Self Titled Album Discussion thread [Expect Spoilers]

[Ħ]

OK, my first impression of Enigma Machine was unmemorable, but on further listens, it's awesome. It's got a lot of personality to it. It's super crunchy, technical, all over the place, and even kind of ditsy at places. You can just picture them all playing it together, making faces and having fun. I particularly think that the little bit at 4:25-4:27 is pretty humorous.

Oh and you can really hear Myung.

[Hanz Gruber]

Dream Theater will always be my favorite band but I have to say I am disappointed after 1 listen.

I like what they were attempting to do.  I have been wanting them to go back to putting shorter more focused songs on an album for a while now while trimming the fat.  (Much like they did on Awake or even Falling to Infinity in where the epic songs like Trial of Tears and  Trial Of Tears didn't feel like they needed trimming)

To my ears most of these songs are not very catchy or memorable. 

I liked The Bigger Picture and Along for the Ride the best but I actually enjoyed the ADTOE far more.  Something like Beneath the Surface blows these ballads away IMO.  Also nothing on this album compares to Breaking All Illusions.

I would personally rank their albums something like this

Images
Scenes
Awake
Falling
Six Degrees
Octavarium (had a few clunkers but had catchy and memorable songs on it with some great melodies)
ADTOE
Cleaning out the Closet (I count this as a release because it has great quality stuff on it)
A Change of Seasons (love the song....if it had more songs on it I would rate this EP higher)
Black Clouds
SC
ToT
DT (Self Titled)
WDADU (loved the actual songs but can't get past Charlie's voice)

Hopefully it will move up after repeated listens but I honestly don't think it will much.

Still a huge fan and still buying and I think it is quality.  It just unfortunately doesn't do it for (as of yet) even though I want to love it.

  You need to listen 2-3 times, then youŽll go 

I hope so.  It happened to me before when Falling Into Infinity was released.  After 2-3 listens I loved it (minus You Not Me and Just Let Me Breathe) 

The problem with this one is that it isn't very catchy.  Dream Theater is excellent at writing complex songs with catchy and memorable vocal melodies....I just don't hear many of them on this album.  It surprises me to say it....but one of the most catchy songs was the single and it is the heaviest track.   

I recognize the quality on this album and think it was a great idea to trim the fat.  I just wish the songs were better (to my ears)

[atmyne]

I think everyone in the band shares in an equal amount of props for this. Everyone shines when asked to shine and everyone
shows restraint when it helps the song(s). So far the biggest 'feel' difference between this and recent DT output is JR's
change in approach. He really does a great job of creating a mood, or painting a scene if you will and lays off the uber fast
techno playing. I'm only 1 DT fan but I sure as hell appreciate this approach. I also feel like there is no unnecessary wanking
for the sake of making a song longer. Everything feels 'right'.

ehh kinda disagree about the unnecessary wanking. pretty much whenever there are those keyboard/guitar solo tradoffs it is simply not even music imo, and ruins the vibe. That's just me though...

[Ħ]

Dude, just listen to the album again. No one remembers much on their first listen.

[jammindude]

Wow....some people saying "lack of catchiness" and it just makes me feel like I must have been listening to a different album.

I can't get half these songs out of my head.   The Looking Glass in particular.

[lyfeternl]

Wow....some people saying "lack of catchiness" and it just makes me feel like I must have been listening to a different album.

I can't get half these songs out of my head.   The Looking Glass in particular.

Sometimes I feel "catchiness" to be subjective. I, personally, find quite a few of the passages and choruses off of this album as being really catchy! 

[Zook]

Sounds like there's a blanket over my speakers.

[krieger]

OK, my first impression of Enigma Machine was unmemorable, but on further listens, it's awesome. It's got a lot of personality to it. It's super crunchy, technical, all over the place, and even kind of ditsy at places. You can just picture them all playing it together, making faces and having fun. I particularly think that the little bit at 4:25-4:27 is pretty humorous.

Oh and you can really hear Myung.

The facts are showing: you must listen to this album many, many times before "getting" it.

I can say that about "The Looking Glass". On first listening, I was all "what the hell is that?". It seemed to me a weak song.

Then it began to change. First it was "it sounds like Rush"...

But now I like it! The vocals are great. The song is very good.   

And about Enigma Machine: amazing. Better than Erotomania. Better than any other instrumental, but Ytse Jam.

[Hanz Gruber]

Song impressions

False AS - Reminds me of Overture form Six Degrees.  Fine as an intro piece.

The Enemy Inside - The Heavy Track (like The Glass Prison of Six Degrees) or The Root of All Evil from Octavarium.  Solid song but far from Dream Theater's best

The Looking Glass - Up beat and reminds me of Don't Look Past Me from Cleaning out the Closet.  It is an OK song that ends abruptly and leaves a weird taste.  I actually like Don't Look Past Me better personally.

