Aghama

Uh, so what the hell is up with "The Great Debate"?

Hannibal

Per Mike Portnoy in a recent interview...

...over the Summertime the Stem Cell Research was on the news all the time while we were in the studio. So i guess he(Petrucci) was inspired to write about it and I think it's really cool the way that he writes from both sides of the coin. At no point in those lyrics does he ever give an opinion or take the side of either, he's basically just presenting the different sides.

We even produced it in a way where the Left-wing and Right-wing opinions are panned accordingly, in both the samples and vocals.


By the way disc one kicked my ass!! It's great that every new album from DT is fresh sounding and not a rehash of their previous albums. I'm judging these songs based on their own merits and not the feeling of "I wish they would go back to the (insert album title here) method of recording technique, song structure, lyrics, etc. But, no matter how they continue to try different things, its still DT. The progressive elements of musicianship are still there. Disc one (5 songs unrelated to each other in every way -great for the car) will appeal more to the progressive metal fans. Disc two is more prog rock with its 8 movements of a 42 minute epic -great for the headphones). Skip the cheesy opening Overture. Reminds me of part of Disney's Fantasia. You'll appreciate later after listing to 2-7. I'm liking this disc more and more. Its about 6 people and their various states of mental illness. The music for each reflects his or her state. Great stuff if you have the patience for music like this. Can't wait to see the two shows in Chicago this March!

This is shaping up to be a great year. New Rush (I'll judge that on its own merits as well) Pain of Salvation, Vanden Plas, and maybe Spock's Beard later on.

P.S "Misunderstood" is inspiring me to venture into Radiohead land. Any suggestions? People say start with "The Bends".

edclem

just picked up the disc tonight.....
man, this is fantastic

....also scored sweet seats to the show here in Minneapolis. I haven't seen them since the Awake tour. I am SO looking forward to this show!!!


On topic: this is a bit of a departure from them, as they don't usually target such political issues, but I agree that they're fairly well talking both sides of the coin. Regardless, the music is great.

Alyoshka

i cannot get enough of this album. Blind Faith, the Great Debate, etc. This album is done much like the Liquid Tension Experiment albums...they locked themselves in a studio and just played around until they came up with songs...then recorded.

dvduser6

I can't decide which tracks I like most. I find myself going back to "Blind Faith" over and over. I also really like "Solitary Shell" on disc two. It's got that great "Solsbury Hill" feel going on. Just a great CD. Highly recommended!

edclem

i'm glad somebody else feels the same. It sounds awfully close to Solisbury Hill to me, too.

Hannibal

"Goodnight Kiss" segueing into "Solitary Shell" is just awesome.

Alyoshka

anybody else take note of how the album starts and how the last album ended? Same sort of record player noise. I think that is pretty cool.

dvduser6

Sure did! I thought that was a nice touch. I didn't get tix to their upcoming show yet, but I did have the pleasure of catching John Petrucci on the G3 tour last summer. Simply amazing! Met him & Mike Portnoy after the show. Easily the two nicest guys you'd ever hope to meet.

cineman

Another brilliant album from a brilliant band. I want more!!!

harpo787

I too saw Petrucci at G3...he was very impressive, which is tough when you're standing next to Vai and Satriani....

I've only heard one Dream Theater album, and thoroughly enjoy it: Words & Images.....

What should I get next?

edclem

Either Scenes from a Memory or Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (the new one).
Both of them are absolutely excellent.

Hannibal

I would buy the Scenes from New York dvd. That way you can enjoy Scenes from a Memory in its entirety and in the bonus stuff they play stuff from earlier albums. That way you get a good cross section of stuff you choose to dig for.