Sons of Apollo (feat. Portnoy & Sherinian)

[emtee]

Depends on the market. Bigger markets with stations that play heavier rock DO play stuff like this. Add Breaking Benjamin, Pop Evil,
Stone Sour, Shinedown, and other heavier rock bands. The rock station here in Orlando plays this stuff all day long.

[mikeyd23]

Yeah I don't see this stuff hitting it big on FM radio... And also it's 2017, so I'm not sure even if it did, it would matter.

[Anguyen92]

Depends on the market. Bigger markets with stations that play heavier rock DO play stuff like this. Add Breaking Benjamin, Pop Evil, Stone Sour, Shinedown, and other heavier rock bands. The rock station here in Orlando plays this stuff all day long.

I'm a fan of some of those bands from the active rock radio format and I'm a fan of the radio stations that plays those kinds of bands.  I honestly do not see SOA getting played.  Felt like their sound and their age seems to go against what active rock radio stations are looking for in a newer act.  Take Greta Van Fleet.  Their song, Highway Tune, has been blasted a lot on the active rock radio station I listen to and they are a really young band.  That's the sorta band that can go far in that format than say Sons of Apollo.

That stated, SOA's best bet of getting somewhere would be to open for one of those bands though.  Opening for a band like Disturbed would be a good starting platform for them.

[Lethean]

Emtee, I don't think they sound like the bands you mentioned (that I'm familiar with, like Disturbed). True that they don't have soaring vocals, but aside from that, they sound much more like an 80s rock band than Disturbed.

[ariich]

So all musicians (who write) are great song writers?

By your definition, if we're not allowed to say that the writing is bad, then you guys can't say the writing is good. If all we can say is we don't like it, then all you can is that you do like it.

Seems like a pretty boring discussion.

I never said any of that. There is absolutely tons that can be discussed around "why I like/dislike it" or "why it grabs/doesn't grab me" or even "why I don't like the songwriting".

I take the 'not a songwriter' thing as... well, not literally 'can't write a song' but rather 'aren't known for writing earworms or memorable tunes.' Technical chops and flashy songs, sure, all of these guys are known for their technical prowess. But that doesn't translate to good songwriting or even good playing on record. Outside of Derek and Mike I can't tell you a single song Soto, Sheehan, or Bumblefoot are known for. Same with Derek - Lines in the Sand, okay, but that's not that big of a DT tune, and his solo stuff? Can't tell you a single 'hit' or 'definitive Sherinian solo song' and I even own two of his albums. Can't make a fair call on Mike because I own so much of his work and know every DT song, but I'd wager not many non-DT fans know exactly which songs Mike Portnoy himself wrote. Because he writes lyrics, he's not a composer.

So I don't take it literally, but rather, they're not known for writing, they're known for their skills on their given instrument. EDIT: Ugh that was a mess of a post, hope that makes sense. Need... coffee...

I'm not following this I'm afraid. Are you saying it's about being known for writing songs, or about writing good hooks/melodies/riffs/whatever (which is all rather subjective)? For me the hooks are a strength on this album.

[cramx3]

Yea I'm really curious as well about their touring next year. Given the musicians I can't really see them touring as an opener but I'd think piggybacking off one of the top metal acts would do wonders for exposure which I think a band of older musicians might need to get younger people into them.  Too bad Avenged Sevenfold has an opener, id think that would be sweet tour package.

[The Walrus]

I take the 'not a songwriter' thing as... well, not literally 'can't write a song' but rather 'aren't known for writing earworms or memorable tunes.' Technical chops and flashy songs, sure, all of these guys are known for their technical prowess. But that doesn't translate to good songwriting or even good playing on record. Outside of Derek and Mike I can't tell you a single song Soto, Sheehan, or Bumblefoot are known for. Same with Derek - Lines in the Sand, okay, but that's not that big of a DT tune, and his solo stuff? Can't tell you a single 'hit' or 'definitive Sherinian solo song' and I even own two of his albums. Can't make a fair call on Mike because I own so much of his work and know every DT song, but I'd wager not many non-DT fans know exactly which songs Mike Portnoy himself wrote. Because he writes lyrics, he's not a composer.

