I vastly disagree with this, for me, there's a big, VERY big noticeable difference in songwriting if i compare an album like Images to one of the new albums.
Allow me to rephrase myself a little.
What would it be like if you never heard I&W (or whatever album made you fall in love with DT)? Like, for me, I love Systematic Chaos. It was the second DT album I ever heard and it played a large role in why I fell in love with the band.
But what if I haven't heard it at the time? I actually bought it on a whim, so what if I happened to pick a different DT album, and haven't had a chance to listen to SC until now? Would I like it nearly as much? I want to say yes, but the truth is, maybe I would, but maybe I wouldn't. When I first listened to and fell in love with the album, I was at a different place in life, different place musically, different state of maturity, etc. So if I had heard SC for the first time now, considering how much I've grown since then, and how much new music I've discovered through all these years, for all I know, SC wouldn't have nearly as much of an impact on me, and maybe I'd consider it an inferior album like a lot of other people here. But it's all completely hypothetical, and I honestly can't give you a definitive answer.
So for someone who's been a fan of I&W for decades, what if they ended up missing out on it somehow, and only heard it for the first time today? Would they still love it as much? I'm sorry, but if anyone tried to give me a 100% definitive answer, it would be baseless, because they hadn't lived out that particular hypothetical situation. Especially if it's their favorite album, because if that's the case, then it's safe to say that it had a big impact on the evolution of their musical tastes. So what would their musical tastes evolve like had they not grown up with the album?
There really is no way of knowing for sure.
And this also brings me to my "it's you" comment. I had a very nice talk with Jaffa about this (although I think it frustrated the hell out of him
). So let me reiterate some of that. It's not about overanalyzing the songwriting, it's about simplifying it to "How does this music make me feel?" and the answer to that can't be quantified. I can explain to you why I love such and such song, and even if you listen to and comprehend all my reasons, chances are, they're not going to change your opinion of the song. I can tell you, "When I hear this song, it makes me tear up, but also makes me smile, it makes me melancholy, but gives me boundless energy at the same time," and even though you might be familiar with the feeling, if you don't associate the feeling with that song, chances are, that's not about to change.
How we experience something comes from within us, not from the absolute existence of the given music. That's why there are polarizing opinions about it. Unless there's a 100% unanimous opinion about something, then it's not absolute. There might be people out there who think DT12 is garbage, and they can't even imagine comparing it to Images and Words. But as long as there are people who love DT12, and who consider it a great album, and who think it's a breath of fresh air and an album they've been waiting for since SDOIT (just some of the opinions I've heard), then their opinions are just as valid. And if they like it more than I&W, that's just as valid. It's all the same music, but different people feel differently about it. So what I'm saying is that our passion and enthusiasm (or lack of if that's the case) for this band comes not from the band or the music they write. That passion, that magic (or lack there of) comes from within the fan.
At least, that's what I believe. If you don't feel the same way, if you don't share that philosophy, well, I'm not expecting to change your opinion. I'm merely sharing mine.