So Images And Words went from an album you really dislike to one of the few Dream Theater albums you can listen to front to back without skipping a song. You could say that’s... a dramatic turn of events
Heads up - we are doing a live Twitter/UA-cam listening party with Become The Knight for A Dramatic Turn of Events on August 19 at 6pm EST! twitter.com/dreamtheaternet for more details!
I guess Scenes From A Memory had a huge inpact on me. I remember laying on my bed at night and put on my headphones. And I remembered that there is a band called Dream Theater. I started listening to it. And when the album started and the hypnorherapist started talking I was like: “Nice, some chill music”. I WAS DEAD WRONG. Overture 1928 started playing and I got so excited when I heard it that I immediately learned it next day on guitar. Still one of the best albums ever made, with an amazing storyline.
I really like the track “Home.” It’s incredibly epic. The synth leads during the choruses combined with the chord progression have a sort of menacing vibe that I don’t think they’ve ever re-captured. The post-choruses also have some of the best melodies I’ve ever heard and one of James LaBrie’s best performances. Of course, you can’t help but love the Indian-sounding digressions and the chugging during the verses. It’s such a great sonic palette that they’re working with in that song. It’s all premium ear candy. I also wasn’t prepared for how heart-wrenching “Through Her Eyes” was. Great performances, a sort of obvious Pink Floyd influence that you’ve gotta love, and very vivid lyrics.
From what I can gather Mangini did not have writing credits on this album (Petrucci had already written the drum tracks and Mangini just mimicked the drum parts) his first writing credit was actually on the self titled album. The DT album that had a huge impact on me (and got me into DT) was "Train of thought"
Day 5: Octavarium by Dream Theater After I watched your Q&A video on when a song becomes too long, I decided to look up the song Octavarium and see what the hype was about. At this point, the only 20+ song I ever listened to was Echoes by Pink Floyd and I wasn't all too impressed so I wanted to see if it was really possible to keep my attention for that long. I was blown away while listening to that song. Blown away. Cannot state it enough. The first two things I did as soon as that track ended was google the book "Music Theory For Dummies" and the nearest music schools from my house. The second time I listened to it, I decided to listen to the rest of the album and was impressed my the musicianship and attention to detail in each song. Songs like Panic Attack threw me off guard with its weird time signature changes and the breakdown in Sacrificed Sons helped rekindle my love for piano with Jordan's riffs. Once I got to the title track again, I recognized the motifs and Part 4 carried more weigh with the callbacks to the rest of the songs on that album. To this day, Octavarium remains my favorite song of all time and the song that inspired me to become a musician.
Absolutely love this post. If it were not for Dream Theater, there is no way I would have continued playing guitar for so many years. No other band has consistently kept me interested in music in general. So I totally understand how hearing them inspired you to get started. Octavarium will always be in my short list of favorite songs ever
Day 5: Deadwing by Porcupine Tree This album was one of the first albums I fell in love with. The dark and nostalgic atmosphere of this album. The intro song (title track) throws you into the album and story. Not to mention the bass solo in the "lofi" section. Akerfeldt's solo is also really unique sounding because of its chromatisism. The rest of the album is packed with bangers (of course arriving somewhere but not here), and ends with a beautiful and perfect ending to the album in glass shattered arm. Track highlights include Daedwing, Arriving Somewhere But Not Here, and Mellotron Scratch, although they're all great.
If i was to make a list of like this, every album would be an owed to deadwing. along with anesthetize, deadwing changed my life and view on music and it's still my all time favourite album
I always tell people Arriving Somewhere is a song that is about as close to perfect as you can get. None of the parts overstay its welcome, every line states its purpose and enhances the song, that breakdown gets me incredibly amped up every time, and that outro leaves you satisfied while at the same time leaves you wanting more
Day 5: the sound of perseverance by death. This has to be my favourite death album and probably my favourite album period. The two people who helped me get into the more extreme styles of metal were my cousin (r.i.p. Mick) and my mum's friend who grew up in listening to old school thrash and death metal. He said that death was a must listen to and he gave me a burnt copy of all of their albums. I listened to them in chronological order all in one day. This was death's last album and I originally thought that I would be that bored of listening to this band that I wouldn't give it my full attention. I was sorely mistaken. This album is absolutely astounding with everything being perfect on this album. The guitar, bass and drums all sound stellar and intertwine with one another so well. The songs are so technical but they still have so much life to them. The vocals on this album are my favourite vocals on any death album as I think Chuck is better suited for doing high register shrieks than gutterals. And then voice of the soul came on. You know a song is that impactful when an 11 year old kid immediately sprints downstairs to his mum and asks her for a guitar. This song is just 3 minutes of masterful melody and chemistry. It's perfectly placed in the middle of this album as it serves as a break from the heaviness and brutality. If I could only recommend listening to one song from this album it would no doubt be voice of the soul. And the funny thing is that when I went back to see my mum's friend about death and this album, he said that he hated the sound of perseverance and I about lost it. So yeah, this album is why I have such strong opinions on music.
Dream theater's music in general has been there for me since I first was introduced to them in middle school. As an awkward 12 year old girl suffering through the pain of social isolation, I felt like their music really got me through the so called "hard times" of teenagehood. Currently a sophomore in high school and still absolutely adore almost everything they've put out.
Album 5: Periphery III - Periphery Periphery is if not my favorite then at least in my 3 favorite bands and this album was the gateway drug. A friend had recommended me to check out Periphery, but hadn't specified any single song so I went and listened to their top track on spotify: Marigold. Right from the intro I was hooked. I would listen to this album every day for months. Absolutely wonderful album from start to finish.
Yeah, Images and Words din't really get me into Dream Theater, but the album that did was Metroplis pt. 2. I love the concept of reliving your past life mixed in with a murder mystery. I listened to the album back to back on numerous occasions. One of my favorite albums of all time
Bible Man in my opinion it is the best Dream Theater album. I did not even know about the concept part of the album until less than a month ago. The music on the album is great and the vocals really express emotion that the album was going for. Bible Man I pretty much agree with everything you said
Personally Metropolis Pt 2 didn't really do much for me, so for me it's a high B tier album. I personally prefer the albums from their mid-late career (six degrees, train of thought, octavarium, systematic chaos, self-titled etc.)
Day 5(Day 2 for me): De mysteriies Dom Sathanas - Mayhem Its the first black metal album I ever fell in love with. At that time i didnt know any of the shit that happend during the second wave of black metal, shit back then i didnt know there were "waves" of black metal, i just lisent to it without any knowlage. I fucking fell in love. The bass spoke to me, i fucking loved the way it was writen ( The bass was writen by Necrobutcher, Varg just played it because necro left the band for a short while so dont give Varg any writeing credit). The first spin cemented the title track as my favorite, with freezing moon as a close second. This album cemented black metal, alongside prog, as my favorite genre of music. And yes, my two favorite genres coincidentally have the two of the most toxic elitist grups. And they hate eachother. I fucking love that
Day 5: Tommy by The Who. This album actually means a lot to me on a personal and emotional level. Ever since I was little, I've had both a hearing disability and a learning disability. It took a considerable effect on my level of confidence. I always felt like I was different from everyone else because I wasn't learning the right way. Luckily, as I got older, I went to high school with a (used to be) great arts program. Although I still had self-doubts about my singing talents, I immediately felt like I was a part of the PCCA family. I know this has nothing to do with the album, but I'm getting there. By the time I was in my sophomore year of HS, I was already really getting into The Who. Somebody I knew told me about their iconic Rock Opera "Tommy." Once I finally decided to sit down and listen to the whole album, I was hooked. Everything from Tommy Overture with the Tympani, to 1921, to Christmas, to Amazing Journey, Sparks, Cousin Kevin, Pinball Wizard, and See me feel me, really changed my view of life, and it changed the way I view myself. It made me realize that being normal is very dull. Their music theory is elementary, so there's not that much to analyze in all of the tracks. P.S. Elton John's shoes for Pinball Wizard in the '75 movie were HUGE LOL!!!!!
Day 5: Lateralus - Tool Pretty much blew me away. As a classic prog fan, I was opened up to a whole world of prog metal. Every song on the album was amazing to me
5. Live at Wembley ‘86 - Queen I have a strange relationship with Queen in that their music has been prevalent in my life without me ever knowing. I had heard of Queen before but because I had no interest in music in my young age I didn’t know anything about them. The first time I listened to them was after I was invited to a musical based on queens music and thought I should listen to some before I went. What surprised me was that I already knew 20 or so of their most popular songs without ever knowing it was Queen. After listening to a few songs I obviously realised how amazing Freddie was and after that I was hooked. I’ve gone with a live Queen album because as well as being an amazing frontman Freddie’s command over the crowd adds an layer not present in their studio albums which I think is them at their best.
My 5 of 10 album is weezers blue album. I've probably listened to this album more than any other album. It essentially brought together the punk rock of green day, the catchy vocal melodies of the Beatles, and the lyrics of just bein 4 nerdy friends. Quite possibly my favorite album of all time.
You know, I not only watch these videos to see what awesome albums impacted everyone's life, but I also watch them to learn about some new albums/artists I've never heard of, so thank you Mike for doing this!
