Official top 50 Fates Warning countdown thread!! - #1 Song Revealed!

[Lethean]

Handful of Doubt was #21 for me.  I love FWX and think this is an incredible song.

I have almost all of the rest of A Pleasant Shade of Gray ranked, and highly, so I left this one off.

[jammindude]

Again….two non-rankers for me.

Handful is ok. It got to 103 on my first pass, so it was too low to include on my second and third lists.

APSOG 8 is admittedly beautiful, and I probably should have ranked it a bit higher. It came in at 83 on my first list. One of only 3 tracks from APSOG that didn’t make the cut.

[Zoom E]

I have Handful of Doubt at 25. i’m a big fan of the FWX album.

I ranked APSOG VIII at 4. I enjoy this musical interlude a great deal.

[Dublagent66]

Handful of Doubt - NR
APSOG VIII - #13

[The Realm]

47T Handful of Doubt (FWX – 1)

Appeared on 9 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 1
Highest Ranking: 7 (Samsara)

47T A Pleasant Shade of Gray VIII (APSOG – 1)

Appeared on 7 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 4 (Zoom E)

A Handful of Doubt - unranked. I rarely listed to FWX so was probably always going to be hard to get this song in my top 50. It is a great vocal by Ray.

VIII - also unranked. This is a great instrumental and is awesome in the context of the album but as a stand alone track I had to leave this out.

[TAC]

47T Handful of Doubt (FWX – 1)

Appeared on 9 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 1
Highest Ranking: 7 (Samsara)

47T A Pleasant Shade of Gray VIII (APSOG – 1)

Appeared on 7 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 4 (Zoom E)

I had Handful Of Doubt as Not Rated. FWX is also my least favorite FW album too. I do have one song from this album, but this ain't it.


I had APSOG VIII (Instrumental) at #46.  One of the few parts of APSOG that really has some energy to it. And yes, the piano part at the end is awesome.



50                                                                              NR
49                                                                              Handful Of Doubt
48
47
46  APSOG VIII (Instrumental)
45
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38  Face The Fear
37
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31  Don't Follow Me
30
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17  Exodus
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1

[wolfking]

I have a few FWX songs on my list but this one just missed out.  APSOGVIII also was not ranked for me.

[devieira73]

About A Handful of Doubt (#48 to me): I love the "FW meets Porcupine Tree" vibe of the song and I think its building already makes the whole song worthwhile. I'm also between the ones who love FWX. It's a great album and it has the second best mixing and recording in FW's discography.

The combo APSOGVI-VII-VIII sounds to me as an amazing musical section of APSOG and I ranked them at #17/18/19.

[pg1067]

VIII - also unranked. This is a great instrumental and is awesome in the context of the album but as a stand alone track I had to leave this out.

This one really demonstrated different approaches to ranking the many parts of APSOG.

[The Realm]

VIII - also unranked. This is a great instrumental and is awesome in the context of the album but as a stand alone track I had to leave this out.

This one really demonstrated different approaches to ranking the many parts of APSOG.

Yes, I did find it incredibly difficult to rank those tracks individually.

[WardySI]

Handful Of Doubt #20
I too found FWX somewhat lacking and agree with whoever said the rockers are arguably what lets it down but there's some great moments here and Handful is an exceptional song. Love this one!

APSOG VIII NR

[pg1067]

After two days of ties…

We have another tie!



Once again, these two songs finished a mere three points ahead of the two songs that tied for 47th place.  Fortunately, this will be the last tie for a while.

45T The Longest Shadow of the Day (Long Day Good Night – 1)

Appeared on 10 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 3 (Lethean)

I’ve listened to LDGN a bunch of times, but none of the songs have really gotten me excited, and this song does virtually nothing for me (the first three minutes are exceedingly boring).  I did not rank this song.


