@erwin. I find it amusing that you think IT is good enough to attempt an extensive analysis. If that's what makes you happy, then great. But, the point I was trying to convey is that none of it makes any difference if I don't like the music or the way it is arranged. It's as simple as Blob describes in his post. My sentiments exactly.
Hearing IT recently on both BTFW and live, I find that song to be a slog to get through as a whole now. Too much noodling, very disjointed, very much the kind of wanky stuff that other recent albums suffered from, and too many copied cliches from other DT epics. I don't consider it anywhere near their other epics, or one of DT's better songs.
The music would have been written before they thought of lyrics anyway, but hey, people are free to interpret music however they want.
I don't really have to be amused by a DT song before I analyze it. I analyze almost all of their songs because I do not want the initial impression of the music to stop me from at least understanding what message the band is trying to convey. This was the approach that made me appreciate some songs that some vocal dissenters find disjointed like Scarred (which, once analyzed, actually is great from a composition standpoint) and made me feel meh about some fan-favorites like TGP and LTL. I am quite a fan of music that has narrative coherence. I used to play and help compose instrumental stuff (ethnic Philippine music, a very different genre) and we are always aware of the message, the narrative, the emotions, that the musical piece is trying to achieve.
I view DT as very meticulous composers. It is true that a lot of times, they do compose the instrumental music first before the lyrics, but that does not mean that they do not have a particular narrative or message in mind. I believe that they are very purposive, and this becomes apparent to me when I analyze song structures because distinct patterning in structures rarely emerge out of coincidence (unlike melodies or riffs). Anyway, what I find amusing (and I admit I am using this in kind of a belittling way) is that some people view DT as purposive composers when they are discussing songs they like, but quickly changes their view of DT into a band that just uses leftover riffs, obsesses over newfound sound effects and just patches things up when it is a song that they do not like. I think that DT purposively composes all of their songs. Sometimes, they succeed (Awake and DT 12, generally, although in different ways). Sometimes, they fail (like Prophets of War, where, I think, they are trying to create a dissonant effect but was not able to overcome it). I don't think I would ever understand how people could actually believe that DT members are patchwork composers, especially for an epic like IT.
Topic: Your ultimate Dream Theater masterpiece song (Read 12180 times)
