A WAY TOO EARLY reunion tour setlist fantasy thread

[DTwwbwMP]

ASSuming the band decides to tour before finishing up the recording of the new album (ala 2003 before TOT) and call it a reunion tour, what would a proper setlist look like to you all? Taking into consideration James' live struggles, I think a set (around 2:15m) like this would be pretty awesome for MP' return:

1. Home
2. Metropolis, Pt. 1
3. Misunderstood
4. A Mind Beside Itself
Keyboard solo >
5. Lines in The Sand
6. The Killing Hand
7. Constant Motion
8. Wither
9. In The Name of God
Encore:
10. Octavarium

thoughts?

[bosk1]

First off, I mostly really like your set list, with the exception of Wither (which I don't know why anyone in their right mind would ever want to see played live).  But if I were to critique it:
-Home is not a set opener.  Great song.  But not as an opener.
-If you are taking James struggling into account, Voices, Metropolis, and The Killing Hand are not great choices (great songs in and of themselves though).
-Nobody really wants a keyboard solo.

But that said, I again like the general direction.  And I especially like Octavarium as the closer.  I think Mike really liked playing it.  And as I mentioned elsewhere awhile back, JP sounded pretty enthusiastic about doing it at some point when I mentioned it to him a little while back.  Honestly, if they're going to find space in the set for a longer epic, and the next album doesn't have one, I think Octavarium might be a very likely choice.  And I've been lobbying for ITNOG and Misunderstood to come back for a while now too.

[Pebsie]

1. Overture 1928
2. Strange Deja Vu

These are the perfect songs to open a show and push across the feeling of "WE'RE BACK! DT IS BACK!" It's what MP did on Shattered Fortress and it was extremely effective.

3. Ytsejam
4. Pale Blue Dot

Wild cards here, but Ytsejam carries the "we're so back" spirit and gives WDADU representation on the set which I think is important. And if they're gonna be playing MM songs - which I hope they do - the first they play in the era has to be a statement piece. Pale Blue Dot is an "epic" that doesn't take up a huge amount of the setlist. It's complex and - I believe - a fan favorite. They also played nothing from DOT on the last couple tours so this adds that album back into the mix.

5. 12 Step Suite

I don't really want this, but I think it's inevitable and once it's over and done with I'll be glad they did it as full DT with MP. We're now 90 minutes into the show and this would close the first set.

6. The Best Of Times
7. As I Am
8. Ministry of Lost Souls
9. S2N
10. Octavarium

Encore/11. The Alien

So a little bit haphazard here but these are just songs I think they're likely to play. As I Am is a must and underplayed recently. I think S2N is a fan favorite that hasn't got much love and The Best of Times is one of the few songs that was impossible to play without Portnoy due to its subject matter. Ministry is another emotional and epic song and closing on Octavarium would be incredible for the same reasons given by bosk.

The encore being The Alien is yet another statement piece. "We won a grammy for this song and we can still play it!!" I might add another song into the encore, perhaps PMU. But I think this is a good balanced set with a mix of stuff from the various eras and a bit of a statement.

Both sets together would be around 3 hours.

I'm hoping that we won't see "one setlist" though. I think it unlikely that they'll do what they did before with a changing setlist every single night but I hope we have some rotation. That said, Neal Morse doesn't do that and he did briefly when MP joined for the Momentum tour. Given that Mike also writes the NMB setlists I'd be surprised if he's quite as adventurous with DT as he was before as the NMB sets are pretty tame.

[MirrorMask]

When Mike Mangini was broken in, they did a summer tour with a regular length, they didn't do an evening with.

Assuming that they're gonna do a "Mike is back" selected shows before the new album, here's what I cna imagine:

video intro
OVERTURE 1928
STRANGE DEJA VU straight into...
THE MIRROR (pause after this to say they're back in business, so here we goooah)
PULL ME UNDER
PERUVIAN SKIES
THE YTSE JAM (first break for James)
THE ALIEN
PANIC ATTACK
EROTOMANIA (second break for James)
THE SILENT MAN (easy song before launching to the end)
HOME
AS I AM
THE SPIRIT CARRIES ON (almost forgot about this one but it has to be there for the first tour)
THE COUNT OF TUSCANY
=========== encore
METROPOLIS PT. 1

[IgnotusPerIgnotium]

How about showing some love to Hollow Years..I miss this song live.