So I don't take it literally, but rather, they're not known for writing, they're known for their skills on their given instrument. EDIT: Ugh that was a mess of a post, hope that makes sense. Need... coffee...

I'm not following this I'm afraid. Are you saying it's about being known for writing songs, or about writing good hooks/melodies/riffs/whatever (which is all rather subjective)? For me the hooks are a strength on this album.

The first. When I think about any name in SoA, I think of people with great chops (holy shit that guy with braids in his beard can shred!), not "oh so-and-so wrote [insert song here], he's a great writer." Put enough monkeys in a room with a typewriter and they'll eventually write Shakespeare; put 5 monkeys in a room for 2 weeks with some gear and they'll write Psychotic Symphony.

[mikeyd23]

Yea I'm really curious as well about their touring next year. Given the musicians I can't really see them touring as an opener but I'd think piggybacking off one of the top metal acts would do wonders for exposure which I think a band of older musicians might need to get younger people into them.  Too bad Avenged Sevenfold has an opener, id think that would be sweet tour package.

Yeah, I don't know if the personalities in this band will look to open for someone. I feel like they will want to headline their own shows.

[cramx3]

Yea I'm really curious as well about their touring next year. Given the musicians I can't really see them touring as an opener but I'd think piggybacking off one of the top metal acts would do wonders for exposure which I think a band of older musicians might need to get younger people into them.  Too bad Avenged Sevenfold has an opener, id think that would be sweet tour package.

Yeah, I don't know if the personalities in this band will look to open for someone. I feel like they will want to headline their own shows.

I agree, but they can play to 1k-500 person venues of people who know who they are, or play to 10-15k people who don't know them.  To me, for a new band, you gotta get your name and music out there.  Plus with only one album, I think it would be good for them to focus on playing just the new music, not do covers and whatnot to fill a full headline set. 

[DragonAttack]

Am surprised that 'God Of The Sun', 'Labyrinth' and 'Opus Maximus' aren't divided up into 'a,b,c,d, and e' segments for their track listings.  So many different sounds and styles that don't seem to mesh, or could have been shuffled and placed in any other track, or just removed entirely.

'Labyrinth' seems to steal from 'The Ministry of Lost Souls' in parts, and the opening synth is more than vaguely familiar to Queen's 'The Show Must Go On'  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t99KH0TR-J4

I do like MPs drumming and sound, and hope like hell that MM would be allowed some moments like this on the next DT studio album. 

The shorter tracks were quite good for the most part.  Thal and JSS are good for the most part.  DS is good at times.  IMO, just a drawn out rather 'meh' release.  If MP and DS had spent some of the 'foot in mouth' PR session time to refining and tweaking this with the rest of their 'band', I wouldn't have been so disappointed. 

[mikeyd23]

Yea I'm really curious as well about their touring next year. Given the musicians I can't really see them touring as an opener but I'd think piggybacking off one of the top metal acts would do wonders for exposure which I think a band of older musicians might need to get younger people into them.  Too bad Avenged Sevenfold has an opener, id think that would be sweet tour package.

Yeah, I don't know if the personalities in this band will look to open for someone. I feel like they will want to headline their own shows.

I agree, but they can play to 1k-500 person venues of people who know who they are, or play to 10-15k people who don't know them.  To me, for a new band, you gotta get your name and music out there.  Plus with only one album, I think it would be good for them to focus on playing just the new music, not do covers and whatnot to fill a full headline set.

I agree 100%. I just don't think they will do that 

[Nekov]

5/10

[Adami]

So all musicians (who write) are great song writers?

By your definition, if we're not allowed to say that the writing is bad, then you guys can't say the writing is good. If all we can say is we don't like it, then all you can is that you do like it.

Seems like a pretty boring discussion.

I never said any of that. There is absolutely tons that can be discussed around "why I like/dislike it" or "why it grabs/doesn't grab me" or even "why I don't like the songwriting".

Well it's hard to say WHY something doesn't grab you. It just doesn't. I constantly found myself just zoning out for the instrumental sections. I can't quantify exactly what about them caused such a reaction, but that's what happened every single listen without fail. I can add that many of the songs seem to be within the same few notes of each other for much of it, not a ton of diversity. The rhythms aren't terribly interesting either. The parts where they're actually playing a song and not just running up and down warm up exercises were not bad. It just never caught me as anything new or interesting. Like I said, there's nothing really AWFUL about this album, it's just so bland, uninspired, and lifeless (to me) that I don't think much of it. I feel like if an unknown band did this album, a lot of us would quickly just move on.

