Composer/Musician Reacts to Dream Theater - Octavarium (REACTION!!!)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 พ.ค. 2020
- Bryan reacts to and talks about his thoughts on Octavarium
ORIGINAL VIDEO: • Octavarium
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Since no one's mentioned it yet, the solo at the very beginning is not a guitar. It's a keyboard instrument called a continuum fingerboard.
Thanks for that. I had never heard of this device before. I watched some footage of one being played and it sort of reminds me of a more accessible Theremin. Very cool stuff.
It's synth, continuum and lap steel guitar to be exact. Starts with synth, then continuum and ends with lap steel guitar.
@@elBanananas Yes, that is correct. Although, I was referring specifically to the continuum solo because he mentioned "guitar tone."
@@CriticalReactions Jordan Rudess, the keyboard player, also co-developed a "continuum" app for phone/tablet as well, and he plays continuum parts on an ipad live now.
EDIT: Rudess made a big push in the late 2000s to massively simplify his live rig. He talked about how ridiculously unwieldy his equipment was to set up for his shows, and I think set up a promotional deal with Korg to pack everything into a single keyboard. He basically brings on stage a Korg keyboard that carries all of his samples and tones, a keytar he busts out for some solos, and an ipad for those stretchy continuum solos.
@@Ghost2867 I remember seeing the liner notes of the Systematic Chaos album and seeing "iPhone" in Rudess' list of instruments played. I laughed out loud.
That guy.
Petrucci's solo at the end always gives me chills, man. He's always had a knack of being able to take a solo to this other place that's just unbelievable.
Agreed 👌
Hero guitar solo for sure- goosebumps every time.
Agreed - Petrucci can be very disciplined in that while he could just wail and shred, so many of his solos are excellent compositions themselves; they follow and accentuate chord shifts, they ride the changes beautifully.
for real!!!
especially the alternate pick part slow and then fast...
"very Theatrical"
"Kinda has a dreamscape feel too it"
Dream Theater btw
@Johnny Dong untrue and unbased
the yelling part with "trapped inside this Octavarium" still gives me chills everytime i hear it, absolutely beautiful song
That entire section is genius. They wrote every song in a different key, going around the circle of fifths. Then, in this song, they go through every key signature and reference the songs in their respective keys. All ending with the exclamation "trapped inside this octavarium!". An octavarium is an octave of octaves, so its almost like he's saying that he can only use what tools exist; even though his ambitions exit those confines.
Its the type of music that if you listen to it, you laugh a little out of joy
Somebody commented on the theme being about how everything returns to the beginning (octave).
The first part tells about a guy who doesn't want to grow up and be like his father, who lives a boring & consistent life, so he goes out and lives the life he thinks he wants, only to come to the realization that he wishes he could have been like his father.
The second part is the movie "Awakening" (stars Robert DeNiro, directed by Penny Marshall) based on a true story where a doctor is able to use a miracle drug to wake patients out of a catatonic state, only to see them return.
The third part is a play on words: a series of phrases where the last word of one phrase is the first phrase of the next phrase: Sailing on the seven seize the day tripper... (Sailing on the seven seas / seize the day / Day Tripper).
The fourth part is 8 two-line summaries of the 8 songs on the album. If you listen carefully. you hear a deep voice count them: root, two, three, four...
The list is about how circles return to the beginning and is a tip of the hat to a rush song.
The record ends on an extended note... which is how the following record opens.
Very extra and very DT. Love those guys.
They didn't do the extended note in this one. They were going to do it but changed their minds and end it with the drums from Root of all Evil. The first version of this song had a flute at the end. So the meta almbums are Scenes from a Memory ends with the gramophone -> Glass Prison begins with a gramophone in SDOIT, SDOIT ends with a sustained note -> As I Am begins with that same note in ToT, In the name of God ends with drums -> The Root of all Evil start with that same drums and then Octavarium ends with that drums making it a full circle.
And the note the piano plays at the end of Octavarium, an F, is the first note of The Root Of All Evil. So you could basically play the whole album over and over again with no real end or beginning.
Not only on the third part is it a play on words, but they are all references to bands DT either enjoys or took inspiration from, or some other connection to prog rock, every word in the third part is basically and ode to prog.
not following, current record
It's like Become The Knight minus the alcoholism and depression.