[Trav]

How about showing some love to Hollow Years..I miss this song live.

100%

[wasteland]

Pull Me Under
Panic Attack
Take The Time
---
Mike Portnoy Introduction & Nod to MM
---
Ytse Jam (w/ Drum Solo)
Home > The Dance Of Eternity
Vacant
Stream Of Consciousness
The Best Of Times
---
Encore: 12 Step Suite Medley (~20m)
---
Encore 2: Metropolis

[Samsara]

If they are going to tour in 2025, and it's the 40th anniversary of the band, I would expect a lot of early stuff. A lot of song rotation.

Can't wait.

[hefdaddy42]

Encore/11. The Alien

Virtually no chance of this happening.

Not that I don't think they will play The Alien ever again - it's their only Grammy win, I'd be shocked if they didn't continue playing it - but not as an encore.  They aren't going to celebrate MP being back by closing out a show with a Mangini song.  That's just not going to happen.

[devieira73]

The Best of Times is a good bet! A never played live one and a very special song. I think The Glass Prison will be the opener and Home will also be there. And I hope that Octavarium would be the "ressurected" epic of the tour. Maybe: 3 songs rotating and 2 hour and a half hour setlist (an evening with a "lighter" format) and 1 or 2 songs from Mangini era.

[MirrorMask]

(an evening with a "lighter" format)

Some tricks to play a longer show without killing anyone:

- Have two instrumentals, one to close 1/3 of the set, and one to start the 3/3 of the set.

- Have one or two acoustic songs (maybe a piano one and a guitar one) to (just) let MP breathe and the players rest from intricate music in the middle of the set, halfway the two instrumentals.

I think this could be a good balance to let James and the other players have some rest.

[JiM-Xtreme]

Songs I think are likely to come back (in no particular order):

1. As I Am
2. A Nightmare to Remember
3. The Dance of Eternity
4. The Alien (yes, I do think MP is capable of doing this one justice, even if not necessarily replicating MM's part exactly)
5. Constant Motion OR The Dark Eternal Night (both seem likely to me but can't see them including both on the same setlist)
6. Metropolis
7. 6.00 (for the sake of hearing that iconic intro once again being played by its creator!)
8. A Change of Seasons
9. Ytse Jam OR A Fortune In Lies
10. In the Presence of Enemies
11. War Inside My Head/Test
12. Panic Attack
13. Strange Deja Vu OR Beyond This Life

EDIT: 14. HOME (How could I forget??)

Songs I would love to be played (but probably won't):

1. The Glass Prison (too hard)
2. This Dying Soul
3. The Killing Hand (realistically, with reworked vocals, perhaps the Reunite version)
4. In the Name of God (too long)
5. Honor Thy Father

[devieira73]

(an evening with a "lighter" format)

Some tricks to play a longer show without killing anyone:

- Have two instrumentals, one to close 1/3 of the set, and one to start the 3/3 of the set.

- Have one or two acoustic songs (maybe a piano one and a guitar one) to (just) let MP breathe and the players rest from intricate music in the middle of the set, halfway the two instrumentals.

I think this could be a good balance to let James and the other players have some rest.

Surely, let's be realistic here, nobody are that young anymore.
Nowadays, stretching a bit, I can imagine they can rehearse a 3 hour total set and rotate half hour of it, at maximum, making a 2 and a half hours show.

[pg1067]

ASSuming the band decides to tour before finishing up the recording of the new album (ala 2003 before TOT) and call it a reunion tour, what would a proper setlist look like to you all? Taking into consideration James' live struggles, I think a set (around 2:15m) like this would be pretty awesome for MP' return:

1. Home
2. Metropolis, Pt. 1
3. Misunderstood
4. A Mind Beside Itself
Keyboard solo >
5. Lines in The Sand
6. The Killing Hand
7. Constant Motion
8. Wither
9. In The Name of God
Encore:
10. Octavarium

Since LITS without the guest vocals is a pretty good song, I'd say this is an awesome set list (just without the keyboard solo).  Wither is probably #1 on my list of songs I've never seen live.  The biggest problem with this list is that (1) almost every song would require significant re-working of vocal melodies, and (2) it would send a clear (even if unintended) message that 2011-2023 don't matter to DT going forward.

