Your opinion on the new Dream Theater?

NickInMesa · #1 06-23-2009, 09:41 AM

Black Clouds and Silver Linings is out (at least on Rhapsody).

2 songs so far (and of course it feels like 6 or 7) and so far so really good

bl2112 · #2 06-23-2009, 11:04 AM

I think it's great. Nightmare to Remember is amazing as is the Shattered Fortress and A Rite of Passage. Shattered Fortress is a add on to the Root of All Evil. The covers are great. Larks Tongues in Aspic Pt. 2 is the best cover.

NickInMesa · #3 06-23-2009, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bl2112

I think it's great. Nightmare to Remember is amazing as is the Shattered Fortress and A Rite of Passage. Shattered Fortress is a add on to the Root of All Evil. The covers are great. Larks Tongues in Aspic Pt. 2 is the best cover.

I have not listened to the covers yet.

DT should come up with a cover album one of these days.

Queensryche's Take Cover was pretty awesome.

Urban777 · #4 06-23-2009, 11:16 AM

Ahh man, I hate the way they've turned out. Octavarium was the start of their new kinda genre, but personally I much prefer their older stuff, like Scenes From A Memory and Train of Thought.

Still, they are an amazing influence in musical life to keep practicing, if you exclude the annoying singer lol

dmusic148 · #5 06-23-2009, 11:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NickInMesa

DT should come up with a cover album one of these days.

They have, and it's really good. All live too. 'A Change of Seasons.'

bl2112 · #6 06-23-2009, 11:24 AM

There's like 20 verisons of there new album. I got the 3 disc. It's the album, 6 covers and then the ablum without the vocals as all of us can try singing there songs at the next karote night at the local bar...

Grayson C. · #7 06-23-2009, 11:50 AM

Count of tuscany and wither are great. The rest are trash.

Octavarium was my first DT album, I loved it. The title track was something special. But I see now that it was, indeed, a bad turn for dream theater...Systematic Choas was terrible and Black Clouds and Silver Linings is even worse.

Oh well, I'll find a new band to become a fanboy of.

NickInMesa · #8 06-23-2009, 02:03 PM

I think you guys are a bit too severe. Bands evolve, not always for the best (U2), but I don't mind the way they evolve.

And LaBrie is not such a bad singer, dang I wish I played with someone with half that voice.

bl2112 · #9 06-23-2009, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NickInMesa

I think you guys are a bit too severe. Bands evolve, not always for the best (U2), but I don't mind the way they evolve.

And LaBrie is not such a bad singer, dang I wish I played with someone with half that voice.

+1 on about bands evloving

+29835423543956438564384628316831
About having a singer with half that voice

NickInMesa · #10 06-23-2009, 03:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bl2112

There's like 20 verisons of there new album. I got the 3 disc. It's the album, 6 covers and then the ablum without the vocals as all of us can try singing there songs at the next karote night at the local bar...

I just have the Rhapsody edition with 6 originals and 6 covers.

The covers are alright, except the Queen songs, seriously nothing new, nothing different.

The Maiden cover is pretty good and you can tell John Myung had a blast.

BarkerBass · #11 06-23-2009, 03:12 PM

Shattered fortress is a follow on from Glass Prison and several other songs from train of thought and octovarium. I'm guessing it's part of the alcoholic anonymous suit that Mike is writing about his life.

I love the count of tuscany and the rainbow cover is amazing the only song I don't love is rite of passage because i've heard it too mucha dn it remind me a little too much of constant motion which I'm not too keen on.

I think the musician ship is great as per usual and petrucci has some fantastic melodic and classic rock solos but i also think that the extended duelling between petrucci and rudess goes on for a bit too long sometimes.

over all i love it! Dt keep being good. nothing ground breaking tbh but very good non the less.

bassist 4 life · #12 06-24-2009, 03:23 AM

Yup, the shattered fortress is the last episode in Mike Portnoys AA suite. It is made up of the glass prison,this dying soul, the root of all evil, repentance, and the shattered fortress. each song represents a couple of steps in the alcoholics anonymous program.

i really like the album, the best of times and the count of tuscany have that old school vibe. really nice.

bl2112 · #13 06-24-2009, 10:34 AM

I thought soo. I heard Root of all Evil before this dying soul and glass prison. Wonder if they'll play the whole thing live? Who else got there tickets and where you gonna see em?

Count of Tuscany sounds like a Rush tune. And there's a part in there that is extremely close to Far Cry's intro.

BarkerBass · #14 06-24-2009, 10:39 AM

I saw them on the 12th in Leeds, UK so before the album release but they played an amazing set including rite of passage as you'd expect. they played a lot of stuff from awake and train of thought which was really cool (my 2 favourite albums) I think they'll get a lot better as the tour goes on, wish i could see them again.

I remember hearing rumours once that when the AA suite of songs was complete they'd play a gig where it was played from start to finish! I hope they record that gig, it'd be immense and have soooo many epic DT songs.

On a more bass related note I love Myung's tone with his bongo 6, really muscular and powerful in the cover songs, like the tone on awake but still metal enough for the heavier pieces on the album

seeing him play for 3 hours made me a very happy man.

perfektspace6 · #15 06-25-2009, 12:51 PM

I have always been a big fan and bought the new album despite being very disappointed with their last release (Systematic Chaos) and am sad to say Black Clouds isn't much better. Horrible lyrical effort, stale production, and a lot of guitar solo's that add nothing to the songs. When I say horrible lyrics I mean to the point where they ruin the song.

Some of the tracks are simply bewildering. For instance, "The Best of Times", that Portnoy wrote for his deceased father, starts out beautifully and could easily have been extended into a short, moving instrumental piece. Just when I'm getting into it John Petrucci come in with his version of the intro to "The Spirit of Radio" and we are treated to more horrible lyrics that are more on the level of Dr. Seuss than something an intelligent adult puts together.

Same deal with the Count of Tuscany. Very cool instrumental intro and then the singing starts. Not a bad chorus if you cut out the cookie-monster I's but otherwise laughable lyrics. Then we segue into yet another "Xanadu" inspired breakdown complete with windchimes and volume swells for a few minutes. "Wither" is DT's attempt at a modern sounding power ballad but feel forced and lacks a hook.

On the plus side I like "Rite of Passage" quite a bit. The lyrics are bearable and a great chorus. The rest of the album I haven't mentioned fluctuates between a double bass clinic and dueling Keyboard/Guitar solo's that add nothing to the song.

On the bass front: John Myung's Bongo bass tone sounds pretty bad if you ask me and even more disconcerting is his lack of creativity on this album. I think it's just a paycheck for him at this point. Sorry to be bleak but that's the way I see it.

NickInMesa · #16 06-25-2009, 01:09 PM

perfektspace6, I don't mind the lyrics.

Obviously Neil Peart would have written better ones, but they are about fine to me. I believe it's more about how the voice sounds on the mix than really what is being said.

Most rock songs don't make sense anyway...

bl2112 · #17 06-25-2009, 01:16 PM

I understand how Dream Theater Changed with Octavarium to a more heavy sound. But there change isn't much different from Rush at the point of Permenant Waves, Moving Pictures, Signals and Grace Under Pressure. Rush went from a heavy prog band to a less distorted 80's popish songwritting sound.

I like this ablum as a whole better then Systematic Chaos. But there are songs on Systematic Chaos I really like IE Forstaken, In the Presence of Enemies and Constant Motion.

And Portney wrote the lyrics for the Best of Times.