Im crying lol
🤣
hahahaaahah
and the mental retardation
Yeah panic attack is a great dream theater song
Definitely a great song
Also same album lol this album is Flawless
It’s no coincidence that you recognized panic attack. The entire album has recurring moments. the main concept of the album is the cyclical nature of things, how they end as they begin. Check out the full album.
good song, but there is a reason that poser Dream Theater fans say thats there favorite song along with Drag Me Under
@@Macho_Paarthurnax i mean, its a good song, but for me there are better songs (ministry of lost souls and the dance of eternity are probably one of my fav) btw they did pull me under with the intencion of being in radio or basically more mainstream
"They're all virtuosos at their instrument... they don't really showcase it that often"
at first I was skeptical about you not listening to much Dream Theater, until ya said that. Believe me, they LOOOOOOVE showing off their instrumental wankery. It's glorious insanity.
Haha, right? Must not have listened to dance of eternity yet
The best way to describe most DT is "instrumental wankery"; but most people wouldn't understand what that means until they listen.
But that's what makes this era of their stuff so much better (IMO)...some songs are very technical, but there is still "song"..I think everything after this album is where they start descending to more technical then song writing...just my opinion of course.
@@soocool78 even Systematic chaos has its own identity despite all the technical wankery and madness, specially In the Presence
Its not wankery because it goes over your head...
You need to react to "A Change of Seasons". It's another epic from DT but it has a totally diferent taste to it.
That one is beautiful, the carpe diem part stands out for me.
"Another World" is totally underrated!!
I back this. One of their best emotionally driven songs, especially with the genius ending where the guitar doesn't resolve the last note.
Illumination Theory is another masterpiece too
Ikr, it sounds like 2 totally different bands. Octavarium has a sweeping movie soundtrack vibe; Jordan's influence is very prevalent here. A Change of Seasons is more old-school 80s/90s prog metal. Darker, more introspective vibe.
5:35 A good deal of that initial intro is a musical homage to Pink Floyd's "Shine on You Crazy Diamond" which, itself, is a very slow burn. It's gutsy, but it's also an homage to another relatively unusual song.
This whole song is a love letter to progressive rock
Definitely. I'm a huge Pink Floyd Fan and I absolutely love the long songs like Shine on, Echoes or Atom heart mother but Octavarium...this song made me question every thing I heard before. For me it's the perfection, I was looking for so lang since Shine on you crazy diamond and imo it even surpassed it.
I noticed that too! Shine On is my second favorite song next to Close To The Edge, and Octavarium perfectly encapsulated the initial feeling of it.
@@JimothyRoss Dream theater is the band every progrock fan should know, since these guys are huge progrock fans as well. Mfs really pulled Supper's Ready in the middle of the song lol
This entire album is a concept album, but it’s fairly subtle if you don’t realize the importance of the number 8 and coming full circle. There are 8 songs and the climax of this song they literally go through each song, in the background you hear "First", "Second", "Third" etc. During each one those, you faintly hear a snippet from each song in order on the album. The final part way at the end, after the french horn, quietly you hear the start of the first song, The Root of All Evil, coming full circle.
Each song in this album goes one step up the scale, first song starts in an F key, then next is G etc. But the ending of songs that have a possible half-step key, the ending goes to an F#, G# etc. Octavarium starts an octave higher than the first song. It’s a pretty unique concept album.
Feel like dream theater is basically a gold mine of content for you lol
This song is about dream theaters journey, from wanting to be like their heroes, then failing at that trying to be different and finally realizing that while they can never be exactly like their heroes they can still be as a great as them.
I'm the biggest DT fan and this is my favorite DT song. But I've never heard this interpretation before. It's interesting how well it applies when you think about it that way. Hard to say what the cononical meaning is but there's no doubt that it's a masterpiece and that it's such an archetypal message. Thinking about it from that perspective only makes me love it more
SirWalrusCauliflower I think I heard this explanation was given by mike portnoy at an interview but I could be completely mistaken as its been awhile since I first heard it.