[LKap13]

No way they would do this. Why would they? Lol

[Architeuthis]

No, none of this!  I'd rather they hit the studio and focus on finishing DT16, then tour in support of the new album. Octavarium is probably a no brainer in the setlist being that it will be the 20th anniversary of that alhum.

[gmillerdrake]

Open with the AA Sage/Suite.....then a handful of songs from the new album.....then encore with Octavarium.

[porcacultor]

I don't have the mental energy to imagine a full setlist right now, but... wouldn't it be dreamy if the MM-era nod they included was Surrender to Reason? With live backing vocals by MP ("Love, lead the way...")? Short (compared to other longer tunes) and to the point, special as all hell (never played before), within James' comfortable register, plenty of instrumental breaks...

It's not all that hard to imagine it fitting MP's playing style either! (At least more so than The Alien)

[KevShmev]

Like others have said, what James can sing will largely dictate what gets played, but I think opening with Overture 1928 and Strange Deja Vu would definitely be most awesome.  Bringing back Octavarium on the next full length tour would seem quite fitting as well. 

I think the songs from the Mangini years most likely to get played are Breaking All Illusions and The Alien. 

I can dream for The Glass Prison, Misunderstood and In the Name of God, all of which are long overdue, but I won't hold my breath.

And please no medleys.

[DragonAttack]

I was the first one to offer up 'Overture 1928 / Strange Deja Vu' as an opening track in the 'first song' thread.  Glad to see those affirmed by half a dozen or so here.

I'll post a follow up later on, but, PLEASE,.....  anyone posting The The Twelve Step Suite:  Stop It!  Who in the heck wants to hear more than one of those songs?

(just an opinion.....)

[wasteland]

I'll post a follow up later on, but, PLEASE,.....  anyone posting The The Twelve Step Suite:  Stop It!  Who in the heck wants to hear more than one of those songs?

(just an opinion.....)

That's why I, a notorious medley hater, suggested a 12SS medley as an encore. Let's face it, there are zero chances that the suite is not in some form part of the equation for the next tour. An Octavarium-sized medley, for me, is a preferable solution over dedicating 60+ minutes of the show to it.

[Trav]

Like others have said, what James can sing will largely dictate what gets played, but I think opening with Overture 1928 and Strange Deja Vu would definitely be most awesome.  Bringing back Octavarium on the next full length tour would seem quite fitting as well. 

I think the songs from the Mangini years most likely to get played are Breaking All Illusions and The Alien. 

I can dream for The Glass Prison, Misunderstood and In the Name of God, all of which are long overdue, but I won't hold my breath.

And please no medleys.

I agree 100% with this.

Also, nice to see you back Kev!

[Ben_Jamin]

A Vision

[MirrorMask]

I'll post a follow up later on, but, PLEASE,.....  anyone posting The The Twelve Step Suite:  Stop It!  Who in the heck wants to hear more than one of those songs?

(just an opinion.....)

That's why I, a notorious medley hater, suggested a 12SS medley as an encore. Let's face it, there are zero chances that the suite is not in some form part of the equation for the next tour. An Octavarium-sized medley, for me, is a preferable solution over dedicating 60+ minutes of the show to it.

You know what else would be cool? an Astonishing instrumedley.

All the main themes of the album joined together in a 10-15 minutes medley while James takes a break.

I think it could have been a way to pay homage to that album without having fans sit through actual songs played from such a divisive album.

I know the chances of them doind were already slim, and with Mangini out of the picture, are basically zero. But it could have been a cool idea.

[Buddyhunter1]

You know what else would be cool? an Astonishing instrumedley.

