To Your Ears: Each Member's Shining Moment

[breaktheprisonwall]

To each their own, as the saying goes: if you had to pick ONE, what is each band member's shining moment on TA?

For me:

LaBrie- 2:17-3:39 in Hymn Of A Thousand Voices. While LaBrie is the star of this album, and he has MANY incredible moments, this one truly stands out to me. Amazing melodies to be found here.

Petrucci- While the beginning of A Life Left Behind is certainly ear-catching, I have to give it to the solo he plays at the start of A Savior In The Square. After my first listen of the whole thing I think I went back and listened to this solo about five times. It's drop-dead gorgeous to me.

Myung- The portion of the instrumental where he copies the rhythm JP and JR are playing at 3:55 in Moment Of Betrayal. I'm in the camp that can barely pick out the bass in any given track but this part is VERY audible and I have to say it's pretty cool to hear all three of them playing the same insane rhythm at one time.

Rudess- 0:00-0:35 in When Your Time Has Come. I LOVE this melody. JR has a pretty large part in this album, we can all agree, but, like JLB, this one just stands out to me. I also love how it kicks back in after the "when you're facing the path that divides" part.

Mangini- I'm a big fan of cool fills (one of the main reasons I got into this band back when I first heard Scenes when I was still a kid), so runs that he does in section of A Life Left Behind, Ravenskill, and Moment Of Betrayal could all have fit here, but I have to give it to the fill at 3:17 in The Gift Of Music. I love this every time I hear it. Since I am primarily interested in drums (and always have been), honorable mention for Mangini has to be the entire song of Our New World. It just sounds like he is having a blast playing that song and I can see a huge grin on his face when I picture him playing it.

I'm interested in what you guys think are the best of the best on this truly special album.

[genome]

Petrucci's has to be the solo in A New Beginning!

[Gromit1710]

JLB - He's amazing through this whole thing, but one of his most rewarding moments comes early for me. @ 1:55 TGOM. When the choir joins him and he rings out above it is such an awesome sound.

JP - He's got several choice solos. And as much as a prog fan as I am, I've always liked it when he tones down the complexity and goes for feel. So I'd have to go for solo wise, A New Beginning outro. Fade out included  with the intro of Savior in the Square a close second, maybe even tied. As far as a riff goes... have to give it to Our New World. Hookiest riff I've heard in a long time.

JM - That moment where he doubles up JP on the Our New World riff just for a bit.

JR - It's hard to pick... but I'm in love with two things he does on this album in particular. The use of a rich, warm Hammond on The Answer makes that song what it is for me. The other is his cascading melody behind the guitar on A Better Life verses, starting at :38.

MM - Admittedly, I'm not overly fond of one particular moment of MM's on this album anywhere. I feel bad about that. If I had to pick one song that the drums are really unique is perhaps Lord Nefaryus. He's solid through the whole album, don't get me wrong, maybe my good drum passage detector is overloaded with everything else going on 

[CDrice]

John Petrucci: The intro riff of Our New World and the intro of A Savior In The Square.

Jordan Rudess: The first 2 minutes of Ravenskill and Heaven's Cove at about 2:04 to 2:32. There's also the ''When daddy does arrive he's in for a surprise'' *cue to keyboard solo* that I find pretty cool. 

Mike Mangini: I'm not really sure but I'd say the second pre-chorus of Moment of Betrayal. Our New World is pretty cool too.

John Myung: Everywhere that he has no rythm guitar to double so he decides to double the lead guitar instead (Moment of Betrayal and Our New World)

James Labrie: AHAHAH! AH AHAHahahahah! AHAHAH AHAHAAAAAH! and also the ''This man's a fraud and a hoax'' part in a new beginning

I also love the part in Dystopian Ouverture where you have a bunch of different instrument playing the same short musical fragment one after the other.

[V_R11]

JP: A New Beginning outro
JLB: I'll go with the "Ravenskill shall burn" line at 2:25-2:29 in Three Days
JR: Moment of Betrayal intro
JM: 3:55 in Moment of Betrayal
MM: He does a bunch of cool fills,but I'll have to give the album a couple more spins before I can name specific parts

[SebastianPratesi]

To each their own, as the saying goes: if you had to pick ONE, what is each band member's shining moment on TA?

