Need help with Symphony X

I think Iconoclast is brutal in a good way, really enjoy waking up to it on my morning commute.  It's audio coffee.  It's the only one I own currently.  

Melomaniac wrote: My favorites are Divine WIngs of Tragedy, V - The Mythology Suite and The Odyssey.  These are albums are more on the PROG side of metal than their latest albums, Paradise Lost and Iconoclast, which I find to be more on the generic side of prog metal.  The three I've mentionned above are more varied, have as much keyboards as guitars on them and showcase some excellent songwriting as well as chops.

There is nothing generic about Paradise Lost or Iconoclast. Those are easily their 2 most advanced, technical sounding albums. Fast and furious with some odd metering here and there. I'd almost classify Iconoclast as tech extreme sometimes. Anyway, I feel using the word 'generic' kind of undercuts those efforts by Mr. X

Another band that you might want to check out is Seventh Wonder.

zeqexes wrote: Cthulhu42 wrote: I guess I seem to be alone here in absolutely loving Iconoclast (especially the title track and "When All is Lost"). But if you didn't like it, you might try their earlier stuff, which is a lot less heavy. The Divine Wings of Tragedy is easily my favourite of those; I'd go with that one. I also love Iconoclast

javajeff wrote: You need to try Pain of Salvation.  I could not get into  Symphony X at all, and I enjoy Dream Theater very much.  However, the first 5 albums from Pain of Salvation are some of the best Progressive Metal you will find anywhere.  Start off with Remedy Lane.  I would buy them in this order:1 Remedy Lane2 The Perfect Element Part 13 Be4 One Hour By The Concrete Lake5 Entropia

Indeed I must do that. I hope I can get them this year. Thanks for you recommendation on their albums and order.

You need to try Pain of Salvation.  I could not get into  Symphony X at all, and I enjoy Dream Theater very much.  However, the first 5 albums from Pain of Salvation are some of the best Progressive Metal you will find anywhere.  Start off with Remedy Lane.  I would buy them in this order:

1 Remedy Lane
2 The Perfect Element Part 1
3 Be
4 One Hour By The Concrete Lake
5 Entropia

Iconoclast is just a collection of B-sides from Paradise Lost ... Which is a brilliant album by the way I'd definitely check it out.

Plus the earlier stuff of course.

Other bands you might want to check out as well in the prog-metal realm : Circus Maximus (toured with Symphony X), Klone (The Dreamer's Hideaway is quite good, but it's quite modern, nothing really like old school Dream Theater or Ayreon)

If you don´t enjoy Iconoclast, I would stop listening to Symphony X. It´s not like their other albums are vastly different in sound and style from that one.

i gave up on symphony x after hearing paradise lost they r not same band anything before that cd defines symphony x to the max

Well, perhaps I'll give it a try to those 3 albums. I'm not really too worried if the whole album isn't great (actually, there's no DT album in which I like all the songs), but with Iconoclast the problem was that I didn't actually like any song. As far as I see it, it's not because it's too heavy, but because there isn't so much going on, and it's not very melodic (for me, heavy and melodic aren't necessarily opposite things). And to think that when I saw Iconoclast on the music store they also had the Odissey one, and I was uncertain for which one to pick... however, when I went to buy it, they didn't have the Odissey anymore. Thanks a lot for your advice. Perhaps I'll try to hear that Odissey song on Youtube.