Dream Theater Poll

Swinton MCR wrote: It's fairly obvious to me that Dream Theater, by the general controversy that they seem to provoke, are IMPORTANT and RELEVANT producers of modern Prog/Metal, they seem to be either Loved or Loathed there is no grey area, which suggests a sort of consistency in their style/production.

LOL, I think there IS grey area, and I'm sitting right in it. It's funny...I gave Awake 5 stars and it deserves it, and I think Train of Thought will get a good review from me (4?), and Images and Words will probably get at least 3...but Scenes from a Memory--I'm sorry, but I just lack the patience to sit through it. I'm concerned Six Degrees suffers from the same problem, too, and that's why I won't spend the money to buy it.

How are they while Sherinian is in the band? Do they go as "all-out" as once Rudess joins? Or do they still retain some discipline from the Moore era?

Spartacus wrote: Azrael2112 wrote: I myself voted yes. I enjoy MOST of their output. I own every album, and take the good with the bad. I generally am not a fan of the type of metal that influences their music. It really does seem that you either love or hate them. But to the starter of the topic. Who I know for a fact, does not own any of their albums, cept the first one I believe? (Am I right on this, Chris?) Anyway, I really think that his judgments are being based of a few snippets that he heard many years ago, and a few that I've played for him. If you can't get over the guitar stylings and singing, well it just isnt the music for you. But if you CAN get over that and let it grow on you and actually listen to it, you will hear that alot of their output is really prog, with metal tendacies. Not the other way around. (and no it is not "shred-metal prog")    I have owned When Dream and Day Unite, A Change of Seasons, and Awake, have being the key word.  In college I had a friend who always tried to turn me on to DT, Savatage, and Steve Vai which he called "the maturation of prog."  I tried to understand this brand of prog but I just could not hear any inspiration in the music.  I guess I just like my prog in it's immature stages.  Now I am not completly turned off by this metal subgenre, I do enjoy OSI, Mastermind, and Enchant.

Then you should listen to Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence....Seriously.
And get some Fates Warning, dammit! not the early stuff though...

I myself voted yes. I enjoy MOST of their output. I own every album, and
take the good with the bad. I generally am not a fan of the type of metal
that influences their music.
It really does seem that you either love or hate them. But to the starter of
the topic. Who I know for a fact, does not own any of their albums, cept
the first one I believe? (Am I right on this, Chris?) Anyway, I really think
that his judgments are being based of a few snippets that he heard many
years ago, and a few that I've played for him. If you can't get over the
guitar stylings and singing, well it just isnt the music for you. But if you
CAN get over that and let it grow on you and actually listen to it, you will
hear that alot of their output is really prog, with metal tendacies. Not the
other way around.

(and no it is not "shred-metal prog")   

How do you know he's not 2M tall and weighing in at 120 Kg's ?? and can bench press the combined weight of a Swinton Pubs Darts team*

* - EU weight equivalent (1 Tonne!)

Who cares about Reed, he´s just a wimp 

I've said YES. Yes, maybe the band is a bit overrated, but I really enjoy them listening Metropolis-II (one of my favorite albums of 90s at all!), also 89, 92, 94 albums and 93 and Scenes' concerts. I still never heard their last two stodio albums.

Though their 97 album is a crap to me... Anyway the band is very good!

Edited by Emperor

It's fairly obvious to me that Dream Theater, by the general controversy that they seem to provoke, are IMPORTANT and RELEVANT producers of modern Prog/Metal, they seem to be either Loved or Loathed there is no grey area, which suggests a sort of consistency in their style/production.

Edited by Swinton MCR

richardh wrote: Don't agree.Train Of Thought is a step back towards out and out metal.Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence is about as prog as they will ever get.

Couldn't agree more. But I give ToT more credit, it's a very interesting piece of work. And I also agree that some of their music is cheesy (Another Day, most of Awake, most of Falling into Infinity), but then again, it is enjoyable to me same time.

First, I can't vote in this poll because I REALLY love certain albums, but don't really care for some others. I can't dismiss DT as worthless, by any means. They're rather inconsistent, though.

In my personal opinion, the problem with DT has a name: Jordan Rudess. Where he is, there are problems. Where he is not, there is greatness.

(Although Train of Thought is excellent. Maybe because Rudess' work is minimized?)

arcer wrote: But what the hell is the deal with Metal and Prog? To me they're mutually exclusive - one is clever and inspired by jazz, folk and classical filtered through some R&B, blues and psychedelia, the other bludgeoning, soulless and inspired by speed, volume and other heavy metal/hard rock. Am I alone in thinking this?

Whoa, I think this is absolutely incorrect! I'm sorry, but how much metal have you listened to?

If you think metal can't be clever, you REALLY need to check out bands like Symphony X and Ayreon. One thing you can do with metal is draw out the rhythmic aspects to an incredible degree, and some of the things that can go on (especially with Symphony X) are fascinating. Speed, volume, and heaviness are important aspects, but that does NOT negate intelligence in ANY way. If anything, it makes it all the more demanding if you want to do something intelligent with it--because not only do you have to have a good musical mind, you have to have the technical skill to keep up precisely with what you're thinking of.

And if you think metal can't be genuinely soulful, then I have to ask you again, WHAT on Earth have you been listening to? Have you ever heard albums like Opeth's Still Life, or anything by Ayreon, or The Divine Wings of Tragedy by Symphony X? And I should mention that Dream Theater has some emotional songs even if I don't like every single thing they've done.

Furthermore, what precludes a metal artist from having influences from other genres? They are NOT all knuckle-dragging morons, not by a long shot.

Even some "non-prog" metal can be really cool, interesting, and emotional--even if it doesn't float YOUR boat.

I apologize if you've offended you, but a lot of my favorite bands are prog metal and I really do not like the way you characterized the genre.

Edited by FloydWright

I hate Train Of Thought.