Enigma Machine - They play their instruments great on the song but it is not very catchy or memorable.   I wish they would stop doing instrumentals on albums honestly.  They have enough going on in their songs that they don't need to waste the album space unless the instrumental is simply amazing.    I will probably end up skipping this one.  Sounds like something they would throw in the middle of a song to needlessly stretch it out on something like the SC album.  Rather would have had a song here with vocals to make the album feel more complete.

The Bigger Picture - Best song on the album so far for me.  Nice melodic song with a lot going on.  I actually felt something in this song.  I love when JP can convey emotion through his guitar (like the soft section in Lines in the Sand)

Behind the Veil - Something was off on my 1st listen.  I think I will like this one better upon repeated listens so I won't comment much on it to give it a chance.

Surrender to Reason - Another one that I think I will like better on repeated listens.  Wasn't too impressed on my 1st listen though.  Thought I would like it better after reading some of the comments.

Along for the Ride - 2nd best track on the album but I still like the ADTOEs ballads better.  This Is The Life, Far From Heaven, and Beneath The Surface are more heart felt and catchy to me.

IT - Think I will like it better on the 2nd listen but was disappointed.  I liked Jame's singing but the song felt like different songs spliced together unlike Octavarium and A Change of Seasons.  Something felt off about the flow.

Like I said.  I hope I like it a lot more after repeated listens but I think it is one of their weakest albums so far.


I realize that there is quality on the album but for me the songs didn't grab me.  Most just aren't catchy,  memorable, or pleasing to my ears.

Still a huge fan and will buy whatever they put out and I commend them for their attempt.  Glad others enjoy it.

[ariich]

Wow....some people saying "lack of catchiness" and it just makes me feel like I must have been listening to a different album.

I can't get half these songs out of my head.   The Looking Glass in particular.

Sometimes I feel "catchiness" to be subjective. I, personally, find quite a few of the passages and choruses off of this album as being really catchy! 

It totally is.

I also find it funny how for some people, something needs to be "catchy" for them to consider it good, and for some others anything that is "catchy" is automatically "mainstream" which must make it bad.

But yeah, I'm finding some of the melodies on this album sticking with me after only a couple of listens, but I expect it to require more listens for the album to really sink in.

[MarkFitDT]

just dont give up mate - keep listening! DT is like a fine wine! 

[Mebert78]

The facts are showing: you must listen to this album many, many times before "getting" it.

Totally agree.  On first listen I was on the fence about the album.  I'm on my fourth listen now and it's growing on me BIG TIME.  I think it's one of the band's best works.  Too soon to rank it, but it's up there.  Brilliance.

[ProAlbino]

just dont give up mate - keep listening! DT is like a fine wine! 

All good wines improve with age. 

[illusionist]

I think it's a pretty good album.After one and a half listens,i did  find some beautiful and memorable moments,but i didn't find any that would shock me.Something like BAI solo or the emotion of BTS.Maybe i was expecting something extraordinary,like Scenes,and i didn't hear it.My expectations were too high.I'll surely give it dozens of listens,bur as of now it's not something special.And i was waiting for JP to push his craftamanship even more and give us a performance to remember.Don't know.I hope it'll grow on me.
How sweet would it be for DT13 to be a concept one.To ooze with emotion,as SFAM did.I'm hoping.
I love DT,but i expect the best out of them,to top themselves with each and every album,to avoid repetition and get in new territories.And of course,to be as emotional as one band can be.

[MarkFitDT]

just dont give up mate - keep listening! DT is like a fine wine! 

All good wines improve with age. 

exactly lol! and Surrender to Reason is doing just that at the moment to me!

[evz]

One thing I am noticing (on my 5th listen thru LOL) is the use of effects throughout, flangers come in for a moment, vocals echo at times, a lot of really cool things well beyond that...  Really fun when a new thing pops out at you that way.

[ProAlbino]

just dont give up mate - keep listening! DT is like a fine wine! 

All good wines improve with age. 

exactly lol! and Surrender to Reason is doing just that at the moment to me!

Yeah but then there is Behind the Veil... I still can't get over how much momentum it loses moving from verse to pre-chorus. Honestly what were they thinking.

[dparrott]

It feels like the fans who started to listen to DT in the Train of Thought era "dislike"/doesnŽt get this album...and those who started at I&W fkin loves it 

Count me out of the "those who started at I&W fkin loves it" category.

I think when a lot of us (including myself) get over our expectations, we can appreciate it for what it is.

[Progalot]

I'm having difficulty finding the stream for New Zealand, really want to listen!