[Cool Chris]

I will echo what Adami said. I was doing some online training this weekend and spent most of it listening to music. Some of it was from my roulette, some was this album. When my roulette songs came on, I mostly lost track of what I was working on because the high quality of the music was taking away all my focus. When SoA was playing, I lost track of the music because it wasn't interesting enough to me to stop my training.

Honestly, however, this album was better than I expected after listening to the two singles/early releases. The rest of the songs are much better. I am not sure about this decision to tour so long after an album drops. And I wouldn't bet even money on these guys releasing another album, unless it is done in the next 18 months. 

[ariich]

The first. When I think about any name in SoA, I think of people with great chops (holy shit that guy with braids in his beard can shred!), not "oh so-and-so wrote [insert song here], he's a great writer." Put enough monkeys in a room with a typewriter and they'll eventually write Shakespeare; put 5 monkeys in a room for 2 weeks with some gear and they'll write Psychotic Symphony.

Gotcha, thanks.

Personally, I never think of it that way as I don't normally know (or necessarily care) who wrote what song (or bit of song), especially as so many bands share the writing credits. I do know that I dig a lot of Bumblefoot's solo stuff, but that's solo material so easier to know.

Well it's hard to say WHY something doesn't grab you. It just doesn't.

Yeah I get that, I'm often the same, and indeed it's often not easy to define why something does grab you either, beyond how it makes you feel. But having said that, you then went on to give a pretty good explanation of why you don't like the album, so obviously not THAT difficult.

[cramx3]

Personally, I never think of it that way as I don't normally know (or necessarily care) who wrong what song (or bit of song), especially as so many bands share the writing credits. I do know that I dig a lot of Bumblefoot's solo stuff, but that's solo material so easier to know.

Tell that to James LaBrie 

[ariich]

Personally, I never think of it that way as I don't normally know (or necessarily care) who wrong what song (or bit of song), especially as so many bands share the writing credits. I do know that I dig a lot of Bumblefoot's solo stuff, but that's solo material so easier to know.

Tell that to James LaBrie 

Touche.

[bosk1]

Who?

[bill1971]

Who?

Star Lord

[Sycsa]

Who?

Star Lord

Dude has great taste in music.

[ProfessorPeart]

7/10

It's exactly what I was expecting from the moment the project was announced. No surprises at all. An enjoyable Prog Metal listen.

[rumborak]

I'm listening to "Little Brother Is Watching". It's a bummer that Thal didn't have more songwriting influence on SoA. I think his quirky sense of melodies combined with the prog aspects of MP and DS would have made for a really innovative record.

[Fritzinger]

I am surprised that Labyrinth isn't getting the positive resonance that God Of The Sun is getting. Imo it's even more compact and structured very clearly. The parts flow into each other better than in God Of The Sun. The only thing about this song (apart from the small 1985 ripoff) I realized that it doesn't really have a chorus. The "Cause it takes me in and I can't let go" part seems more like a bridge to me, which is not follow by a real chorus. But apart from that, I think Labyrinth is a really great song. I wonder what people would have said if Derek said, THIS song was the only song he worked on before going into the sessions instead of God Of The Sun.

[rumborak]

Labyrinth ist pretty good in the first half, and then it becomes This Dying Soul, where it's just one dissonant section after the other glued together.

[KevShmev]

Were standards lower then to where this mediocre product would have been more acceptable?

...why are you always trying to bust my balls Kev?

 

Just asking a simple question. 

[bill1971]

Who?

Star Lord

Dude has great taste in music.

Agreed. GOTG2 was my soundtrack for May and a lot of June.

Anyhow back to SOA Gods of the Sun is a pretty good song as well. The album is not bad, it's a fairly good prog metal album with some interesting parts but it does not in any way compare to DT of the past or present.

[gzarruk]

Listened to the whole album again today. Still can't get through Opus Maximus, it feels like a lifeless, incoherent piece with terrible flow between its parts. Is it just me?