HOLY MOTHA
@@SirWalrusCauliflower It's really not only about that though. The first chapter is about it, essentially. The second part is a re-telling of the movie Awakenings. The third chapter is a mishmash of influence in music and movies (they are written so they merge with each other) that somewhat made Dream Theater into what it is, not entirely sure whether they can claim they have their own style or if it's just a big collection of different styles.The fourth chapter is a 'review' of the whole album, where they bring the quintessential parts into each "step" of eight, whereas the last one, named "Octave" is about the song in question. You can also hear brief snippets of each song (kinda like background samples) from each song during the countdown. The last chapter is merely a feeling of being stuck at whatever they're doing. They will forever be stuck with whatever's going on, hence the last bit you hear of the song is like restarting the whole album. Portnoy wanted to end their merging/looping stuff from album to album at that point, so Systematic Chaos would become a 'new path' so to speak. There are a lot of hidden messages and trivias found within Octavarium as a whole. But take a look at how Scenes From a Memory ends and how that static noise blends in with Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence's "The Glass Prison". Then the last chapter of Six Degrees' chord would become the intro of "As I Am" on Train of Thought. The last piano note on Train of Thought's "In the Name of God" is the same note as Octavarium's first song "Root of All Evil". But that's where it ends, and Octavarium is therefore 'stuck in a loop forever' by returning to "Root of All Evil" once "Octavarium" ends.
It also expresses how cyclical nature is. Everything at some point comes back to the beginning.
Can we all agree A Change of Seasons is the next logical step? :)
Then a mind beside itself!
One of them, certainly. I'd also recommend The Count of Tuscany, Metropolis, Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, and many others. But ACOS is definitely a "must hear."
Anyone else get the Robin Williams movie connection between OV and ACOS? Awakenings in OV and Dead Poet's Society in ACOS.
@@primemover1416 ...Not at the time, but it makes sense. I've always taken the lyrics as a stand alone story.
Or... "Metropolis PT. 2: Scenes from a Memory". What is, in MY opinion, the greatest "concept" album of all time. The farther you get into it, the more intense it gets!
This song was my first introduction to Progressive music. What a way to enter the world!
Welcome Michael! You will never be bored again. It's an endless journey...
Congratulations for taking a risk. I hope you enjoy the journey as I still am !!!!!!
19:13 I honestly was just waiting for the part where they play Jingle Bells :D
robpiy91 me too. And his reaction was brilliant xD
7:59 there's also a nod to Bohemian Rhapsody that was glossed over.
Holy crap. This is the first DT song I ever listened to, it's one of my favorites, and I never noticed that.
Octavarium is literally one of the best albums i've ever heard. The hole 5:8 cycle theme is insane
Well it’s also in 7:8 a lot of the time, but yeah it’s amazing
I am a 63 year old former professional upright bassist. I went to conservatory for classical and jazz studies. DT is an amazing example of incredibly talented and incredibly disciplined musicians. I think there are the best of the best. I have seen them and almost expected the entire hall to spontaneously combust because I have never seen better performances till I saw them the next time. To give you a background I have seen from Vladimir Horowitz and Prince (12x) and theycan only put in this level of greatness
The string tones are not from the keyboard, they actually had an orchestra in studio and also toured with them, you can watch „the score“.
Didn’t tour with them, just did the one show
Ok the original song I’m pretty sure they were keyboard samples, but they later re-recorded the album live with an orchestra which the released as “score”.
Whitefang 165 the album had a live orchestra, Jordan does the parts live but for this show they hired an orchestra
nice profile pic hahahah
Liar
If you listen to the entire album, "the story ends where it begins" and the outro to this song is the intro to the album. Also, in the pre-guitar solo lyrics, with each number they count, they play a clip from that track number off the album faintly in the background. Also also, the root note for each song on the album ascends chromatically, adding to the crescendo theme before the guitar solo.
The song is a microcosm of the entire album Octavarium, which basically represents the cyclical nature of things. The entire album is a huge concept, even to the point of there being 8 songs, 8 musical keys, and each song begins on one key, ends on the next key, and the next song starts on that same key. The song ends with the same chords and melody as the song began. Panic attack is on this album as well and they had melodies from all the songs on the album in this song which is probably why you recognized it. The album is so complex that someone wrote a thesis explaining it.