This is also my 1st album (and my first love in all DT albums) to listened to. I remember back in college, the time before having this album, I am completely lost and I don't know what music should I get into. Until I started to browse on UA-cam randomly and I saw the lyric video of Another Day by Dream Theater. At first, I was not totally impressed, though the music was good. But I am really intrigued by their band name. So I browsed on Wikipedia to search for DT's catalog, and saw all the album covers. The only album that caught my eyes was ADToE and i don't know, I just really love how it represents the record. So I listened to it, though my first listen was a little bit confusing, because despite of simultaneously doing some stuff, I JUST DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT I JUST HEARD. It didn't clicked to my head yet. So I listened to it again, and doing nothing but trying to understand it.... And yup. IT WAS FREAKIN' AMAZING! I became a fan and ADToE will always be close to my heart :)
People should but it's hard. He was the heart of that band. He always said DT was his baby. So him leaving is like losing a father. No other man can fill the void that a father can.
I didn’t really love A Dramatic Turn of Events at first and I didn’t listen to it a lot when I first got into Dream Theater. But what changed that was seeing your Dream Theater tier list and seeing the live performance of Breaking All Illusions on UA-cam around the same time. That performance was incredible,so I gave it another chance and now it’s in the top half of Dream Theater’s discography for me. Overall it’s just a really good album with some standout moments.
Day 5: Lola vs The Powerman and the Moneygoround, The Kinks. One of the things about the Kinks is that as the music industry chewed up and spit out musicians and young dreamers, society promising material wealth but failing to fill the void... this happens to all bands that start getting their name out, but the difference is the Kinks knew it was happening as it happened and wrote about it. Their music is very educated, knowing full well the pitfalls of just being angry at the system, its essentially about empire, sex, desire, economy and is in now way preachy. The dissonance in the songs lyrics speak louder than the words, it somehow is empty but fills you up, the songs ring true for all people, the tunes march on, almost happily as we all know where the story will go and we all know the feelings of bitterness and nostalgia even as the events that shape us are happening. This and other albums from that time of Kinks, makes them one of the greatest bands, in my opinion. If the Beatles were high-art that we should aspire to, that reminds us of the good in the world, the Kinks are the reality of who we can't help but be.
5: A Show of Hands- Rush Not moving pictures or 2112, nor Hemispheres. It was this live album the got me into this amazing band. Rush might be my all time favorite band, and I have this album to thank for being introduced to them
Day 5 Album 5: Black Sabbath - Paranoid. Omg this album though! Aside from being a badass metal classic Paranoid’s title track was one of the first songs I ever learned on drums and the album as a whole is one of my favorite metal albums. I’ve loved this album since I was 12 and it’s just a no brainer in my eyes. Highlights: War Pigs- Easily the best album opener. Some of Bill Wards best drumming. Paranoid: as I said before the first song I learned so duh lol. Planet Caravan: In my eyes, a vastly underrated song of theirs. Very smooth and psychedelic yet very relaxing to me. And finally Iron Man: Easily their most recognized song that ends with a badass flurry of solos from Tony Iommi.
Day 5 is Steve Vai - Sex & Religion for me. In a way, it was a gateway into instrumental music for me, even though most of the album is not instrumental tracks lol. Up until this album, most instrumental tracks seemed like kind of just an afterthought to me. I gave quite a lot of weight to lyrics and it was very rare for a fully instrumental track to really grab me. But man, I was impressed by how much cheese Steve Vai managed to put into Touching Tongues without a single word lmao (though I guess you could argue it's not fully instrumental either lol). Either way, it helped me pay a lot more attention and appreciate the instrumental parts in a song, whether it is fully instrumental or not. Also, it was my first introduction to Devin Townsend and the title track is one of my favorite songs to this day. It just never fails to put a smile on my face.
Jill Scott-Words and Sounds Vol. 1 This record was my introduction to the wonderful songwriter that is Jill Scott, an artist I will always listen to and never gets old for me. She's able to make people feel what she feels in a way that's extremely powerful and helps me see life through a completely different lens than my own. Plus, my first real band covered A Long Walk, the live VH1 version, and it's so funky and intense and fantastic that everyone here should check it out. Love this woman and this record.
Day 5: Aim and Ignite by Fun is pop rock mixed with a full big band, they hired the whole band, horns, strings, winds etc. And the simple yet effective compositions are incredibly nostalgic
album as a whole, a dramatic turn of events is definitely the best DT album imo but song for song, only bridge in the sky is in my top 5 list of DT songs which goes something like this: 1. change of seasons 2. octavarium 3. pull me under 4. bridges in the sky 5. panic attack
I now have a new appreciation for this album even thought I loved it already. The wicked unison just after the the beginning is the high point for me. Thanks, bro!!
4. IGOR by tyler, the creator feels weird to post about this album in the comment section of this channel lol. i had listened to very little rap music in depth before this and im so glad i gave this a try. it's loosely a concept album about a breakup but the way it's presented is so grand and emotional. this album is just so fun and groovy and some of the hooks on this thing go so hard. youve got really angry instrumentals like on NEW MAGIC WAND and then really heartfelt moments like on RUNNING OUT OF TIME. this is a 10 / 10 and tyler is a genius. love it.
Day 5: Jar of Flies by Alice In Chains. Before I listened to this EP(I know this might be cheating but it influenced me) I was not the biggest fan of acoustic based songs. I needed fast rhythms in order to enjoy music. But after listening to this EP, I became obsessed with the acoustic guitar. This album was like ear candy upon my first listen, and I still love these songs to this day. Track highlights: Rotten Apple, Nutshell, I Stay Away.
*Who Cares* - GODDO (favorite song off of the album, I guess *"Tough Times / Cock On"* or *"Sweet Thing"* but this is one of my top 5 fave albums, so I love every song)
Ever since you talked about Blackwater Park yesterday I've started listening to Opeth and they are starting to become one of my favorite bands so thank you for shedding some well needed light on them for me
5. Dream theater- Octavarium: This was the first full dream Theater album I heard back in 2018 or 2019. I love this album thus album introduced me into Prog Metal properly I had listened to some Prog metal b4 but didn’t listen to it a whole bunch but this album properly got me into Prog metal. I love Jordan and John’s solos on this they are so epic. Highlights: These Walls, I Walk Beside You, Panic Attack, Octavarium. Panic Attack was the first dream Theater song I heard where I properly listened to it and truly enjoyed it. I actually discovered Panic Attack well before I properly took the time to listen to this album.
Day 5: Streetcleaner by Godflesh. The first metal album I thoroughly enjoyed, Streetcleaner sounds like you are being punished. The drum machine pummels you as the bass thumps along. Justin Brodrick's guitar is screeching with dissonance as he shouts the lyrics at you. A masterpiece of torture through music.
Day 5: Red - End of Silence I remember listening to this in the car with a buddy of mine years ago and it blew me away at the time. Think Linkin Park or Breaking Benjamin style riffs and vocals with stringed instruments. This was the first album I listened to that made me realize that classical music goes really well with hard rock and heavy metal (I would later discover that symphonic metal is thing 😅). While I wouldn't call this symphonic metal per se, it expanded my music tastes and increased my desire to seek out more music like this. I've heard people in some circles say that this album hasn't aged well production wise. It's been a while since I've gone back and listened to it so I can't really say. But I just had to shout out this one! Also, my favorite Dream Theater album is Metropolis Pt. 2
*Disclaimer*: I got confused between The Dark Side Of The Moon and this one, so this should have been on Day 2, or spot 8, but whatever. Day 5: Thank you scientist - Maps of Non-Existing Places: Well, you know them, you love them. This was my first proper introduction to a prog band and it’s all thanks to Mike and the crew of SSF (thank you guys, I love you). With all the over complex funky rhythms, I fell in love and the fun attitude of the band in general is just beautiful. Tom Monda has became one of my favourite guitarist of all time, and if I get to shred (which I will do one day), I want to do it like him. The dynamics between all the members is incredible. Until that day I could only dream of having 7 different genres in one song! Highlights: A Salesman's Guide to Non-Existence (🐟) Feed the Horses (that chorus is too catchy) My Famed Disappearing Act (The tapping intro is one of my favourite) Suspicious Waveforms PD: I hate to say it, but Sal’s voice is too perfect and can get a bit tiring, though he has an incredible voice and can sing fantastic every time .
Album 5 Metropolis: Pt 2, Scenes From a Memory The way I've been giving my journey through music to develop my taste has coincidentally matched up with your Dream Theater video lol. I was kind of like you (to a lesser extent) with my opinion of Images and Words. I listened to it, and it was...fine. I knew I liked some of the songs (mostly just Metropolis pt 1) but some of the others were just really boring to my uncultured mind. But after my friend and I trying to learn the instrumental section in Metropolis 1, I decided I wanted to dive deeper into the band's discography. I thought, "I like Metropolis 1, so why not listen to part 2?" And that's exactly what I did. The opening of the album really hooked me, I expected something more thrashy (the only real metal I listened to before Dream Theater was Metallica), so the quiet "Regression" really caught me off guard and peaked my interest. I was invested by Overture 1928 and fell in love with the album by Fatal Tragedy. After finishing it, I looked up the story and listened to the album over and over again for a good few weeks. Scenes From a Memory remains my favorite Dream Theater album to this day. It helps that I'm a real sucker for concept albums or else A Dramatic Turn Of Events might overtake it lol Now, everything you said about ADTOE is absolutely true. It's really Dream Theater's most underrated album, and it has some of the band's best material on it. I actually started geeking out when you were talking about Bridges in the Sky. MAN that song has so much going for it. Heavy riffage, catchy melodies, face-melting solos, it's so good!
