Further, I'd say that one last big one would hold its own special meaning as far as it being post-MP and all--really show what the "new" DT can muster in that department. After all, everyone hailed ADTOE as this renewed inspiration--why not see how that translates to epics?
That's fair. There are plenty of brilliant reasons to write big long songs. Big is cinematic. Takes you on a proper journey, and if you don't like that... why are you listening to Dream Theater?! Musical journeys are kind of their thing. Plus, even if I do think twenty minute long songs are getting old - which I do! - the eight minuters must be even older, and the idea of a three minute song older still.
But I think that diversity is almost part of the problem. While I'd absolutely champion lots and lots of different sounds, I think I like each song to have its own character, and past a certain length, they threaten to develop split personalities. Maybe it's that that I'm tired of. It's not epics, or twenty-minuters, or anything to do with their size, it's more... kitchen sink songs. I definitely think In the Presence of Enemies would be better split into multiple songs. All right, more multiple songs. Cracking music, but possibly a little cluttered. It does Part 1 a world of good.
You're absolutely right, though, inasmuch as if they are going to do another epic - and I'm sure they'll fit in another one or two before the decade's up - now's a pretty good time. Lots to prove. So, yes. Go on, then. You've convinced me. Bring on a long song. But... a different breed of long song. Redefine the epic. They don't all have to be Supper's Ready. Octavarium was a tribute to what came before, the song's practically a history of progressive rock, that kind of navel-gazing was absolutely perfect for the story it was telling, and A Change of Seasons didn't really have the same identity-crisis thing in the same way as the others. Maybe that's why they get the lion's share of the positive attention on here.
I'm thinking out loud, now. Someone stop me!
Interesting. I think there's something of a double-edged sword here re: where diversity best fits. Sure, throwing all your different styles into an epic might come off as kitchen sink-y and a bit unfocused, but at the same time, that means the song is guaranteed to have some sort of "hook" to just about all listeners. For example, the first 18 or so minutes of Octavarium is nothing special to me, but the last 6 minutes of the song are so awesome that they justify the 18 minutes of buildup.
Whereas, if one does the every-song-has-its-own-character-and-that's-how-we-get-diversity approach, one runs two risks:
1) There will be a couple of songs that don't appeal to parts of the fanbase at all (like how much of the 8V album doesn't appeal to the metalheads, or songs like As I Am or CM or TDEN do little for prog folks). A kind of inevitable effect for a band with this many sides, but I'd rather see the elements of their style interact more frequently. Take songs like Home, or The Killing Hand--I don't think many people say they are "not metal enough"
or "not prog enough." More of that, regardless of song length, would be great.
2) Twelve albums into DT's career, the songs start to be stand-ins. "Oh, here's the long prog song. Here's the metal riff song. Here's the single. Here's the change-of-pace song." This got taken to such an extreme on ADTOE that we saw Mike Portnoy endorsing statements about how the band rewrote Images and Words. Yes, the songs would have individual character, but unless that character is out of the DT mold entirely (which could be a good thing or a bad thing), then it can come across as rehashed, DT-by-numbers in a certain light. The sample size of 20+ minute epics isn't really large enough for the band to be simply rehashing things, I think--certainly, none of their songs of that length to date have been cut from the same cloth.
I do think that if the band
does pull an epic out, then it's best to do a double album. Maybe they'd run out of steam and it would be too much, but I trust them to come up with ~100 minutes of good music. While I love my long songs, I don't want any more 6- or 7-song-long albums. There's just not enough to grab onto.
Yeah, I'm descending into thinking-out-loud mode as well right now...