If you're really interested, here's the link with all of the references and tie-ins that go into the album - dt.spatang.com/octavarium.php
Dream Theater has no shortage of epics: A Change of Seasons, The Count of Tuscany, Illumination Theory, Breaking All Illusions, Learning to Live. All 15 minutes +. I do think that Octavarium is the most interesting musically because of the key changes and cycling back, but they're all great.
Spoken by somebody who truly "gets it", or them, should I say.... Bravo...
Other Dream Theater songs I'd recommend are The Glass Prison, Scarred, The Count of Tuscany, A Change of Seasons, At Wit's End, Pale Blue Dot, Home, The Dance of Eternity, As I Am, Honor Thy Father, and In the Presence of Enemies Part 1. If you want to see them live, some really good ones are Breaking All Illusions (Boston Opera House), Under a Glass Moon (Japan 1993 - Good vocal range example), and if you really want a mind fuck then do Instrumedley (Budokan) where they basically jam a ton of their instrumental songs together into one mega instrumental.
Also yes, Panic Attack is another great Dream Theater song.
don't know why but i think you're a dt fan bro
@@alexjeremias You caught me
You forgot The best of times, Home, Hells kitchen, Strange Deja vu, The root of all evil and pull me under.
@@Artemis_simetrA Well my message would been a mile long if I included every great song
Learning to live
By the way for extra info: that single note at 25:05 is the same note the album started with, this is the last track of the album so it conects with the story that every thing moves in a circle and ends were it began... that made the album for me amazing \../
The whole album is based on a music octave. So they tried to use different tones as song progresses and tried to implement them all into "octavarium"
Panic Attack is also a song from the album.
This whole concept is supposed to be a cycle, so they did not end it with something intense.
Octavarium is actually a confession from the band. They're not in a phase to progress the intensity and genius of their previous decades anymore. And they never managed to create an album so complex anyway.
By the way, this particular song has five chapters, so it has five different stories to tell as well. Album has 8 songs, and 8th song has 5 chapters. You knoe, octave and all
Allways gives me chills when I hear that F root note that Octavarium ends on and the root of all evil starts on :)
It was gonna end with a flute continuing all the meta album they started with… Train of Though I think… they decided to change it to become a full circle but the flute version is still available
@@MatiasJaruf Oh cool, where did you hear that? I haven't heard the flute version before
When Octavarium was released they said they wanted to keep going with that stuff about the ending note of one album being the starting note on the next, but then realized they were getting old and tired and decided to end it and the theme concerts they played. Until Octavarium they did two shows on every city they visited, and those two shows were different from each other and usually lasted 3 or 4 hours. The Octavarium tour was the last one were they did that. It was called "An Evening With Dream Theater" and it was amazing. Then they did Score and that was it… regular two hour concerts… but you can find the flute version everywhere. It's just that… no "Root of all evil" drums, just a flute playing the intro of the song for three seconds.
Also song is supposed to be exactly 24 minutes, because 3*8=24 and 8-3=5. This is the 8th Album of the band and was released when the band had 5 live albums.
Coincidence? If it was any toher band than Dream Theater I'd probably say "yes".
You should listen to "metropolis pt2: scenes from a memory" it's a master piece concept album
Thanks for the great video! I've been a huge Dream Theater fan for a long time, and it was great seeing someone with your experience react critically and thoughtfully to this masterpiece! There are a few other fun facts...I guess each song on this album starts a whole tone higher than the previous, making Octavarium the final note in the octave and leading back to The Root of All Evil. Some people have theorized that Octavarium technically precedes The Root of All Evil despite their tracklist placement, partially due to the sounds you heard after the song itself. Much of this call and answer loop is alluded to in the melody and the lyrics as you mentioned, but there's a lot of the same across the album thematically. Anyway, thanks again for the watch! Always happy to take a 25 minute trip down this rabbit hole! I'm subscribing just in case you ever decide to tackle their Twelve Step Suite or Metropolis epic!
Only Dream Theater could decide to conceal a concept album within several OTHER albums..."Twelve Step Suite" is brilliant!
Petrucci's solo at the end always gives tears
The best of times, count of tuscany, metropolis, sacrificed sons
It was Jingle Bells that you heard quoted in there (not a children's rhyme).