[Sycsa]

Listened to the whole album again today. Still can't get through Opus Maximus, it feels like a lifeless, incoherent piece with terrible flow between its parts. Is it just me?

Nope.

I squeezed out some fun from every single track, except for Opus Maximus, which is a total throwaway.

I wouldn't even have put that track on the album, let alone close with it.

[Metro]

Listened to the whole album again today. Still can't get through Opus Maximus, it feels like a lifeless, incoherent piece with terrible flow between its parts. Is it just me?

Not just you. I have no desire to ever hear it again.

[Madman Shepherd]

So I was going to wait to borrow my friends copy but I couldn't resist checking out what I could find from various sources which is almost the whole album.  I am actually quite surprised.  I think the first three tracks released are by far the worst.  They complete fucked up the roll out of this album with Mike's tantrums about people guessing it was Bumblefoot, Derek's jealous sophomoric jabs, and some unexciting introductions.  They should have been bold and released God of the Sun first or Labyrinth.  Both are actually quite good.  The latter has some parts lifted from other songs though.  I noticed a very similar vocal line from Change of Seasons, the drum part half way through with the keyboards coming in is very similar to John Arch's song Relentless.  There is also a part which is pretty similar to a part of Metropolis.  All of these would be a cool nugget if Mike wasn't such a turd about the bullshit ADTOE "similarities" but I guess if it's a desperate attempt to rewrite his past....

Anyway, I think their behavior made my expectations so low that I was pleasantly surprised by the two songs I mentioned.  Also, Divine Addiction is badass.  Great riff.  Great melodies. 

Since I can change my vote, I decided to give it a five temporarily and will go back and rerate it when I can listen to these songs on an actual stereo system.  In fact, based off of the three songs I think are good, I would probably bite the bullet and buy the album if Mike could restrain himself for more than a week.  Another slam on DTF today by the way with another reference to a "bubble" and his imaginary unanimously positive responses online.   

[gzarruk]

Listened to the whole album again today. Still can't get through Opus Maximus, it feels like a lifeless, incoherent piece with terrible flow between its parts. Is it just me?

Not just you. I have no desire to ever hear it again.

Listened to the whole album again today. Still can't get through Opus Maximus, it feels like a lifeless, incoherent piece with terrible flow between its parts. Is it just me?

Nope.

I squeezed out some fun from every single track, except for Opus Maximus, which is a total throwaway.

I wouldn't even have put that track on the album, let alone close with it.

That one and Figaro's Whore 

[Sycsa]

Listened to the whole album again today. Still can't get through Opus Maximus, it feels like a lifeless, incoherent piece with terrible flow between its parts. Is it just me?

Not just you. I have no desire to ever hear it again.

Listened to the whole album again today. Still can't get through Opus Maximus, it feels like a lifeless, incoherent piece with terrible flow between its parts. Is it just me?

Nope.

I squeezed out some fun from every single track, except for Opus Maximus, which is a total throwaway.

I wouldn't even have put that track on the album, let alone close with it.

That one and Figaro's Whore 

I don't have a problem with that, mainly because I really enjoy the sound of an isolated Hammond, and I think of it as an intro to Divine Addiction, which is my favorite track on the album. Derek could have done a better job with it though, no doubt.

[Adami]

So I want to revise my rating.

As a musical album, I'm still giving it a 5/10.

As background music to my studying? 10/10. At no point am I forced to stop studying to pay attention to a great part.

[gzarruk]

I don't have a problem with that, mainly because I really enjoy the sound of an isolated Hammond, and I think of it as an intro to Divine Addiction, which is my favorite track on the album. Derek could have done a better job with it though, no doubt.

To me, it just sounds like Derek messing around with the organ, trying to become Jon Lord. I didn't enjoy Divine Addiction that much, either. If I wanted to listen to something that sounds A LOT like Deep Purple, I would just listen to Deep Purple 

[TAC]

Yeah, that's a big thing as I'm listening. Derek is the weak link. Just above MP. And were they afraid JSS would steal the show? MP treated the vocals just as he did on SC and BC&SL, secondary. Which is too bad because he had fantastic vocalists at his disposal.