All the main themes of the album joined together in a 10-15 minutes medley while James takes a break.

I think it could have been a way to pay homage to that album without having fans sit through actual songs played from such a divisive album.

This already exists, it's called Dystopian Overture. And it's only 5 minutes!

[MirrorMask]

You know what else would be cool? an Astonishing instrumedley.

All the main themes of the album joined together in a 10-15 minutes medley while James takes a break.

I think it could have been a way to pay homage to that album without having fans sit through actual songs played from such a divisive album.

This already exists, it's called Dystopian Overture. And it's only 5 minutes!

LOL, you got me 

[Schurftkut]

maybe MP can announce a special show where the 2nd set is the suite, film it, and have that one-off be it.

[Dani Helios]

-Nobody really wants a keyboard solo.

Excuse me?

Yours truly,
A keyboardist

[Mosh]

IMO 12 Step Suite and The Best of Times are both inevitable, but I'm not sure it sends the right message to do it on their first tour back together. Devoting 50 minutes of set time to Portnoy songs would make it seem like the Portnoy vanity show and I'm not sure either group wants to leave that impression. It will probably be kinda like how they slowly phased in songs with Portnoy lyrics while Mangini was in the band and waited to touch the more sensitive songs like The Shattered Fortress and A Change of Seasons. Just like in 2011 there's going to be a lot of scrutiny over the politics behind why they are and are not playing certain songs so they are probably going to play it safe with the setlist choices. Octavarium seems like an obvious pick for an encore. After that I assume they're going to probably mostly stick to the best known songs from the Portnoy albums with maybe one Mangini song thrown in just to show they haven't forgotten about that period.

This is what I would expect:
As I Am
Strange Deja Vu
The Mirror
A Rite of Passage
On the Backs of Angels
Peruvian Skies
Ytse Jam with drum solo
Home
Pull Me Under or Metropolis
------------------
Octavarium

[hefdaddy42]

I don't think The Best of Times is inevitable in any way.

[KevShmev]

I was the first one to offer up 'Overture 1928 / Strange Deja Vu' as an opening track in the 'first song' thread.  Glad to see those affirmed by half a dozen or so here.

I'll post a follow up later on, but, PLEASE,.....  anyone posting The The Twelve Step Suite:  Stop It!  Who in the heck wants to hear more than one of those songs?

(just an opinion.....)

Yeah, I don't get that either.  Hopefully, Portnoy got that out of his system when he played that years ago with the Haken guys and Eric Gillette.

[bosk1]

I don't think The Best of Times is inevitable in any way.

Yeah, I actually think it's unlikely.  And I'm not sure the 12SS is "inevitable" either.  I'm sure Mike would be game, but I'm not sure about the rest of the band wanting to do the entire thing.  As a fan, I would love it, especially if they captured it.  But I don't think it is automatic just because MP is back in the band. 

[hefdaddy42]

I don't think The Best of Times is inevitable in any way.

Yeah, I actually think it's unlikely.  And I'm not sure the 12SS is "inevitable" either.  I'm sure Mike would be game, but I'm not sure about the rest of the band wanting to do the entire thing.  As a fan, I would love it, especially if they captured it.  But I don't think it is automatic just because MP is back in the band.

Same, with all of that.

[Mosh]

I guess both incarnations of the band - with and without Portnoy - they have had a "no stone left unturned" kind of approach to setlists. 12SS is more of a stretch to me just because of how much setlist time it eats, but I have a hard time believing that they're never going to play the only pre-Mangini song that appeared on a studio album but was never played live.

[pg1067]

I don't think The Best of Times is inevitable in any way.

Yeah, I actually think it's unlikely.  And I'm not sure the 12SS is "inevitable" either.  I'm sure Mike would be game, but I'm not sure about the rest of the band wanting to do the entire thing.  As a fan, I would love it, especially if they captured it.  But I don't think it is automatic just because MP is back in the band.

From your lips to JP's ears.  The only piece of that I'd have any interest in hearing is TROAE or TSF.  In fact, they could realistically do TSF since it's sort of a summary of the whole thing and something that DT never played live with MP.