This is one of quite a few masterpieces that Dream Theater came out with during the Portnoy era. Others include _A Change of Seasons,_ the entire _Metropolis Pt. II: Scenes from a Memory_ album, _Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence_ (which is another long, stand-alone, multi-part song on an album that shares its name, only it's 42 minutes long instead of 23), and the _A Mind Beside Itself_ trilogy from the Awake album. And that's not even mentioning the ridiculousness that is _Images & Words,_ which is their first major album, containing some of the most profligate abuse of compositional AND instrumental techniques possible (believe it or not, songs like _Octavarium_ are *_subtle_* compared to the earlier material). I don't think that losing Portnoy helped Dream Theater - they've not done much in the last 10 years that's worth paying attention to. It's a shame that they parted ways because I think Mike Portnoy was the guy who was providing both the best lyrics (Moore and Myung aside...neither has been a lyricist for DT in this millennium, and neither wrote lyrics for more than a handful of songs before that) AND the guy who was restraining the insanity within Jordan Rudess' mind to turn ludicrous songs into masterpieces. Portnoy understood and applied compositional methodology WAY better than any of the other members, which is surprising - most drummers aren't the LEAD contributors of their bands' compositional efforts. His work with Transatlantic is worth looking at - check out _Duel with the Devil_ off of their album "Bridge Across Forever."
I like both drummers, but I can understand your feelings, and even agree to a point. The biggest difference to me (also a loss) is that Portnoy provided the best backing/co-lead vocals, while Mangini doesn't sing at all.
You're absolutely right. I've been banned from a dream theater Facebook group by saying exactly that... Portnoy was not only an exceptional drummer he was also the main composer of the band. His brain was a powerhouse. He would have amazing ideias on the spot that would transform the music completely. And yes... He was the brake that refrained the rudess madness. As a talented keyboardist and composer as he is sometimes he goes to far. His solos and stuff are less organic than Moore, and hell I'll say it, even Sherinian. He plays a bunch of notes fast, and that shows skill but sometimes that's not what the song needs. And portnoy as an older element of the band had the power to stop that. Now it looks like it's a battle between him and petrucci on wich one is faster. Mangini great drummer for sure. But doesn't have the power to compose or guide like portnoy. And the all thing with labrie it's just because portnoy had the balls to tell him that he's not singing good nowadays. Labrie has a strong ego and couldn't cope with that. On stage when he starts to do circles around the stage and not facing the audience you know he's gonna fail... He usually does that on the difficult parts where he knows he's goona screw up. Wich is kind of ironic because he would stand still and focus on the part he probably woul do much better. Instead he just grabs the microfone and starts wondering on stage turning the back on the audience and falling miserable. My two cents. And I'm entitled to give my critic cuz I buy their stuff since 1998, CDS dvds everything even the stuff I don't like that much
You nailed it! What most people miss is that Portnoy was not only the drummer (although he is a brilliant drummer), but was the brains and heart of the band, the main composer, the lyricist, the one member that knew how to get all the crazy ideas from the other musical geniuses in the band and turn into music. That is what the band lost when Portnoy left. As of 2020, it is not difficult to get a drummer who can play all the repertory that Portnoy recorded, what is difficult is to find the rest. That is what is been missing so much on Dream Theater for the last years.
Portnoy was kind of an ass. He always made sure his drums were done before anyone elses parts. You may notice that every single song they did with him had the drums turned to 11 while the rest of the band played back for him. This is the way bad metal bands hide lazy keyboards and guitars. This band doesn't need to hide anything. Though his drumming was outstanding his ego was just to much. kinda why they let him go so quickly after he asked for a 5 year hiatus.
@@skildude It's a frequently-noted observation that the most talented people in the world are often, shall we say, "hard to work with." But I don't think this was ever the case with Portnoy (maybe in the early years when he was drinking a lot, but since he sobered up, nah). Yes, he was Dream Theater's de facto band leader, but that was because he was the best person for the job, the exuberant, passionate, intense kind of person that fans just love. He founded the band in the mid '80s, and was an integral part of it for 25 years. If he'd been truly hard to work with, the band would've seen SO much more member turnover in that time. They did lose one vocalist and two keyboardists (Dominici didn't have the sound they wanted, and Moore and Sherinian both left because of artistic differences), but kept the same lineup for over 10 years once Rudess joined the band; that would never have happened if the other members were unhappy with the situation, or if Portnoy was a domineering ass. They'd either have asked him to leave, or they'd all have left. And it should be noted that this period coincided with the band's elevation from fringe metal band (in the late '90s) to the kings of the prog metal world by 2006...whatever they were doing was working, and Portnoy was a massive part of that.
