They don't need prog to make good music, either. 

It is the hybrid that makes them outstanding.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

I guess prog. They don't do metal all that well.

I kindly disagree. They seem to have more problem fusing their extreme prog and extreme metal elements together. Petrucci comes up with some pretty sick riffs.

[TheGreatPretender]

They don't need prog to make good music, either. 

It is the hybrid that makes them outstanding.

Basically this.
I mean, I don't want to have a whole "Rock vs. Metal" discussion, but generally Metal is more powerful and more epic. And prog aspect gives it that virtuosity and, well, majesty. So combined, it's a pretty damn grand combination.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

I have to say, I like pretty much all of them.  I think that DT blends the three very beautifully. 

[ubit]

I guess prog. They don't do metal all that well.

I kindly disagree. They seem to have more problem fusing their extreme prog and extreme metal elements together. Petrucci comes up with some pretty sick riffs.

Agreed.  They make amazing metal riffs.  Better than many metal bands!

[skydivingninja]

I don't see a prog/rock option.  No vote.

Also, 6:00 should never be considered as "pop" OP.  EVAR. 

[TheGreatPretender]

I don't see a prog/rock option.  No vote.

Also, 6:00 should never be considered as "pop" OP.  EVAR. 

The only DT song that I'd even remotely call "pop" is Solitary Shell.

[ubit]

I don't see a prog/rock option.  No vote.

Also, 6:00 should never be considered as "pop" OP.  EVAR. 

Haha it is FAR from pop.  No pop fan would even listen to that song.  They would be like, "Where is the nonstop BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM sound?  I can't dance to this, WTF...?"  

[7thHanyou]

I'm a pop fan and I don't listen to dance music.

There's also power pop, which has a fine tradition (The Beates, The Who) and continues to this day (They Might Be Giants, Fountains of Wayne).  Not all "pop" is necessarily a.) popular or b.) focused on beats.  Hell, prog bands have a history of being involved in pop, not just in the 80's but before then.  Point of Know Return, anyone? And the thing is they were always really good at it.  Dream Theater is no exception.

Dream Theater's certainly approached the pop realm on more than one occasion--see Status Seeker, Another Day, I Walk Beside You.  These songs might rock, but they're also credible pop songs.  And they're awesome.

6:00 may not be pop, but it's certainly damn accessible to anyone who has an ear for hard rock or metal.

[hefdaddy42]

prog

[Elaitch]

I don't see a prog/rock option.  No vote.

Also, 6:00 should never be considered as "pop" OP.  EVAR.  

The only DT song that I'd even remotely call "pop" is Solitary Shell.

Ahem... Falling Into Infinity?

[SnakeEyes]

You forgot "rock."  DT does have songs that aren't METAL, but aren't 'pop' or 'prog,' either.  Take the Time, for instance, isn't very 'metal' to me. 

edit..

Or, pop or prog.  When I think pop, I think "I Walk Beside You."  When I think prog, I think "Octavarium."  Take the Time is rockin', but it's not heavy.....it's just..... rock......with crazy instrumental stuff.  Like Kansas on steroids. 

[Jamesman42]

I guess prog. They don't do metal all that well.

If you're talking tough guy metal, I agree for the most part (anything on ToT though is good to me).

I vote prog(ressive). What turned me on to DT was the instrumental to Metropolis. That was the pivotal moment.

[TheGreatPretender]

Ahem... Falling Into Infinity?

What about it? It felt more like a Prog Rock album, rather than a Prog Metal album. (Apart from bad ass stuff like Burning My Soul and Peruvian Skies), so I'd say FII is more leaning toward Rock than Metal. I can say, "It's more Pop" in that the songs in it were edited to feel more radio friendly and commercialized. But in that respect, Pop is not an actual genre.

[orcus116]

I guess prog. They don't do metal all that well.

I kindly disagree. They seem to have more problem fusing their extreme prog and extreme metal elements together. Petrucci comes up with some pretty sick riffs.

Agreed.  They make amazing metal riffs.  Better than many metal bands!

He's made a few pretty awesome ones but I can't recall a single riff from the last 3 albums that sounded above average. Then again I've heard people say the opening guitar riff to "A Nightmare To Remember" is great so it's evident where the bar is.

[TheGreatPretender]

He's made a few pretty awesome ones but I can't recall a single riff from the last 3 albums that sounded above average. Then again I've heard people say the opening guitar riff to "A Nightmare To Remember" is great so it's evident where the bar is.

The main riff in Root of All Evil is one of their best.
And while there isn't like, "Oh, man, listen to that one riff" moments in it that I noticed, In The Presence Of Enemies is one of the best Prog Metal songs I've ever heard that has the focus on "Metal".