Day 5 Album 5: "Superunknown" by Soundgarden. Not only is this my favorite Soundgarden album, it may be my favorite album of all time. I have a very close attachment to this band and album since they were actually the first band I ever saw live, along with Dillinger Escape Plan and Nine Inch Nails. This album hosts some of the best songs of the 90s, and it's also one of the best produced albums from the grunge era. I never skip a track when I put it on. Highlights: Let Me Drown (one of my favorite opening tracks, and has one of Chris' best screams) Fell on Black Days (one of their best slow jams) Superunknown (one of my personal favorites) Head Down (easily their most underrated track) Black Hole Sun (for obvious reasons) The Day I Tried to Live (one of my favorite bass lines ever)
It's not my favorite album, but it's definitely one that I like every song. All the other ones have a song I don't really care about, but I like every single one in this. Also, singing This is the Life on the shower is the best thing ever.
Day 5: Dream Theater - Images and Words I cannot begin to describe how much I love this album and this band, it's probably my favourite album ever and it contains my fav song ever: Learning to Live. This album changed the way I looked at music as a whole; the originality, the drumming, the bass, those fat keyboard sections that feels like it's taking you to another place, James' voice was back then amazing. And last, this album is to me one of the best albums of all time, not just into the prog world, I mean ever; this albums had some kind of magic, something I can't describe that even DT themselves couldn't recreate on Awake, idk what it is but this album has that magic, that touch that makes it special. So yeah, Images and Words is simply perfect for me, I think I won't listen to another album like this in my life. Fun fact: the first song I heard about this album was Metropolis and I couldn't like it less. So curious how things can change over time. Highlights: every single song, but I'll say Metropolis, Surrounded and Learning to Live.
This album is my favorite from dream theater as well. Such an underated beautiful album with songs that mean more to me than I could ever explain. Like you said... I still get goosbumps now and then when I hear some of the songs. Last I want to say thank you for speaking about this album and bringing it to light.
Day 5: Sodom - Tapping The Vein This album is probably the one that helped me the most transition into more extreme metal, death, black, etc. It’s thrash turned up a notch, thrash death album some might even say. It’s the part one of albums that made me like growls, even if Angelripper doesn’t technically growl. But it also made me like blast beats, brutal metal, death metal, & more. Never again did I say “I like the instrumentation but I don’t like the vocals” Previous days: Day 1: Dark Side Of The Moon (Pink Floyd) Day 2: Ride The Lightning (Metallica) Day 3: Selling England By The Pound (Genesis) Day 4: Absolution (Muse)
Day 5: Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen. I know Mike doesn't really care about lyrics, but I do. Jungleland is simply breathtaking. I have amazing memories of sitting next to my record playing and crying through the ending of Jungleland. I love Bruce's work, and this album was my first hardcore time listening to him. He inspired me to start songwriting (however shitty at it I may be)
Beneath the surface and Along for the Ride has probably my favorite Rudess solos. The melody and emotion in those solos are top notch, definitely some of my favorite keyboard solos out there.
Day 5 Album: Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack Videogame music doesn’t get enough love and this was the first soundtrack I truly fell in love. Not only does every musical piece serve as an excellent way to drive home certain themes, messages and further emphasis moments of the game, but also are excellent musical pieces on there own. I implore anybody who isn’t familiar with the soundtrack to please check it out as it is truly a masterpiece in videogame music and one of the reasons y Chrono Trigger is one of my favourite games. Also be sure to check out the Nier Automata soundtrack as that is amazing as well
Day 5: Gentle Giant selftitled: First album by gentle giant is a great prog album from the 70s. I get a King Crimson sort of vibe from listening to it but it still sounds very unique and sort of medieval. The keyboards are great on this album and on every other album by them and a very much like the vocal delivery and lyrics on this album. Highlights: "Giant" is the first song of the album and a great start probably the heaviest song on this album great keyboards and a jazzy feel. "Alucard" has the most king crimson vibe on this album it's a great jazzy and psychedelic song with great vocals. "Isn't it quiet and cold" is a chill song with a nice melody and medieval feeling.
Six degrees of inner turbulence is my all time favorite album, hands down. For me it just captures every single aspect that makes DT my favorite band, and frankly every single aspect I appreciate about music in general. It's heavy and dark, extremely melancholy at times, it's highly technical and virtuosic yet catchy as all hell, so symphonic and grandiose, features the band's best lyrics to date and the most creative contributions from each member.
Album Five: "Human After All" by Daft Punk. I first heard of Daft Punk in the late 00's due to the Daft Hand's videos that were floating around UA-cam at the time, and I thought it was a pretty cool gimmick when I was young. Kinda forgot about them for two years until I just randomly started listening to "Television Rules the Nation" and "Harder Better Faster Stronger" on UA-cam while playing pool, and soon I created a playlist on with all their music at that time. Although I listened to practially all of their stuff (this is pre-RAM), I mostly gravitated towards the material on the "Human After All" album, developing an interest and love for the music that the robots made. I found it fascinating about the whole sonisphere surrounding sampling, it was a concept I was completely unfamiliar with. I would watch comparison videos on various websites showing what tracks they used, and on their second album "Discovery" seeing how they constructed one song with five or more tracks from the 70's was just insane to me at that age. I just loved this idea of creating music on the computer and giving it a somewhat futuristic feel with a form of "traditional" familiarity. "Human After All" had this really uniqe raw edge to it, something just grimy and dirty and I loved it. Just listening to "Brainwasher" or "Technologic" still raises hairs on my arms. While I think their best album is "Alive 2007", and probably on of the best live albums ever made, "Human After All" just holds a special place in my heart, and Daft Punk have remained easily in my top musical influences since the day I started listening to them. They mean so much to me.
Day 5: Soundtracks for the Blind by Swans Oh Swans, one of the most challenging bands to listen to. From their earlier no wave/noise rock days to their current over 2 hour long post-rock albums, Swans are always challenging their audience no matter what incarnation of the band you're listening to. I remember listening to To Be Kind after many people, including Anthony Fantano, praised the album. Since I haven't listened to anything by Swans prior, I was definitely left feeling puzzled. But it wasn't till about a year later where I went back in the bands career and listened to the album they made before they split up, Soundtracks for the Blind. I made time to listen to it, which you really had to, because it's over 2 hours long, and that's when it clicked, I think I really like this album. So I listened to it again, and again, and again, and I started listening to some of Swans' other albums, and ended up liking them. I even went back to To Be Kind, and I suddenly became one of the people who praised the album. It took a long time to get into Swans, but one thing I will say is that getting into Swans was one of the most rewarding feeling I've felt while discovering music, and I have to thank Soundtracks for the Blind for that. It's one of the most cinematic albums I've listened to, and despite it's length, it's very cohesive. Currently, my favorite album of all time.
My favorite DT album is Octavarium, my opinion about ADToE is that this is an awesome album, however not rated correctly by people who couldn't accept that it was the correct time do Portnoy depart and Mangini to come, this fresh air was something that they needed to basically keep on being a healthy and strong band
Day 5: Ramones - Ramones. The music is boiled down to it’s essentials, but the Ramones still have a twisted take on pop culture with their lyrics. I love it to bits.
Day 5 album : "above the weeping world" - insomnium God , this album is just so good. The definition of what melodeath should sound like - raw , emotional , powerful yet can still be quit somber and melodic. And the production sound is just perfect , sounds clear yet raw enough . And all the lyrics are a work of art. Fav songs : in the groves of death , last statement , mortal share and drawn to black.
day 5: Satan in the wait by daughters. some of the most bone chilling sounds and easily one of the best every hard rock albums ever made. the vocals are yelping but striking, and the lyrics terrify lots of people. not like it matters to you but this album and this song in particular are one of my favorite albums ever so take it from me I guess
Funny thing is i didn't like A Dramatic Turn of Events for a long time, but after time passed and i saw your videos about Dream Theater i actually gave it another chance and now it happens to be one of my favorite albums... so thank you for that. Scenes From a Memory is my personal favorite DT album and considering how much it changed my view on music i think it's my favorite album of all time.
Day 5 U.F.O - Strangers in the night (live album) although I'm not a great hard rock fan I really like this Great live sound, killer solos by Michael schenker, my favorite song is Lights out, some other highlights: Rock bottom, love to love, natural thing,shoot shoot
Every time I see this album I'm immediately brought back to seeing Breaking All Illusions live. I didnt get this album totally when I first heard it, but it's got so much meat to it.
Day 5: Fortress-Alter Bridge. My best friend used to pick me up and drive us to school every morning in high school. I had moved away from rock music and mostly listened to rap of the early 2010s. He put in a CD and just let it play for our 10 minute ride. The info of Cry of Achilles came on and I have never fell in love with a song that quickly. Later that night I listened to the whole album on UA-cam and this hit my top 10 all time favorite albums. I then studied the rest of the discography and realized that I have heard their songs before but just never realized it. Alter Bridge is one of the best rock bands of the past 30 years. Everyone needs to listen to them
Day 5: Madvillainy by Madvillain One of the greatest rap albums of all time. Madlib's beat are insanely well-produced, and MF DOOM's lyricism is some of the best I've ever heard. This is undoubtedly a classic.