For me:

Petrucci- While the beginning of A Life Left Behind is certainly ear-catching, I have to give it to the solo he plays at the start of A Savior In The Square. After my first listen of the whole thing I think I went back and listened to this solo about five times. It's drop-dead gorgeous to me.

Myung- The portion of the instrumental where he copies the rhythm JP and JR are playing at 3:55 in Moment Of Betrayal. I'm in the camp that can barely pick out the bass in any given track but this part is VERY audible and I have to say it's pretty cool to hear all three of them playing the same insane rhythm at one time.

Rudess- 0:00-0:35 in When Your Time Has Come. I LOVE this melody. JR has a pretty large part in this album, we can all agree, but, like JLB, this one just stands out to me. I also love how it kicks back in after the "when you're facing the path that divides" part.

I'm interested in what you guys think are the best of the best on this truly special album.

I agree on those three, for sure.

James sings several things I love. I like the one you mentioned, but my favourite is either 'behind the stranger's eyes' in "Ravenskill", or 'how they must be feeling' in "A New Beginning".

As far as Mike, I think the ending of "The Walking Shadow" (when Daryus prepares to attack Faythe) is just amazing. There is in fact a new thread of cool Mike moments, and that one gets talked about a lot.

[breaktheprisonwall]

JLB - He's amazing through this whole thing, but one of his most rewarding moments comes early for me. @ 1:55 TGOM. When the choir joins him and he rings out above it is such an awesome sound.

JP - He's got several choice solos. And as much as a prog fan as I am, I've always liked it when he tones down the complexity and goes for feel. So I'd have to go for solo wise, A New Beginning outro. Fade out included  with the intro of Savior in the Square a close second, maybe even tied. As far as a riff goes... have to give it to Our New World. Hookiest riff I've heard in a long time.

JR - It's hard to pick... but I'm in love with two things he does on this album in particular. The use of a rich, warm Hammond on The Answer makes that song what it is for me. The other is his cascading melody behind the guitar on A Better Life verses, starting at :38.

Actually, the first time I head TGOM, the vocal part you mentioned really stood out to me as well. I thought "I wonder how the rest of the vocals will sound"- I had no idea what we were in for. 

I must be in the minority, as I feel the first half of A New Beginning is better than the second half. I really don't see what everyone else sees in that solo. I mean, it's good and all, but to me personally it's not earth-shattering. And yes, as far as singular riffs go, the Savior/Our New World opener is just amazing. I also love how the first time we hear it, it's acoustic, and the second time is electric.

I hadn't really thought of The Answer for JR but just went back and listened again- he IS particularly good here. Especially from 1:29 to the end.

[Architeuthis]

This thread is wearing me out! I just love the whole album the whole way through, all members shine everywhere from start to finish. I'm too lazy and tired to be specific right now, down with a virus.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

To Daryus' ears:

Gabriel's scream.

[RoeDent]

I'm actually tempted to say the shining moment for Petrucci, Myung and Mangini all happen simultaneously: the outro of A New Beginning. I know Mangini doesn't do the whole technical wizardry business, but the simplicity of his and Mangini's groove makes that 2:43 special.

[wolven74]

I don't know that I can pick one for everyone. But, as far as I'm concerned....

JLB: my favorites for him are Faythe's lines throughout, and in particular he shines in A New Beginning, when he's going between Nefaryus and Faythe in close proximity.

JR: For JR I'd say just about every song on the album. He's just brilliant. If I had to pick one.... That's hard. My favorite Piano part is probably 0:44-0:52 of A Life Left Behind.

JP: The solo at the beginning of A Savior in the Square. Like the OP I went back and listened to that about six times when I first heard it. Absolutely gorgeous.

JM: He's hard to choose because this album has such a huge sound, with the orchestra and choirs. Its kinda a tie between the swing part of Three Days and the unison he does with JR in A Life Left Behind.

MM: Again, it's hard to pick just one.... He's a beast through the whole album. As far as badassery, I'd say the fill he does at 3:00 of A Savior in the Square is my favorite fill. But as far as his just being a killer timekeeper... the beat he lays down under the outro solo of A New Beginning is pretty choice beast mode.