No, aside from practical concerns (i.e. Portnoy was the ONLY band member who could support himself WITHOUT Dream Theater...after Jordan joined and LTE disbanded, there really were no successful side projects for anyone except Portnoy), I think the main reason they split was ego. Portnoy saw the direction the band was going and was smart enough to realize that it just didn't live up to the earlier years. They were repeating themselves, forgetting that experimentation is THE thing that made them successful in the first place (progressive metal shouldn't stay the same...there should be new styles and influences that enter the music as a band grows, that's what progressive MEANS). Their technical abilities grew, but their songwriting was stagnant, and after Octavarium, regressing. So he wanted to take a break, to go start other projects, work with other people, and come back to Dream Theater more refreshed, with new ideas from new places. The band had stopped evolving, and he was putting in all this work (as the band leader) but not enjoying it anymore. Perhaps if he didn't hold that position, having taken on all of those responsibilities (from marketing, interviews, managing the ever-changing setlists, to dealing with the band's finances, and being the member who liaised with all of the people who worked for Dream Theater behind the scenes, making sure they were all doing what they needed to, it was a LOT), he would've been more content to just see what happened if he stayed on as their drummer beyond 2010, but he wasn't just unhappy with the direction of the band...he was burnt out, and that sealed everyone's fate.
The other band members *weren't motivated* to see the downward direction of the band, because it wasn't in their INTERESTS to see it (they needed the band, it was their livelihood). And so they stopped caring about the quality of the product (Systematic Chaos and Black Clouds & Silver Linings are their two worst, most inconsistent* albums of the Portnoy Era - even Falling into Infinity surpasses them), and (like so many other bands before them) began to feel that their legacy would carry them forward, irrespective of whether their new music continued to be exceptional. They were Dream Theater, and people would pay to see them play the old stuff, and buy their new albums even though they weren't as good as their older ones; they could ride that legacy for another decade or two, no problem. And they were partly correct; they did retain some of their fanbase. But honestly, not me. And I know I'm not alone...plenty of us agreed with Portnoy - they needed a break, and who knows just how good they'd be if he'd gotten even a year or two off, to pursue other projects, to relax and rekindle their musical curiosity? It's a shame that they didn't take this path because if they did, they might still be the kings of prog metal. Oh well.
*Inconsistent because they had good tracks, just not enough of them.
My favorite song of all time. Absolute masterpiece, epic song made for my soul literally haha. I would like to highly suggest you reading and doing research about the song. It contains a whole lot of nuggets and hidden meanings which really explains why are the tings the way they are. It's truly incredible.
Panic Attack is DT song, in fact it's on the Octavarium album :)
For other DT songs I would recommend Metropolis 1, a classic DT, probably the most influential and important song in their catalog.
"The singer just sings within the same octave"-arium. Almost like he's trapped inside it.
As a composer, I think you would really have some fun and a bit of a challenge trying to interpret Dream Theater's Dance of Eternity. It takes an eternity to learn to dance to it due to its 108 time signature changes.
My all time favorite song. Just brilliant from start to finish.
1/2 hour of precious tune 🥳
Amazing breakdown! I can probably speak for many other DT fans to say we greatly appreciate you taking nearly 20 minutes to thoroughly review a song like this. I also appreciate that you have expertise in music, and you understand what is going on.
After the intro, I must say I didn't think you were going to end up enjoying it. It is a rare song in that I have listened to it at least 100 times, and still get visible goosebumps by the end. I would love to see more DT from you. Since many other people also suggested it, A Change Of Seasons would be awesome next!
Didn't even realize I wanted to see a reaction to this! Now you've done everything I've wanted you to react to AND more
I can't believe it took Mike Portnoy only two weeks to write the drum piece. Amazing!
Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence disk 2 is definitely worth a try!