[Elaitch]

He's made a few pretty awesome ones but I can't recall a single riff from the last 3 albums that sounded above average. Then again I've heard people say the opening guitar riff to "A Nightmare To Remember" is great so it's evident where the bar is.

Then what is an "above average riff" for you? Your standards must be quite high...

Ahem... Falling Into Infinity?

What about it? It felt more like a Prog Rock album, rather than a Prog Metal album. (Apart from bad ass stuff like Burning My Soul and Peruvian Skies), so I'd say FII is more leaning toward Rock than Metal. I can say, "It's more Pop" in that the songs in it were edited to feel more radio friendly and commercialized. But in that respect, Pop is not an actual genre.

Well, it's pretty much the closest to "pop" that Dream Theater has ever made. Most of the songs on it beats Solitary Shell by a long shot in that regard

[jsem]

I don't see a prog/rock option.  No vote.

Also, 6:00 should never be considered as "pop" OP.  EVAR. 

Haha it is FAR from pop.  No pop fan would even listen to that song.  They would be like, "Where is the nonstop BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM sound?  I can't dance to this, WTF...?"  

Well. Even real fans would not feel like dancing to it as it's in 7/4. 

[TheGreatPretender]

Well, it's pretty much the closest to "pop" that Dream Theater has ever made. Most of the songs on it beats Solitary Shell by a long shot in that regard

Not really. I mean, apart from New Millennium, most of the songs on FII are reliant entirely on riffs, guitars, and like I said, a very rock feel.
Whereas, the Solitary Shell, if you don't count the instrumental section at the end, is entirely reliant on keyboards, which gives it a very "pop" feel. I mean, listening to a song like that, I wouldn't classify it as Rock.
And don't get me wrong, I like Solitary shell, and it's cool that DT has done pretty much EVERYTHING. But I definitely wouldn't say that "pop" is a staple element in DT's music.

[wasp2020]

I stay for their progrock/pop elements

[Captainchaos204]

Prog all the way.. there aren't enough phenomenal prog bands around today. Every band member I would consider as a Virtuoso (I don't think singers really count).  I hate pop bands and pop music  ... that's why their stuff like epics like Octavarium and A Change of Seasons and others like  Beyond this Life, and Wait for Sleep are so incredible. The odd time signatures make the music so more more intense; Especially for those of us musicians     (can't stand their metal songs like As I am and Pull Me Under)       

Can I get a Hoo Ra? lol

[7thHanyou]

Well, it's pretty much the closest to "pop" that Dream Theater has ever made. Most of the songs on it beats Solitary Shell by a long shot in that regard

Not really. I mean, apart from New Millennium, most of the songs on FII are reliant entirely on riffs, guitars, and like I said, a very rock feel.
Whereas, the Solitary Shell, if you don't count the instrumental section at the end, is entirely reliant on keyboards, which gives it a very "pop" feel. I mean, listening to a song like that, I wouldn't classify it as Rock.
And don't get me wrong, I like Solitary shell, and it's cool that DT has done pretty much EVERYTHING. But I definitely wouldn't say that "pop" is a staple element in DT's music.

Again, every Dream Theater album that I can recall has had a song that catered to the "flavor of the moment" in popular music (though obviously they've never gone too far).  There's some crossover with rock, sure, but Status Seeker and Another Day are very, very clearly pop songs meant to reach a wide audience.  I Walk Beside you is another one.  These songs rely on a very conventional structure and melodic hooks.

There's enough of this in their music that "pop" really is a staple in Dream Theater's material.  Again, I wouldn't argue that that's a bad thing at all, it's just worth observing.

Prog all the way.. there aren't enough phenomenal prog bands around today. Every band member I would consider as a Virtuoso (I don't think singers really count).  I hate pop bands and pop music  ...

I see this a lot on prog and metal forums.  By extension, do you hate The Beach Boys? The Who? The Beatles? Hell, maybe even Simon and Garfunkel? These were all pop bands, and didn't have any problem accepting that label.  I'm sorry to call you out on this if it's only a minor part of your post, but I think it's worth addressing.

[ubit]

I do not care for the beatles honestly.  They have some tunes I think are kind of catchy, but overall... I just can't stand when people say are the greatest band ever because they were so influential.  They two categories are mutually exclusive to me.  They may have been pioneers, but I don't think they would make a top 100 band list for me.  But my opinion on that is typically shunned and dismissed, since I "must just not know any better."  Haha, sorry, I know you weren't even talking to me, but that's my comment. 

Oh and the beach boys... eh.  I find pop music to be incredibly blah and completely unrewarding, generally speaking.