45T Down to the Wire (Inside Out – 1)

Appeared on 9 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 3
Highest Ranking: 6 (TAC)

I often think of songs in pairs.  The previously mentioned Don’t Follow Me is a companion to We Only Say Goodbye, and Down to the Wire pairs with Face the Fear.  This was Ray Alder’s first lyrical contribution to Fates.  If I recall correctly, it’s about Ray’s relationship with his father.  It’s a superb song in every regard, although I prefer its “companion” track a bit more.  I ranked it #32.

[Dublagent66]

The Longest Shadow of the Day - #33
Down to the Wire - NR

[Samsara]

The Longest Shadow of the Day came in at #47 for me. Good tune. I feel like it tried to replicate the vibe of The Light and Shade of Things to a degree, but never really got there. Still a cool tune.

Down to the Wire went UNRANKED for me. That said, it was close. In the early 50s.

[jammindude]

Seven songs in and we still have yet to include one song that made my list.

My first list went completely from memory and Longest Shadow placed 17. But the second list was where I really took a close listen to just about everything in the top 30 or 40 and Longest Shadow just did nothing for me on that relisten. It dropped to 61 on my second list and then wasn’t even included on my third pass.

Down to the Wire is another meh-fest for me. It made 100 on my first list, and was completely dropped from my second and third.

[Zoom E]

I didn’t rank Longest Shadow of the Day or Down to the Wire.

Long Day Goodnight is one of the weaker FW releases for me.

Down to the Wire could have snuck in to the lower part of my list, but it didn’t.

[TAC]

45T The Longest Shadow of the Day (Long Day Good Night – 1)

Appeared on 10 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 3 (Lethean)

45T Down to the Wire (Inside Out – 1)

Appeared on 9 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 3
Highest Ranking: 6 (TAC)

I had The Longest Shadow Of The Day at #39.
I feel like musically, the intro takes you on a kind of journey with a heaviness that reminds me of the Arch Era. Great tune.

I had Down To The Wire at #6.

What separates Down To The Wire for me is the great chorus and amazing performance by Ray.

I love these two lines..

I hold on clutching to the hope that i'll be strong

I'll hold on to with every ounce of strength within me

Ray just kills it!


50                                                                              NR
49                                                                              Handful Of Doubt
48
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46  APSOG VIII (Instrumental)
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39  The Longest Shadow Of The Day
38  Face The Fear
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31  Don't Follow Me
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17  Exodus
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6  Down To The Wire
5
4
3
2
1

[nick_z]

The Longest Shadow of the Day - My rank: #28

My highest ranked song from LDGN - it's fair to say it's not among my very favorite FW albums. This one is a pretty interesting song. It doesn't quite achieve true "greatness" in my book, but there's a lot of, well, goodness in here  The jazzy-plus-Discipline-era King Crimson intro is very, very cool, and the guitar riffs and drumming when it gets going are fantastic. There isn't a ton of singing in here but, when the vocals do come in, the melodies are real nice. Also, Vera's bass is a true star here - in the intro, but then also for the groovy part starting around 8:40. All in all, something a little different for the band, and quite a journey of a song.

Down to the Wire - My rank: #33

Not even one of my favorites on Inside Out, and it's a great song. A slightly more "metal" intro (at least compared to the rest of the record), and a fantastic performance by Alder. LOVE the melodies in the verses (they resolve so perfectly) and the chorus. Cool and unexpected slowdown towards the end too, before the last series of chorus(es).

[pg1067]

Seven songs in and we still have yet to include one song that made my list.

[TAC]

J-Dude needs to turn in his Fogey Card for not having Exodus on there.

[romdrums]

45T. The Longest Shadow of the Day (NR).  On the first run through, I had it ranked, but when I redid my list, it fell off.  I think I need to listen to this one some more.

45T. Down to the Wire (NR).  This one just missed the cut for me.  Better production may have helped this one rank better for me.  Not a bad song, just a bunch that I like more.

[jammindude]

J-Dude needs to turn in his Fogey Card for not having Exodus on there.

 

I don’t know why, but for me it still lives under Epitaph’s shadow.

[TAC]

J-Dude needs to turn in his Fogey Card for not having Exodus on there.