Waterdeep - Live At The New Earth. This album takes me back to when I was like 2 years old. This album is what made me fall in love with rock music, and I’m pretty sure the first song on this album, “Scared”, introduced me to rock music. Ever since then, it’s been one of my favorite albums of all time.
Mate as you’ll probably agree, once you delve into the DT rabbit hole no other band scratches as many itches, music for the mind heart n soul. Great review I adore DTOE a flawless album. I think Bridges in the sky helped me turn around some depression i was falling into, it showed me the light and the beauty in light especially with This is the life before , Bridges in the sky and the whole Album mean the world to me.
I love Dramatic Turn of Events. Scenes From A Memory is #1 for me. I really love them all but Train of Thought stands out for it's heaviness and Black Clouds & Silver Linings is way too good to leave out. Octavarium and SDoIT are masterpieces and FII has a special place in my heart for personal reasons. DT forever. Peace.
My favorite is Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, I listen to it all the time and it just captures my attention both musically and lyrically with its focus on mental struggles. I just love the album so much!
Great choice sir. By far DT's most underrated album. I completely agree that Lost Not Forgotten is also one of their most underrated songs. One of my favourites of all time.
Day 5 Album 5: “Enter the Wu-tang (36 chambers)” by Wu-tang Clan! Being apart of gen-z, and having been constantly bombarded with shitty mumble rap every time I turned on the radio, this is what showed me the beauty of rap/hip hop! It has amazing flows from every Wu-tang member, beautifully used blues/jazz samples, and top-notch lyricism! Track Highlights: Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber -Excellent flow from all members on the track after an awesome intro. Da Mystery of Chessboxin’ -Some the most-memorable transitions between members. C.R.E.A.M. -An excellent message, that’s essentially the opposite of many modern mainstream hip-hop with one of the best used samples! Protect Ya Neck -One of the greatest verses (the intro) in all of hip-hop (that I have listened to...).
Love tha fact that at the beginning of on the backs of angels the kid sounds like "scooby-dooby-doo" That album is close to me heart for the same reason. That was the first thing I've heard from DT, and the effect was completely the same as yours. Since then if I had to make a list of my favorite DT albums, it'd be only on the 6th place. But without it probably I would never fall in love with DT.
#5, Townes Van Zant, The Best Of (2002) Now, there's a story here before I say why this album. I grew up in a household where the only thing that was played, near 24/7, was country radio. For 16 years, that's all that music was, and by 16, I had learned to dislike it very much and tune it out. One of my teachers, who was also a very good friend, lent me an album of this guy Townes after learning of my distaste for country, saying to try it out. I trusted him, and so I did, and found myself rather enjoying the genre for the first time. It helped me branch out at a time where I was of the mindset that only rock and metal was good. Yes, I was one of those types. I started looking into other genres as a result, and finding all kinds of acts that I love that I otherwise would've never come across. So, this album really changed things for me, and I still love Townes' music (and still talk to that teacher even though I graduated).
theres something special about mike gushing over dream theater :D i realise our initial reactions to the band are very similar, maybe one day ill be all over it too :P
Day 5: Stranger Heads Prevail by Thank You Scientist. This sparked a real love of modern music. Caverns gives a rush of talent, Prologue is just fun as an opening, and Psychopump does a blend of styles in a beautiful way. It helped me discuss music and find other stuff to like.
Day 5: Dream Theater - Images And Words One day, I happened to have an extra buck in my iTunes and was looking for a one-off song to spend it on. Now, I happened to remember the Pull Me Under is on Guitar Hero World Tour and was one of the songs I struggled to get through. I also remember being floored at the shear length of the intro. Anyway, I pull up the album on UA-cam and somehow end up listening to the whole thing. Keep in mind, I still had no knowledge of Prog at this point, so hearing Metropolis Part 1 FLOORED me. The keyboard/guitar harmony is still one of my favorite parts of any song, even if the album isn’t my favorite by them. That singular moment is what made me a Dream Theater fan and a Prog fan.
Might have to agree on this being their best album. My 10 'biggest impact' albums are Dream Police, Piece Of Mind, Shout At The Devil, Tooth & Nail, Spreading The Disease, Master Of Puppets, Peace Sells, Operation: Mindcrime, Images & Words, & Synchestra. These are impactful because they all helped form my musical tastes from 1980 until 2010... all these were my introductions to these bands/artists.
Day 5 AC/DC - Back In Black This band is a testament that you don't need to change your sound to be awesome at what you do. Arguably the best Hard Rock guitarist and band of the 70s and 80s. They blend the blues with a hard rock style that you can not get up and air guitar to. It's just a solid album that I never skip a track on. Say what you will this band has stood the test of time when so many collapsed. We have to shout out the Young brothers one was a master at lead solos and the other a craftsmen at holding down a rhythm. RIP Malcom young. Sadly it is the one band I have never seen live and I kinda regret it a bit. I can not really pick fave songs because the whole album rocks but Hells Bells and Back in Black.
Dramatic turn of events is in my top 5 dt albums, but maybe you didn't notice that on the backs of angels isn't the only song of the album with a similar structure to a I&W song, in fact: On the backs of angels - Pull me under This is the life - another day Lost not forgotten - under a glass moon Far from heaven - wait for sleep Breaking all illusions - learning to live(these two songs also share a similar reprise of the precedent ballad)
Day 5: Metropolis Part 2 Scenes From a Memory. This album is my favorite DT album by far. This album made me realize how far music can go. I actually only heard this album for the first time last year because I was just getting into DT at the time (thanks to yourchannel btw), and I listened to it a week before I was going to see them live. Long story short I fell in love with this band and had hear the rest of their discography, and after hearing Black Clouds & Silver Linings they were catapulted to being my favorite band of all time. So yeah big thank you to you Mike for introducing me to this band. I hope to meet you one day in person so I can properly thank you by buying you a drink.
This album is simply incredible. Imo this is one of Petrucci's best albums for sure. And I completely agree Lost not Forgotten is insane, it's so good and criminally underrated.
Day 5 album: As Embers Turn to Dust by Mechina. You've got really fantastical and cheesy power metal albums that take you to different fantasy worlds, but this one (album 6, the first one I stumbled across), takes you to a completely different star system with the survivors of Earth (short synopsis on that, two major world governments warred over resources and the one that was on the losing end initiated a scorched earth policy that led to full-scale nuclear war that left the planet barren and lifeless in the end). The story actually starts in album 2 and is still ongoing, with each album adding a little bit more, but album 6 covers the discovery and settlement of their new home planets and starts to explore their differences in philosophy that would inevitably lead to them repeating the same mistakes that saw Earth destroyed in the first place. This is also a more recent discovery of mine, from within the past.... 2 years? I think thats about right, at least. Anyway, I love it
So Images And Words went from an album you really dislike to one of the few Dream Theater albums you can listen to front to back without skipping a song. You could say that’s... a dramatic turn of events
Heads up - we are doing a live Twitter/UA-cam listening party with Become The Knight for A Dramatic Turn of Events on August 19 at 6pm EST! twitter.com/dreamtheaternet for more details!
Hello Dream Theater
Hello Dream Theater
they actuaIIy commented here thats funny
My favorite song on this album is Breaking All Illusions.
10000% agree
I think the album has a lot of great songs on it, it’s not my favorite on the album but it’s a great song
One of their best songs
Mine too, even though it totally ripps off Learning to Live...
Don't get me wrong, it's still one of my... Like... Top 15 Dream Theater songs
@@marius9372 how? it really doesent in my opinion
I guess Scenes From A Memory had a huge inpact on me. I remember laying on my bed at night and put on my headphones. And I remembered that there is a band called Dream Theater. I started listening to it. And when the album started and the hypnorherapist started talking I was like: “Nice, some chill music”. I WAS DEAD WRONG. Overture 1928 started playing and I got so excited when I heard it that I immediately learned it next day on guitar. Still one of the best albums ever made, with an amazing storyline.
That's my all time favourite album. The production is gorgeous too, and I think Finally Free is one of the most perfect songs I've ever listened to.
Ó hali!
I really like the track “Home.” It’s incredibly epic. The synth leads during the choruses combined with the chord progression have a sort of menacing vibe that I don’t think they’ve ever re-captured. The post-choruses also have some of the best melodies I’ve ever heard and one of James LaBrie’s best performances. Of course, you can’t help but love the Indian-sounding digressions and the chugging during the verses. It’s such a great sonic palette that they’re working with in that song. It’s all premium ear candy.
I also wasn’t prepared for how heart-wrenching “Through Her Eyes” was. Great performances, a sort of obvious Pink Floyd influence that you’ve gotta love, and very vivid lyrics.
The solo in Breaking All Illusions is absolutely fucking stunning. And Beneath the Surface makes me cry like the little bitch I am.
Yenneffer Christ I know what you mean. I’m not crying, you’re crying
This is the life gets me going 😭
Images and Words is definitely my favorite Dream Theater record. It was the first one I ever bought and it was the one that got me into the band.