Yup, I feel the intro is a little too dragged out, but it puts in all the main melodies of the song to be focused on, into your head, especially since those melodies are even more impactful in the end, when it all returns from the craziness into this epic new version of the acoustic melody. Also, it's cool that it has the most satisfying resolution in the end, cuz the entire concept of this song is everything ends where it begins. Check out the meaning behind this song, it makes me appreciate the song even more. Also, this song almost completes the entire album's concept, and since this is the last song of the album, it ends on the intro and very first note of the first song off of this album. What a masterpiece.
Hello, you’re everywhere
First off all. This is sooo cool John Snow, apart from fighting with white walkers, also has his other hobbies like reacting to music on YT :D
Secondly I mean:
1. The very last part that You heard in this masterpiece (and You seemed to be a bit confused if it is the end of the piece or not) is actually a mirror theme of the introduction to the first song of the whole Octavarium album. Dream Theater used to have great concepts for their albums and event for linking one album to the next one.
2. A Change Of Seasons
3. DT could still surprise You even more (assuming You are not familiar with their work). Check this another masterpiece: Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence (not the album which is btw also excelent but the second part of that album which is actually a standalone piece called Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence which is like 40min and is built from 8 parts (but the concept is one hell of a masterpiece).
4. And did I tell about masterpieces of DT? No? Because DT has tons of it: Metropolis, Metropolis pt2 which is like 77min 2 acts and 12 scenes, Under a Glass Moon, Learning to Live, The Great Debate, Stream of Consciousness, The Best of Times, The Count of Tuscany
5. And I am 100% sure I skipped a few of another ones because I am writing it like it goes. From my memory.
Cheers!
(not a native)
"its like its going full circle" dude, you've interpretated the song very well, amazing, great video❤️
Dream Theater simply had to be the finale for prog week. Octavarium is truly a masterpiece of a song, but not the only one from Dream Theater.
Metropolis Pt.2 is still one of my all time favorite albums of all time and i was lucky enough to see them perform the whole album from start to finish live. It's a concept album telling a story, so it's best listened to from start to finish. Maybe an idea for a 10k subs special video or a livestream or something like that ;)
Oh and if you haven't looked it up, since you mentioned it sounded like 5-6 instruments. They are only 5 people with 1 guitarist, 1 bassist, 1 keyboard/pianist, a drummer and the singer. So just a single guitar and the keyboard that did most of the melodical work ;)
I really appreciate that you waited out the final seconds of the track and actually let it breathe. So few reactions do that and it drives me nuts!
Fun fact: that low F on the piano right at the end is a tie to their previous album which ends the same way, whilst also coming full circle on this album which opens both with the low F and the sci-fi pulsing sound underneath!
This was such a well laid out description of the songs structure. Good reactions to an epic DT favorite. Panic attack is from this album, so may be why you heard a similar tone that reminded you of it. My first time viewing you. Nice work!
loved your comments on this one. Opened my mind about a song that I already loved to death - the tension trap in the early parts, and the thematic elements (singing dropping with the ideas of laying down). This piece hits emotions so many time at so many levels. I envy you listening to it for the first time :)
This song is brilliant. They put so much thought into the structure and concept of the song, and how it actually ties in to the album as a whole. You caught on to one of the callbacks to other songs on the album (panic attack), and there’s other references peppered in throughout the whole song to other themes and sounds of previous songs. Also interesting to note that the song, which is the last track on the album, actually ends on the exact same chord/sound that it opens with, emphasizing the circular theme of the album and song.
Loved seeing somebody who is well versed in composition and theory take a look at Dream Theater and this song. There’s so much hidden in the structure of their music that many people don’t really notice because they don’t have the theoretical background. Kudos!
They often use that "callback/foreshadowing" theme on their albums...it's one of my favorite things about this band.
The crazy thing is that it feels like I barely scratched the surface with this one-shot analysis, not just because I only had a single listen of it but also because I don't have the context of the rest of the album.
Thanks for the shout out. Yes the other posters are correct that you should react to Change Of Seasons next.
Also for 24 min songs you must do symphonyX- the odessy
Absolutely wonderful song!
+1 for symphony x
Is Wings of tragedy Better?