 

I don’t know why, but for me it still lives under Epitaph’s shadow.

But there's not room in a FIFTY song countdown for both??

I actually rate it higher than Epitaph. 

[jammindude]

J-Dude needs to turn in his Fogey Card for not having Exodus on there.

 

I don’t know why, but for me it still lives under Epitaph’s shadow.

But there's not room in a FIFTY song countdown for both??

I actually rate it higher than Epitaph. 

If it helps, it’s my 13th highest rated Arch song. 

[TAC]

Well, that just tells me that you have less than 13 Arch songs in the countdown, which I would expect from a whippersnapper which I know you are definitely not..

[Lethean]

I love The Longest Shadow of the Day.  Definitely agree with those calling it a journey.  To me it sounds really fresh and new and yet totally like Fates Warning.

[jammindude]

Well, that just tells me that you have less than 13 Arch songs in the countdown, which I would expect from a whippersnapper which I know you are definitely not..

I have exactly 12. Exodus barely missed the cut at 53.

[wolfking]

I had Longest Shadow at 19.  What an amazing tune so late in their career.  Creative, atmospheric and a great interesting structure.  Nice and heavy too.

Looks like Tim just beat me to the punch with DTTW.  I had it at 9, incredible, melodic, brilliant tune.  Amazing chorus and the intro is incredible.  That lead guitar melody is just too good.

[The Realm]

45T The Longest Shadow of the Day (Long Day Good Night – 1)

Appeared on 10 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 3 (Lethean)

45T Down to the Wire (Inside Out – 1)

Appeared on 9 of 19  entries
Top 10 finishes: 3
Highest Ranking: 6 (TAC)

Well I am struggling so far in this countdown - only 1 ranked song so far..jammindude I feel your pain.

The Longest Shadow of the Day - unranked but only just! I couldn't squeeze this one in but I am happy to see it make it. I am a big fan of this album, it has grown on me over time and I do often return to it. I did rank a few of the songs but this one just missed out. Starts with a slow build up but when the heavy instrumental part kicks in this really rocks. I really like the soft opening verse, great vocals.

Down to the Wire - unranked. A good song but I feel this shares many similarities, especially the chorus with other Fates songs that I just prefer more. I don't listen to Inside Out often so this song didn't really have much of a chance for my list.

[pg1067]

J-Dude needs to turn in his Fogey Card for not having Exodus on there.

 

I don’t know why, but for me it still lives under Epitaph’s shadow.

But there's not room in a FIFTY song countdown for both??

Well...every list didn't rank dozens of songs that could have been ranked.  I'm pretty sure there are multiple songs in everyone's top 10 that didn't make a LOT of other lists.  For example, my #10 song only made seven other lists and, for a while, wasn't even close to the top 50 (and ultimately finished at #54).

[TAC]

Thanks Dad!

[pg1067]

Thanks Dad!

Just wait 'til you find out where one of your top 10 finished!   

In fact, you and I are only 2 of 7 voters in the countdown to have a song in our top 10 not make the overall top 50.

[TAC]

I know which one didn't make it.

[Tomislav95]

The Longest Shadow of the Day (NR)
Almost made it. I quite like but not nearly my favorite from the album.

Down to the Wire (27)
IMO one of the best showcases of Rays voice, absolute adore him here (on this album in general). It is hard to explain it but this song just has that unique (kinda nostalgic) feeling. It wouldn't be out of the place on Parallels which may even be my all time favorite album.

35 Face the Fear
27 Down to the Wire
20 Don’t Follow Me

[WardySI]

The Longest Shadow Of The Day #30
This was one of a number of LDGN songs that surprised me during the rankings.  Rediscovering this album after having already rated it so highly in 2020 was so good it moved me to finally get it on vinyl which arrived last week \m/

Anyway I can see how this could be considered an attempt at another Light And Shade maybe And Yet It Moves etc, but it manages to have its own identity and think nick_z already described it all pretty well 

Down To The Wire #31
Agree this pairs nicely with Face The Fear sensational stuff!