First off - deserved shouts out to AboutToCrash and MirrorMask for the "consecutive threes" topic ideas. And apologies if this topic has been done before. I was absent for awhile until recently so I may have missed it.
What is your favorite 3-album stretch?
This is a piece of cake for me. SFaM, SDoIT, and ToT. I will always feel like this was DT in their prime. Definitely Jordan in his prime too. These 3 albums are masterpieces IMO, and if these were the only 3 albums the band ever made, it would still be enough to keep me listening forever.
SFaM is my favorite album by any band, ever. I feel like it's still their most ambitious album, and it just has this nostalgic quality that has managed to remain as good as it was when it came out.
I've always loved Six Degrees, but not until the past year or so has it entered into my top 3. Blind Faith and The Great Debate really punctuate the first disc for me, and the title track is among their best.
ToT is one that I played to DEATH when it came out. I listened to it from 2003 until 2009 or so, but I did tire of it. BUT it's back in full force now, and I have much more appreciation for Stream of Consciousness and This Dying Soul (which, believe it or not, used to be 2 of my lesser favs on the album!) than ever.