From what I can gather Mangini did not have writing credits on this album (Petrucci had already written the drum tracks and Mangini just mimicked the drum parts) his first writing credit was actually on the self titled album. The DT album that had a huge impact on me (and got me into DT) was "Train of thought"
Day 5: Octavarium by Dream Theater
After I watched your Q&A video on when a song becomes too long, I decided to look up the song Octavarium and see what the hype was about. At this point, the only 20+ song I ever listened to was Echoes by Pink Floyd and I wasn't all too impressed so I wanted to see if it was really possible to keep my attention for that long. I was blown away while listening to that song. Blown away. Cannot state it enough. The first two things I did as soon as that track ended was google the book "Music Theory For Dummies" and the nearest music schools from my house. The second time I listened to it, I decided to listen to the rest of the album and was impressed my the musicianship and attention to detail in each song. Songs like Panic Attack threw me off guard with its weird time signature changes and the breakdown in Sacrificed Sons helped rekindle my love for piano with Jordan's riffs. Once I got to the title track again, I recognized the motifs and Part 4 carried more weigh with the callbacks to the rest of the songs on that album. To this day, Octavarium remains my favorite song of all time and the song that inspired me to become a musician.
Absolutely love this post. If it were not for Dream Theater, there is no way I would have continued playing guitar for so many years. No other band has consistently kept me interested in music in general. So I totally understand how hearing them inspired you to get started. Octavarium will always be in my short list of favorite songs ever
Day 5: Deadwing by Porcupine Tree
This album was one of the first albums I fell in love with. The dark and nostalgic atmosphere of this album. The intro song (title track) throws you into the album and story. Not to mention the bass solo in the "lofi" section. Akerfeldt's solo is also really unique sounding because of its chromatisism. The rest of the album is packed with bangers (of course arriving somewhere but not here), and ends with a beautiful and perfect ending to the album in glass shattered arm. Track highlights include Daedwing, Arriving Somewhere But Not Here, and Mellotron Scratch, although they're all great.
I love this record, I can't decide whether I like it more than Fear of a Blank Planet though
If i was to make a list of like this, every album would be an owed to deadwing. along with anesthetize, deadwing changed my life and view on music and it's still my all time favourite album
Such a fantastic record - probably my favourite porcupine tree album
I always tell people Arriving Somewhere is a song that is about as close to perfect as you can get. None of the parts overstay its welcome, every line states its purpose and enhances the song, that breakdown gets me incredibly amped up every time, and that outro leaves you satisfied while at the same time leaves you wanting more
listened to this record for the first time after I saw this, good stuff!!
Good morning dad. Im here early, hope ur proud😊 Thanks for this awesome series. Makes the quarantine go by smoothly
Day 5: the sound of perseverance by death. This has to be my favourite death album and probably my favourite album period. The two people who helped me get into the more extreme styles of metal were my cousin (r.i.p. Mick) and my mum's friend who grew up in listening to old school thrash and death metal. He said that death was a must listen to and he gave me a burnt copy of all of their albums. I listened to them in chronological order all in one day. This was death's last album and I originally thought that I would be that bored of listening to this band that I wouldn't give it my full attention. I was sorely mistaken. This album is absolutely astounding with everything being perfect on this album. The guitar, bass and drums all sound stellar and intertwine with one another so well. The songs are so technical but they still have so much life to them. The vocals on this album are my favourite vocals on any death album as I think Chuck is better suited for doing high register shrieks than gutterals. And then voice of the soul came on. You know a song is that impactful when an 11 year old kid immediately sprints downstairs to his mum and asks her for a guitar. This song is just 3 minutes of masterful melody and chemistry. It's perfectly placed in the middle of this album as it serves as a break from the heaviness and brutality. If I could only recommend listening to one song from this album it would no doubt be voice of the soul. And the funny thing is that when I went back to see my mum's friend about death and this album, he said that he hated the sound of perseverance and I about lost it. So yeah, this album is why I have such strong opinions on music.
Yeah sound of perseverance is my favourite death album as well
Dream theater's music in general has been there for me since I first was introduced to them in middle school. As an awkward 12 year old girl suffering through the pain of social isolation, I felt like their music really got me through the so called "hard times" of teenagehood. Currently a sophomore in high school and still absolutely adore almost everything they've put out.
Album 5: Periphery III - Periphery
Periphery is if not my favorite then at least in my 3 favorite bands and this album was the gateway drug. A friend had recommended me to check out Periphery, but hadn't specified any single song so I went and listened to their top track on spotify: Marigold. Right from the intro I was hooked. I would listen to this album every day for months. Absolutely wonderful album from start to finish.
Yeah, Images and Words din't really get me into Dream Theater, but the album that did was Metroplis pt. 2. I love the concept of reliving your past life mixed in with a murder mystery. I listened to the album back to back on numerous occasions. One of my favorite albums of all time
Bible Man in my opinion it is the best Dream Theater album. I did not even know about the concept part of the album until less than a month ago. The music on the album is great and the vocals really express emotion that the album was going for. Bible Man I pretty much agree with everything you said
Personally Metropolis Pt 2 didn't really do much for me, so for me it's a high B tier album. I personally prefer the albums from their mid-late career (six degrees, train of thought, octavarium, systematic chaos, self-titled etc.)
@@anthonymitreski5232 Metroplis Pt. 2 is what got me into Dream Theater. I agree I love their later albums especially Train of Thought and Octavarium
Day 5(Day 2 for me): De mysteriies Dom Sathanas - Mayhem
Its the first black metal album I ever fell in love with. At that time i didnt know any of the shit that happend during the second wave of black metal, shit back then i didnt know there were "waves" of black metal, i just lisent to it without any knowlage. I fucking fell in love. The bass spoke to me, i fucking loved the way it was writen ( The bass was writen by Necrobutcher, Varg just played it because necro left the band for a short while so dont give Varg any writeing credit). The first spin cemented the title track as my favorite, with freezing moon as a close second. This album cemented black metal, alongside prog, as my favorite genre of music.
And yes, my two favorite genres coincidentally have the two of the most toxic elitist grups. And they hate eachother. I fucking love that
Day 5: Tommy by The Who. This album actually means a lot to me on a personal and emotional level. Ever since I was little, I've had both a hearing disability and a learning disability. It took a considerable effect on my level of confidence. I always felt like I was different from everyone else because I wasn't learning the right way. Luckily, as I got older, I went to high school with a (used to be) great arts program. Although I still had self-doubts about my singing talents, I immediately felt like I was a part of the PCCA family. I know this has nothing to do with the album, but I'm getting there.
By the time I was in my sophomore year of HS, I was already really getting into The Who. Somebody I knew told me about their iconic Rock Opera "Tommy." Once I finally decided to sit down and listen to the whole album, I was hooked. Everything from Tommy Overture with the Tympani, to 1921, to Christmas, to Amazing Journey, Sparks, Cousin Kevin, Pinball Wizard, and See me feel me, really changed my view of life, and it changed the way I view myself. It made me realize that being normal is very dull. Their music theory is elementary, so there's not that much to analyze in all of the tracks.
P.S. Elton John's shoes for Pinball Wizard in the '75 movie were HUGE LOL!!!!!
Day 5: Lateralus - Tool
Pretty much blew me away. As a classic prog fan, I was opened up to a whole world of prog metal. Every song on the album was amazing to me
5. Live at Wembley ‘86 - Queen
I have a strange relationship with Queen in that their music has been prevalent in my life without me ever knowing. I had heard of Queen before but because I had no interest in music in my young age I didn’t know anything about them. The first time I listened to them was after I was invited to a musical based on queens music and thought I should listen to some before I went. What surprised me was that I already knew 20 or so of their most popular songs without ever knowing it was Queen. After listening to a few songs I obviously realised how amazing Freddie was and after that I was hooked. I’ve gone with a live Queen album because as well as being an amazing frontman Freddie’s command over the crowd adds an layer not present in their studio albums which I think is them at their best.
My 5 of 10 album is weezers blue album. I've probably listened to this album more than any other album. It essentially brought together the punk rock of green day, the catchy vocal melodies of the Beatles, and the lyrics of just bein 4 nerdy friends. Quite possibly my favorite album of all time.
You know, I not only watch these videos to see what awesome albums impacted everyone's life, but I also watch them to learn about some new albums/artists I've never heard of, so thank you Mike for doing this!
This is also my 1st album (and my first love in all DT albums) to listened to. I remember back in college, the time before having this album, I am completely lost and I don't know what music should I get into. Until I started to browse on UA-cam randomly and I saw the lyric video of Another Day by Dream Theater. At first, I was not totally impressed, though the music was good. But I am really intrigued by their band name. So I browsed on Wikipedia to search for DT's catalog, and saw all the album covers. The only album that caught my eyes was ADToE and i don't know, I just really love how it represents the record. So I listened to it, though my first listen was a little bit confusing, because despite of simultaneously doing some stuff, I JUST DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT I JUST HEARD. It didn't clicked to my head yet. So I listened to it again, and doing nothing but trying to understand it.... And yup. IT WAS FREAKIN' AMAZING!
I became a fan and ADToE will always be close to my heart :)
People need to get over Portnoy not being in Dream Theater
Fabian Saunders Agreed
WHAT, MIKE PORTNOY LEFT DREAM THEATER?!?! I’M NEVER GONNA GET OVER THIS NEWS.
Conor Murphy try therapy. It may, at the very least, ease the pain some.
I can't bro, way to painful. I still hear DT thou, just can't get behind their new balads. They are like a torture to me.