[MetalJens]

I've been so hooked on IT I've hardly listened to the other songs, but now that I'm listening to the rest I'm almost speechless. Not sure if I've ever been so exited about an album release before. This is ridiculously good. Seriously. 

Not sure if I'll get to sleep tonight, lol. 

[Shadow2222]

NOTE: I haven't listened to the album yet.

I see a lot of people comparing FAS to Overture from SDOIT.

I'm assuming this is just in style, and not necessarily meaning that it references other songs on the album?

[Whatsername]

I've only listened to it once, but my initial impression is that this is a really really solid album. Highlight moments for me is the orchestra section and James's insane notes in Illumination Theory. Also I hear a lot of Rush in this album, but I have no issues with that. I need to listen to it plenty more before being able to form an honest opinion, but first impressions are great.

[alexofsweden]

And about Enigma Machine: amazing. Better than Erotomania. Better than any other instrumental, but Ytse Jam.
[/quote]

Better then Erotomania?? You've gone crazy son

[climberboy]

This really clicks with me having heard it twice. Everything to me seems well structured and everybody sounds awesome especially JP, dat guitar, and JLB, dem vocals! I really like the flow of the tracks so like a sort of up and down feeling with heavy and melodic mixed with the softer elements, absolutely love it!!

[MarkFitDT]

just dont give up mate - keep listening! DT is like a fine wine! 

All good wines improve with age. 

exactly lol! and Surrender to Reason is doing just that at the moment to me!

Yeah but then there is Behind the Veil... I still can't get over how much momentum it loses moving from verse to pre-chorus. Honestly what were they thinking.

That doesnt bother me at all tbh - that first big riff sounds like something off an old Metallica album 

[PwnsomeWin]

I've listened up to 1-2 minutes through The Bigger Picture. Only songs that stood out were the first two. Hopefully the next half is better.

[PixelDream]

I really dig this album's diversity, acknowledging every aspect this band has ever had at one point.

The Looking Glass was way better on 2nd listen, absolutely great chorus and guitar solo. I still don't get the accents at the end though? WTF was that? And JLB's vocals are suddenly SUPER loud at the end! I kinda like the adventurous stuff they're doing. Enigma Machine 2nd listen now, reaally entertaining. They're grooving hard on this record, it's badass. Best use of heaviness since Train of Thought.

[Perpetual Change]

Basically, it's a good album, but I still can't get over how familiar it all sounds, whether DT are going back to their own sound or borrowing from their tried and true influences (Rush, Megadeth, Yes, Queen, etc.).

Listening to this record in such close proximity to JLB's newest solo effort, I can't help but feel like DT would be a lot more interesting with another primary songwriter in the band. John Petrucci is an excellent player and songwriter, but after the instrumental when you have that string of 6-7 minute songs, the whole "perspective" starts to get pretty repetitive. Not because the material is bad, per se, but just because there's not a lot of variety. It's all very John P sounding. I'd REALLY like to hear another member step up and really contribute something different. Well all know what John P is capable of - let's here a song that's almost solely Rudess' or Myung's baby.

[Dark Castle]

God damn I love Mangini's cymbal work, he gets so much radular work in there.

[OsMosis2259]

Are we seriously judging a DT album after one listen?
Come on guys... you of all people should know that you need at least 100 listens to rank it properly 

[YtseCullen]

I don't see how people say this isn't memorable. I think its one of their most memorable albums since SDOIT maybe even earlier. It's different but still Dream Theater. That's exactly what I wanted!

[Warhorse000]

Loving the album so far.  I listened to each song 2 or 3 times and just finished The Bigger Picture.  I'm going to wait to listen to the rest of the album for my ride from work to Gamestop for the midnight release of GTAV 

The whole album is so so so so so good IMO.  I definitely do not have a single complaint yet.  I will say the weakpoint to me is The Enemy Inside. 

Also:  Enigma Machine = Final Fantasy boss music 

[Phoenix87x]

2 listens in and I'm really liking it.

Really love The Looking Glass, Along for the Ride and Illumination Theory.

[PwnsomeWin]

My opinions so far:

FAS - A really cool intro
TEI - Took me a few listens to like it, but now it's pretty awesome
TLG - Disappointed. From the descriptions I thought it'd be cool, but it's bleh
EM - Decent. I'll probably like this when I listen to it more
TBP - Pretty cool. Not as good as FAS or TEI
BTV - Almost finished it, but so far it's freaking awesome! My favorite song of DT12 yet

[PixelDream]

I don't know if I'm raving too early, but in terms of songwriting alone, this at least surpasses every Roadrunner era album so far. Or so it seems on 2nd listen.