Being pretty unfamiliar with half of DT's MM-era stuff still, how would you guys rank it from ADTOE onward?
From what I have heard:
1. ADTOE
2. s/t
3. View
You're getting a range of opinions here but I'll chime in with mine and try to explain why. For reference, I&W is my favorite DT album and if that is 10/10, then here are my MM-era rankings:
1. A Dramatic Turn of Events (9.25/10) - why? maybe because it reminds me most of I&W. 1 point lower because of track 2, which I can't stand and doesn't even fit in with the rest of the album, and I didn't love the mix. Also my interest in the band was waning after what I consider to be a low point of 3 duds in a row: 8VM, SC, and BCSL. So to reflect for a moment, the band had put out 3 albums that I did not love; one of my favorite drummers left; we watched this audition process. I am lying in bed with no clue what to expect and the first track I hear is Breaking All Illusions. I nearly wept because after years of frustration, DT finally came back to their roots and gave me what I wanted to hear all along. This album is like the Mangini-era I&W companion. It's only a shame he wasn't around for the writing process because if the band had unleashed him on this album who knows how much better it could have been.
2. Distance Over Time (8.75/10) - similar to the above, we'd just came off a clunker of an album. I honestly was confused about what was happening in DT land and was very nervous about hearing this. It was another 'DT was back' moment but it wasn't like ADTOE. DoT reminded me of the self titled album: aggressive, shorter songs, great drumming that's very identifiable to MM, with better production.
3. Dream Theater self titled (8.5/10) - I think this one put the stamp on the MM era sound after ADTOE. This was the one that the band said would display MM unleashed and that's what we got. The drumming is way more creative in my view than what we got on the predecessor. You can really hear the contrast between Portnoy's style and Mangini's and you can't help but notice a different person is in the band. In my view, it was like going from very good reliable Subaru to a Porsche. I think Illumination Theory is one of the best tracks of the MM era. The rest of the album is very good too, but for me the highs were not as high as Barstool Warrior, Pale Blue Dot, and most of Wit's End.
4. View From the Top of the World (8/10) - it's a very good album. It made perfect sense coming out of Distance Over Time and you could listen to them one after the other and it would all sound cohesive - main difference being song length. The songs all make sense with one another on View. There are no duds - although I don't love Sleeping Giant or Invisible Monster - and everything is either good or great DT. My only complaint is that it was a little too predictable (?) if you know what I mean. It was really as by-the-book as you could get after DoT.
5. The Astonishing (2/10) - points for idea and effort. I am not going to crap on this album here because this is not the place for that. I am just going to say that when I order fancy sushi, I don't expect to open the bag and smell Cheesecake Factory. I am not saying don't listen to it. Listen to it; just get rid of any pre-conceived notions. That is hard to do after 12 albums but I just don't hear how the album fits into the catalogue at all. It's my least favorite album of any DT era.
In summary, the middle three albums are the best representation of the MM-era Dream Theater sound. They make perfect sense together. If you like one, go spend more time with the other two. ADTOE and Astonishing are different; the band was trying to do something very specific. ADTOE was their attempt to calm the fanbase and preemptively do damage control after pandora's box was opened. The Astonishing was John and Jordan's musical theater project that for some strange reason they thought should be released in Dream Theater packaging. The other 3 are just DT having fun doing the new DT. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!