People should but it's hard. He was the heart of that band. He always said DT was his baby. So him leaving is like losing a father. No other man can fill the void that a father can.
I didn’t really love A Dramatic Turn of Events at first and I didn’t listen to it a lot when I first got into Dream Theater. But what changed that was seeing your Dream Theater tier list and seeing the live performance of Breaking All Illusions on UA-cam around the same time. That performance was incredible,so I gave it another chance and now it’s in the top half of Dream Theater’s discography for me. Overall it’s just a really good album with some standout moments.
Day 5: Lola vs The Powerman and the Moneygoround, The Kinks. One of the things about the Kinks is that as the music industry chewed up and spit out musicians and young dreamers, society promising material wealth but failing to fill the void... this happens to all bands that start getting their name out, but the difference is the Kinks knew it was happening as it happened and wrote about it. Their music is very educated, knowing full well the pitfalls of just being angry at the system, its essentially about empire, sex, desire, economy and is in now way preachy. The dissonance in the songs lyrics speak louder than the words, it somehow is empty but fills you up, the songs ring true for all people, the tunes march on, almost happily as we all know where the story will go and we all know the feelings of bitterness and nostalgia even as the events that shape us are happening. This and other albums from that time of Kinks, makes them one of the greatest bands, in my opinion. If the Beatles were high-art that we should aspire to, that reminds us of the good in the world, the Kinks are the reality of who we can't help but be.
5: A Show of Hands- Rush
Not moving pictures or 2112, nor Hemispheres. It was this live album the got me into this amazing band. Rush might be my all time favorite band, and I have this album to thank for being introduced to them
The intro to lost not forgotten is just crazy. One of my favorite intros
Day 5 Album 5: Black Sabbath - Paranoid. Omg this album though! Aside from being a badass metal classic Paranoid’s title track was one of the first songs I ever learned on drums and the album as a whole is one of my favorite metal albums. I’ve loved this album since I was 12 and it’s just a no brainer in my eyes. Highlights: War Pigs- Easily the best album opener. Some of Bill Wards best drumming. Paranoid: as I said before the first song I learned so duh lol. Planet Caravan: In my eyes, a vastly underrated song of theirs. Very smooth and psychedelic yet very relaxing to me. And finally Iron Man: Easily their most recognized song that ends with a badass flurry of solos from Tony Iommi.
Day 5 is Steve Vai - Sex & Religion for me. In a way, it was a gateway into instrumental music for me, even though most of the album is not instrumental tracks lol. Up until this album, most instrumental tracks seemed like kind of just an afterthought to me. I gave quite a lot of weight to lyrics and it was very rare for a fully instrumental track to really grab me. But man, I was impressed by how much cheese Steve Vai managed to put into Touching Tongues without a single word lmao (though I guess you could argue it's not fully instrumental either lol). Either way, it helped me pay a lot more attention and appreciate the instrumental parts in a song, whether it is fully instrumental or not.
Also, it was my first introduction to Devin Townsend and the title track is one of my favorite songs to this day. It just never fails to put a smile on my face.
Yenn can't live without cheese.😸🧀
@@dantee1138 Cheese is life.
Jill Scott-Words and Sounds Vol. 1
This record was my introduction to the wonderful songwriter that is Jill Scott, an artist I will always listen to and never gets old for me. She's able to make people feel what she feels in a way that's extremely powerful and helps me see life through a completely different lens than my own. Plus, my first real band covered A Long Walk, the live VH1 version, and it's so funky and intense and fantastic that everyone here should check it out. Love this woman and this record.
My favorite band too, you have good taste. 👍
Day 5: Aim and Ignite by Fun is pop rock mixed with a full big band, they hired the whole band, horns, strings, winds etc. And the simple yet effective compositions are incredibly nostalgic
album as a whole, a dramatic turn of events is definitely the best DT album imo but song for song, only bridge in the sky is in my top 5 list of DT songs which goes something like this:
1. change of seasons
2. octavarium
3. pull me under
4. bridges in the sky
5. panic attack
I now have a new appreciation for this album even thought I loved it already. The wicked unison just after the the beginning is the high point for me. Thanks, bro!!
4. IGOR by tyler, the creator
feels weird to post about this album in the comment section of this channel lol. i had listened to very little rap music in depth before this and im so glad i gave this a try. it's loosely a concept album about a breakup but the way it's presented is so grand and emotional. this album is just so fun and groovy and some of the hooks on this thing go so hard. youve got really angry instrumentals like on NEW MAGIC WAND and then really heartfelt moments like on RUNNING OUT OF TIME. this is a 10 / 10 and tyler is a genius. love it.
Day 5: Jar of Flies by Alice In Chains.
Before I listened to this EP(I know this might be cheating but it influenced me) I was not the biggest fan of acoustic based songs. I needed fast rhythms in order to enjoy music. But after listening to this EP, I became obsessed with the acoustic guitar. This album was like ear candy upon my first listen, and I still love these songs to this day.
Track highlights: Rotten Apple, Nutshell, I Stay Away.
nice.🐟
*Who Cares* - GODDO (favorite song off of the album, I guess *"Tough Times / Cock On"* or *"Sweet Thing"* but this is one of my top 5 fave albums, so I love every song)
Day 5: Still Life by Opeth
Ever since you talked about Blackwater Park yesterday I've started listening to Opeth and they are starting to become one of my favorite bands so thank you for shedding some well needed light on them for me
5. Dream theater- Octavarium: This was the first full dream Theater album I heard back in 2018 or 2019. I love this album thus album introduced me into Prog Metal properly I had listened to some Prog metal b4 but didn’t listen to it a whole bunch but this album properly got me into Prog metal. I love Jordan and John’s solos on this they are so epic. Highlights: These Walls, I Walk Beside You, Panic Attack, Octavarium. Panic Attack was the first dream Theater song I heard where I properly listened to it and truly enjoyed it. I actually discovered Panic Attack well before I properly took the time to listen to this album.
That’s... exactly what happened to me
Totally agree, one of my favorite Albums ever
This album is what made me check out other bands that weren’t Metallica and without this, I’d not get into Opeth and Tool and other prog bands.
I love this album. I think Never Enough is a very underrated song
A great great album. One of my favs from Dream Theater, Panic Attack, the Title track and Sacrificed sons are just amazing stuff
Day 5: Streetcleaner by Godflesh. The first metal album I thoroughly enjoyed, Streetcleaner sounds like you are being punished. The drum machine pummels you as the bass thumps along. Justin Brodrick's guitar is screeching with dissonance as he shouts the lyrics at you. A masterpiece of torture through music.
Day 5: Red - End of Silence
I remember listening to this in the car with a buddy of mine years ago and it blew me away at the time. Think Linkin Park or Breaking Benjamin style riffs and vocals with stringed instruments. This was the first album I listened to that made me realize that classical music goes really well with hard rock and heavy metal (I would later discover that symphonic metal is thing 😅). While I wouldn't call this symphonic metal per se, it expanded my music tastes and increased my desire to seek out more music like this. I've heard people in some circles say that this album hasn't aged well production wise. It's been a while since I've gone back and listened to it so I can't really say. But I just had to shout out this one!
Also, my favorite Dream Theater album is Metropolis Pt. 2
*Disclaimer*: I got confused between The Dark Side Of The Moon and this one, so this should have been on Day 2, or spot 8, but whatever.
Day 5: Thank you scientist - Maps of Non-Existing Places: Well, you know them, you love them. This was my first proper introduction to a prog band and it’s all thanks to Mike and the crew of SSF (thank you guys, I love you). With all the over complex funky rhythms, I fell in love and the fun attitude of the band in general is just beautiful. Tom Monda has became one of my favourite guitarist of all time, and if I get to shred (which I will do one day), I want to do it like him. The dynamics between all the members is incredible. Until that day I could only dream of having 7 different genres in one song!
Highlights:
A Salesman's Guide to Non-Existence (🐟)
Feed the Horses (that chorus is too catchy)
My Famed Disappearing Act (The tapping intro is one of my favourite)
Suspicious Waveforms
PD: I hate to say it, but Sal’s voice is too perfect and can get a bit tiring, though he has an incredible voice and can sing fantastic every time .
Nice, Blood on the Radio is my favorite on this album
Album 5
Metropolis: Pt 2, Scenes From a Memory
The way I've been giving my journey through music to develop my taste has coincidentally matched up with your Dream Theater video lol.
I was kind of like you (to a lesser extent) with my opinion of Images and Words. I listened to it, and it was...fine. I knew I liked some of the songs (mostly just Metropolis pt 1) but some of the others were just really boring to my uncultured mind. But after my friend and I trying to learn the instrumental section in Metropolis 1, I decided I wanted to dive deeper into the band's discography. I thought, "I like Metropolis 1, so why not listen to part 2?" And that's exactly what I did. The opening of the album really hooked me, I expected something more thrashy (the only real metal I listened to before Dream Theater was Metallica), so the quiet "Regression" really caught me off guard and peaked my interest. I was invested by Overture 1928 and fell in love with the album by Fatal Tragedy. After finishing it, I looked up the story and listened to the album over and over again for a good few weeks. Scenes From a Memory remains my favorite Dream Theater album to this day. It helps that I'm a real sucker for concept albums or else A Dramatic Turn Of Events might overtake it lol
Now, everything you said about ADTOE is absolutely true. It's really Dream Theater's most underrated album, and it has some of the band's best material on it. I actually started geeking out when you were talking about Bridges in the Sky. MAN that song has so much going for it. Heavy riffage, catchy melodies, face-melting solos, it's so good!
