The bottom 4 are as easy to list as the top 4.
The Astonishing is at the very bottom. No matter how many times I've tried, it won't click. There are some moments that stand out (there's a song that sounds very Dixie Dregs-ish, but I can't ever remember what the song is), but SO MUCH of the album sounds so very much the same that it's a chore to listen to.
Systematic Chaos was at the bottom until TA was released. SC features DT's all-time worst song (Redemption), and it's "epic" has never clicked with me. I LOVE Constant Motion, and TDEN is ok, but everything else is just meh.
Falling into Infinity comes next. Several good songs (YNM, HY, HK, AL and TOT), but none of those are great. LITS had potential but is ruined by the chorus.
The last spot was between WDADU and BC&SL. WDADU has a couple duds, but most of it is really good. The best stuff on BC&SL (Wither and TCOT) is better than the best stuff on WDADU, but large chunks of BC&SL (ANTR, AROP and TBOT) are no better than meh. BC&SL gets the vote.
And I’m afraid I’m going to have to go with The Astonishing for the 4th slot. I was this album’s biggest defender when it came out. I really loved chutzpah of the project. And I even loved the story. In fact, the story was big enough to go 3-discs. But alas, too many of the ideas feel unfinished, and for as many tracks as there are, there’s only a small handful of songs that stand on their own. There was no DT album I WANTED to love more than this one, and for a time I sung the praises of its scope and initiative. But it just didn’t have the staying power to actually hook me. But I’m glad they did it, and I will continue to revisit it from time to time.
I share a lot of these sentiments. Some folks think they shouldn't have tried this, and I disagree. I admire the attempt and the effort. The story seems a bit derivative, but no real problem there. Few songs stand out on their own. I WISH I loved this album, but no....