Colors by Between the Buried and Me. Got me into Btbam and introduced me to what music can really do.
Day 5 Album 5: "Superunknown" by Soundgarden.
Not only is this my favorite Soundgarden album, it may be my favorite album of all time. I have a very close attachment to this band and album since they were actually the first band I ever saw live, along with Dillinger Escape Plan and Nine Inch Nails. This album hosts some of the best songs of the 90s, and it's also one of the best produced albums from the grunge era. I never skip a track when I put it on.
Highlights:
Let Me Drown (one of my favorite opening tracks, and has one of Chris' best screams)
Fell on Black Days (one of their best slow jams)
Superunknown (one of my personal favorites)
Head Down (easily their most underrated track)
Black Hole Sun (for obvious reasons)
The Day I Tried to Live (one of my favorite bass lines ever)
Great album. Now I don't need to comment it next time. Head Down is super underrated
Andrew Geiger probably gonna be on my list to, this album is amazing
We be early for the first time in my life. Thank you quarantine
It's not my favorite album, but it's definitely one that I like every song. All the other ones have a song I don't really care about, but I like every single one in this.
Also, singing This is the Life on the shower is the best thing ever.
Pro tip: If you listen to Beneath the Surface in the shower, nobody can tell you're crying.
@@Yenneffer damn, I'll try that today
For me the best dream theater album and my favourite of all time is train of thought.
Also funny Mike you post this album on Mike Portnoy's bday lol :P
How does this shit always happen to me 😂😂
@@BecomeTheKnight I guess one could say it's a Dramatic Turn of Events for you 😂 (I'll see myself out)
Day 5: Dream Theater - Images and Words
I cannot begin to describe how much I love this album and this band, it's probably my favourite album ever and it contains my fav song ever: Learning to Live.
This album changed the way I looked at music as a whole; the originality, the drumming, the bass, those fat keyboard sections that feels like it's taking you to another place, James' voice was back then amazing. And last, this album is to me one of the best albums of all time, not just into the prog world, I mean ever; this albums had some kind of magic, something I can't describe that even DT themselves couldn't recreate on Awake, idk what it is but this album has that magic, that touch that makes it special.
So yeah, Images and Words is simply perfect for me, I think I won't listen to another album like this in my life.
Fun fact: the first song I heard about this album was Metropolis and I couldn't like it less. So curious how things can change over time.
Highlights: every single song, but I'll say Metropolis, Surrounded and Learning to Live.
100% agree with this. I&W is a masterpiece.
My favorites of this album are
Metropolis pt 1, take the time
Pull me under, under a glass moon
Learning to Live is a total masterpiece. The outro and some crescendos make me weep every time I listen to it. Idk why it's so underrated
This album is my favorite from dream theater as well. Such an underated beautiful album with songs that mean more to me than I could ever explain. Like you said... I still get goosbumps now and then when I hear some of the songs. Last I want to say thank you for speaking about this album and bringing it to light.
Hello! Much love from Kathmandu, Nepal.
I love this album! My fave is still SFAM, but this one is easily top 5.
Day 5: Sodom - Tapping The Vein
This album is probably the one that helped me the most transition into more extreme metal, death, black, etc. It’s thrash turned up a notch, thrash death album some might even say.
It’s the part one of albums that made me like growls, even if Angelripper doesn’t technically growl. But it also made me like blast beats, brutal metal, death metal, & more.
Never again did I say “I like the instrumentation but I don’t like the vocals”
Previous days:
Day 1: Dark Side Of The Moon (Pink Floyd)
Day 2: Ride The Lightning (Metallica)
Day 3: Selling England By The Pound (Genesis)
Day 4: Absolution (Muse)
Day 5: Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen. I know Mike doesn't really care about lyrics, but I do. Jungleland is simply breathtaking. I have amazing memories of sitting next to my record playing and crying through the ending of Jungleland. I love Bruce's work, and this album was my first hardcore time listening to him. He inspired me to start songwriting (however shitty at it I may be)
Beneath the surface and Along for the Ride has probably my favorite Rudess solos. The melody and emotion in those solos are top notch, definitely some of my favorite keyboard solos out there.
Day 5 Album: Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack
Videogame music doesn’t get enough love and this was the first soundtrack I truly fell in love. Not only does every musical piece serve as an excellent way to drive home certain themes, messages and further emphasis moments of the game, but also are excellent musical pieces on there own. I implore anybody who isn’t familiar with the soundtrack to please check it out as it is truly a masterpiece in videogame music and one of the reasons y Chrono Trigger is one of my favourite games. Also be sure to check out the Nier Automata soundtrack as that is amazing as well
Day 5: Gentle Giant selftitled: First album by gentle giant is a great prog album from the 70s. I get a King Crimson sort of vibe from listening to it but it still sounds very unique and sort of medieval. The keyboards are great on this album and on every other album by them and a very much like the vocal delivery and lyrics on this album.
Highlights:
"Giant" is the first song of the album and a great start probably the heaviest song on this album great keyboards and a jazzy feel.
"Alucard" has the most king crimson vibe on this album it's a great jazzy and psychedelic song with great vocals.
"Isn't it quiet and cold" is a chill song with a nice melody and medieval feeling.
Six degrees of inner turbulence is my all time favorite album, hands down.
For me it just captures every single aspect that makes DT my favorite band, and frankly every single aspect I appreciate about music in general. It's heavy and dark, extremely melancholy at times, it's highly technical and virtuosic yet catchy as all hell, so symphonic and grandiose, features the band's best lyrics to date and the most creative contributions from each member.
Album Five: "Human After All" by Daft Punk.
I first heard of Daft Punk in the late 00's due to the Daft Hand's videos that were floating around UA-cam at the time, and I thought it was a pretty cool gimmick when I was young. Kinda forgot about them for two years until I just randomly started listening to "Television Rules the Nation" and "Harder Better Faster Stronger" on UA-cam while playing pool, and soon I created a playlist on with all their music at that time. Although I listened to practially all of their stuff (this is pre-RAM), I mostly gravitated towards the material on the "Human After All" album, developing an interest and love for the music that the robots made. I found it fascinating about the whole sonisphere surrounding sampling, it was a concept I was completely unfamiliar with. I would watch comparison videos on various websites showing what tracks they used, and on their second album "Discovery" seeing how they constructed one song with five or more tracks from the 70's was just insane to me at that age. I just loved this idea of creating music on the computer and giving it a somewhat futuristic feel with a form of "traditional" familiarity. "Human After All" had this really uniqe raw edge to it, something just grimy and dirty and I loved it. Just listening to "Brainwasher" or "Technologic" still raises hairs on my arms. While I think their best album is "Alive 2007", and probably on of the best live albums ever made, "Human After All" just holds a special place in my heart, and Daft Punk have remained easily in my top musical influences since the day I started listening to them. They mean so much to me.
Day 5: The Human Equation by Ayreon. Love the story of this album and it made me appreciate the story telling aspect of music.
Day 5: Soundtracks for the Blind by Swans
Oh Swans, one of the most challenging bands to listen to. From their earlier no wave/noise rock days to their current over 2 hour long post-rock albums, Swans are always challenging their audience no matter what incarnation of the band you're listening to. I remember listening to To Be Kind after many people, including Anthony Fantano, praised the album. Since I haven't listened to anything by Swans prior, I was definitely left feeling puzzled. But it wasn't till about a year later where I went back in the bands career and listened to the album they made before they split up, Soundtracks for the Blind. I made time to listen to it, which you really had to, because it's over 2 hours long, and that's when it clicked, I think I really like this album. So I listened to it again, and again, and again, and I started listening to some of Swans' other albums, and ended up liking them. I even went back to To Be Kind, and I suddenly became one of the people who praised the album. It took a long time to get into Swans, but one thing I will say is that getting into Swans was one of the most rewarding feeling I've felt while discovering music, and I have to thank Soundtracks for the Blind for that. It's one of the most cinematic albums I've listened to, and despite it's length, it's very cohesive. Currently, my favorite album of all time.
You doing an a capella cover of the whole album anytime soon? You were close in this video.
I'd pay for that.
plus the koolaid cover
Yenneffer me too, Yenn.
Dante Estevez YES! That one’s a must!
My favorite DT album is Octavarium, my opinion about ADToE is that this is an awesome album, however not rated correctly by people who couldn't accept that it was the correct time do Portnoy depart and Mangini to come, this fresh air was something that they needed to basically keep on being a healthy and strong band
Day 5: *Mr Bungle* - California
Day 5: Ramones - Ramones. The music is boiled down to it’s essentials, but the Ramones still have a twisted take on pop culture with their lyrics. I love it to bits.
Day 5 album : "above the weeping world" - insomnium
God , this album is just so good.
The definition of what melodeath should sound like - raw , emotional , powerful yet can still be quit somber and melodic.
And the production sound is just perfect , sounds clear yet raw enough .
And all the lyrics are a work of art.
Fav songs : in the groves of death , last statement , mortal share and drawn to black.
day 5: Satan in the wait by daughters.
some of the most bone chilling sounds and easily one of the best every hard rock albums ever made. the vocals are yelping but striking, and the lyrics terrify lots of people. not like it matters to you but this album and this song in particular are one of my favorite albums ever so take it from me I guess
Funny thing is i didn't like A Dramatic Turn of Events for a long time, but after time passed and i saw your videos about Dream Theater i actually gave it another chance and now it happens to be one of my favorite albums... so thank you for that. Scenes From a Memory is my personal favorite DT album and considering how much it changed my view on music i think it's my favorite album of all time.
Day 5 U.F.O - Strangers in the night (live album) although I'm not a great hard rock fan I really like this
Great live sound, killer solos by Michael schenker, my favorite song is Lights out, some other highlights: Rock bottom, love to love, natural thing,shoot shoot
The one I’ve been waiting for.
Every time I see this album I'm immediately brought back to seeing Breaking All Illusions live. I didnt get this album totally when I first heard it, but it's got so much meat to it.
This album is why I don’t get people who say Images and Words is the best DT album.
Day 5: Fortress-Alter Bridge. My best friend used to pick me up and drive us to school every morning in high school. I had moved away from rock music and mostly listened to rap of the early 2010s. He put in a CD and just let it play for our 10 minute ride. The info of Cry of Achilles came on and I have never fell in love with a song that quickly. Later that night I listened to the whole album on UA-cam and this hit my top 10 all time favorite albums. I then studied the rest of the discography and realized that I have heard their songs before but just never realized it. Alter Bridge is one of the best rock bands of the past 30 years. Everyone needs to listen to them
Day 5: Californiacation-red hot chili peppers, the album that got me into music and to this day is absolutely chilltasticly awesome to me.
Day 5: Madvillainy by Madvillain
One of the greatest rap albums of all time. Madlib's beat are insanely well-produced, and MF DOOM's lyricism is some of the best I've ever heard. This is undoubtedly a classic.
Waterdeep - Live At The New Earth. This album takes me back to when I was like 2 years old. This album is what made me fall in love with rock music, and I’m pretty sure the first song on this album, “Scared”, introduced me to rock music. Ever since then, it’s been one of my favorite albums of all time.
Mate as you’ll probably agree, once you delve into the DT rabbit hole no other band scratches as many itches, music for the mind heart n soul. Great review I adore DTOE a flawless album. I think Bridges in the sky helped me turn around some depression i was falling into, it showed me the light and the beauty in light especially with This is the life before , Bridges in the sky and the whole Album mean the world to me.
I love Dramatic Turn of Events. Scenes From A Memory is #1 for me. I really love them all but Train of Thought stands out for it's heaviness and Black Clouds & Silver Linings is way too good to leave out. Octavarium and SDoIT are masterpieces and FII has a special place in my heart for personal reasons. DT forever. Peace.
Lost Not Forgotten, Breaking All Illusions and Build Me Up, Break Me Down (instrumental Version) are the highlights
"Instrumental version" LOL
@@marius9372 f.yeah
My favorite is Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, I listen to it all the time and it just captures my attention both musically and lyrically with its focus on mental struggles. I just love the album so much!
Breaking all illusion, lost not forgotten is my favorite song from this album.
Great choice sir. By far DT's most underrated album. I completely agree that Lost Not Forgotten is also one of their most underrated songs. One of my favourites of all time.
Day 5 Album 5: “Enter the Wu-tang (36 chambers)” by Wu-tang Clan! Being apart of gen-z, and having been constantly bombarded with shitty mumble rap every time I turned on the radio, this is what showed me the beauty of rap/hip hop! It has amazing flows from every Wu-tang member, beautifully used blues/jazz samples, and top-notch lyricism!
Track Highlights:
Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber -Excellent flow from all members on the track after an awesome intro.
Da Mystery of Chessboxin’ -Some the most-memorable transitions between members.
C.R.E.A.M. -An excellent message, that’s essentially the opposite of many modern mainstream hip-hop with one of the best used samples!
Protect Ya Neck -One of the greatest verses (the intro) in all of hip-hop (that I have listened to...).
My favorite album is also a dramatic turn of events and I 100 % agree with everything you said.
It's so underrated
Love tha fact that at the beginning of on the backs of angels the kid sounds like "scooby-dooby-doo"
That album is close to me heart for the same reason. That was the first thing I've heard from DT, and the effect was completely the same as yours. Since then if I had to make a list of my favorite DT albums, it'd be only on the 6th place. But without it probably I would never fall in love with DT.
On The Backs Of Angels is a great song to see Live
#5, Townes Van Zant, The Best Of (2002) Now, there's a story here before I say why this album. I grew up in a household where the only thing that was played, near 24/7, was country radio. For 16 years, that's all that music was, and by 16, I had learned to dislike it very much and tune it out.
One of my teachers, who was also a very good friend, lent me an album of this guy Townes after learning of my distaste for country, saying to try it out. I trusted him, and so I did, and found myself rather enjoying the genre for the first time. It helped me branch out at a time where I was of the mindset that only rock and metal was good. Yes, I was one of those types. I started looking into other genres as a result, and finding all kinds of acts that I love that I otherwise would've never come across. So, this album really changed things for me, and I still love Townes' music (and still talk to that teacher even though I graduated).
theres something special about mike gushing over dream theater :D i realise our initial reactions to the band are very similar, maybe one day ill be all over it too :P
Day 5
Aqualung - Jethro Tull
Incredible album!
Day 5: Stranger Heads Prevail by Thank You Scientist. This sparked a real love of modern music. Caverns gives a rush of talent, Prologue is just fun as an opening, and Psychopump does a blend of styles in a beautiful way. It helped me discuss music and find other stuff to like.
Day 5: Dream Theater - Images And Words
One day, I happened to have an extra buck in my iTunes and was looking for a one-off song to spend it on. Now, I happened to remember the Pull Me Under is on Guitar Hero World Tour and was one of the songs I struggled to get through. I also remember being floored at the shear length of the intro. Anyway, I pull up the album on UA-cam and somehow end up listening to the whole thing. Keep in mind, I still had no knowledge of Prog at this point, so hearing Metropolis Part 1 FLOORED me. The keyboard/guitar harmony is still one of my favorite parts of any song, even if the album isn’t my favorite by them. That singular moment is what made me a Dream Theater fan and a Prog fan.
Might have to agree on this being their best album.
My 10 'biggest impact' albums are Dream Police, Piece Of Mind, Shout At The Devil, Tooth & Nail, Spreading The Disease, Master Of Puppets, Peace Sells, Operation: Mindcrime, Images & Words, & Synchestra. These are impactful because they all helped form my musical tastes from 1980 until 2010... all these were my introductions to these bands/artists.
Periphery III, Select Difficulty. The album that pretty much got me into metal. And as well as VH I which influenced my guitar playing tremendously.
Day 5 AC/DC - Back In Black
This band is a testament that you don't need to change your sound to be awesome at what you do. Arguably the best Hard Rock guitarist and band of the 70s and 80s. They blend the blues with a hard rock style that you can not get up and air guitar to. It's just a solid album that I never skip a track on. Say what you will this band has stood the test of time when so many collapsed. We have to shout out the Young brothers one was a master at lead solos and the other a craftsmen at holding down a rhythm. RIP Malcom young. Sadly it is the one band I have never seen live and I kinda regret it a bit. I can not really pick fave songs because the whole album rocks but Hells Bells and Back in Black.
Dramatic turn of events is in my top 5 dt albums, but maybe you didn't notice that on the backs of angels isn't the only song of the album with a similar structure to a I&W song, in fact:
On the backs of angels - Pull me under
This is the life - another day
Lost not forgotten - under a glass moon
Far from heaven - wait for sleep
Breaking all illusions - learning to live(these two songs also share a similar reprise of the precedent ballad)
Day 5: Metropolis Part 2 Scenes From a Memory.
This album is my favorite DT album by far. This album made me realize how far music can go. I actually only heard this album for the first time last year because I was just getting into DT at the time (thanks to yourchannel btw), and I listened to it a week before I was going to see them live. Long story short I fell in love with this band and had hear the rest of their discography, and after hearing Black Clouds & Silver Linings they were catapulted to being my favorite band of all time. So yeah big thank you to you Mike for introducing me to this band. I hope to meet you one day in person so I can properly thank you by buying you a drink.
I love home, dance of eternity on that album
@@digletttexano678 Every song on that album is great, but Finally Free is definitely my favorite by far.
This album is simply incredible. Imo this is one of Petrucci's best albums for sure. And I completely agree Lost not Forgotten is insane, it's so good and criminally underrated.
Incredible album!! I personally love Far From Heaven also. One of LaBrie's Best lyrics❤️
Day 5 album: As Embers Turn to Dust by Mechina. You've got really fantastical and cheesy power metal albums that take you to different fantasy worlds, but this one (album 6, the first one I stumbled across), takes you to a completely different star system with the survivors of Earth (short synopsis on that, two major world governments warred over resources and the one that was on the losing end initiated a scorched earth policy that led to full-scale nuclear war that left the planet barren and lifeless in the end). The story actually starts in album 2 and is still ongoing, with each album adding a little bit more, but album 6 covers the discovery and settlement of their new home planets and starts to explore their differences in philosophy that would inevitably lead to them repeating the same mistakes that saw Earth destroyed in the first place.
This is also a more recent discovery of mine, from within the past.... 2 years? I think thats about right, at least. Anyway, I love it