@@otacon04psnyes listen to it
@@otacon04psn hard to pick but I think brian would prefer the odyssey
Thanks for guiding me all the way through a Dream Theater song, for the first time. I don't know why, but I have never had enough patience to hear out an entire song by them. I'm gonna say it's because I was a BTBAM fan first and they're basically a 20 year younger version of Dream Theater.
Btbam?
@@Isaiah_McIntosh Between the Buried and Me
hahahaha same, never listened to dream theater till now
i just got to the end of the video and i think he enjoyed BTBAM more than dream theater and i cant blame him hahaha
@@lizzieturbett7444To each his own but I will take DT everytime!
Wow this is the best possible reaction to this song! So beautifully experienced, analyzed, and explained! Perfect reaction. Just perfect
Very rightly pointed outs picking a good tone is not trivial thing, it’s a real skill set possessed only by the true greats. After such a wonderful video. I’m just craving for the next Dream Theater reaction from you, please do some more from them, any song suggested in the chat.
A good contrasting reaction to show some of dream theaters range would be The Dance of Eternity, although the live version is a must as it shows them playing and sounds amazing.
It's interesting that you talk a lot about the tone and wah on the keyboard in that section at 13:42, because if you watch them perform this live he actually has a moog synthesizer he brings along on tour just to play that one part. Every other part of the show he uses his main keyboard rig, but I guess he liked that sound so much he went out of his way to bring that extra hardware with him just for that one part.
This is my first video of yours that I’ve seen, and Octavarium is my absolute favorite song of all time.
I couldn’t agree more on what you’ve said in your analysis. Thank you for this - I’ll definitely be checking out more of your videos.
Please check out more Dream Theater! I’d recommend their album “Metropolis Part 2: Scenes From A Memory.” I think you’ll love it.
Great video, Bryan. Since you mentioned the concept of repeated themes and the idea of the vocals mirroring musical themes, I thought I would mention to you that there is an overarching them of "cycles" (moving in circles), represented by the concept of a musical octave, that runs throughout not only the song, but the entire album as well. The theme is used SO many different ways and in so many layers. For instance, the album is structured to mimic an octave in the key of F, in that it has 8 tracks. The first song begins in the key of F, the second in G, on up through the final track (Octavarium), which is also in F (an octave higher than track 1), representing the 8 naturals in an octave. But they didn't stop there. In between tracks 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6, they inserted segue-ways that jump up half a step from the prior song to represent the 5 accidentals (F#, G#, A#, C#, and D#) in the F octave. Another way it is used is in the fourth (of five) moment in the song--this is the part where you described it as sounding like a horror movie, and the vocals almost sounding like a horror movie narrator. Each of the 8 short verses in that movement are about one of the 8 tracks on the album, and right at the beginning of each, if you listen carefully, you can hear another vocalist in a gruff voice (the drummer) calling out the corresponding note on the scale ("root," "second," "third," ... "octave"). Anyhow, not to post an entire novel, but it is a really cool concept that is not obvious to someone not as familiar with the band, so I thought I would point it out, and show just a couple of the many examples of how it shows up on the album and the title song.
This album is interesting. All eight songs start on a different step of the scale with the octavarium starting in the same key as the first song, hence the octave. There are also musical themes/motifs in this song that are littered the throughout the rest of the album so when you hear them there’s an overall sense of familiarity.
And faint clips of the other songs are audible during the section where it describes the scale and the themes of those songs.
Also, at the end of songs 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 there are small sound effects. Song #1 ("The Root of All Evil") is in the key of F, song #2 ("The Answer Lies Within") is in the key of G, the sound effect between the two songs is in the key of F#. There is obviously no sound effect between "I Walk Beside You" (key of B) and "Panic Attack" (key of C) because there is no black key between B and C, and the same goes for "Sacrificed Sons" (key of E) and "Octavarium" (key of F).
Dream Theater is an almost neverending pit of interesting facts 😂
Wow this is one of the first reaction video's of DT that I have seen where the critic seems to really know what he's talking about. Awesome! +1 sub!
Great reaction to such a fantastic song. I think you perfectly explained why this is such a masterpiece. Also yes panic attack is another Dream Theater song off the same album.
And a few other Dream Theater songs I suggest reacting too are "The Count of Tuscany" another story driven, longer song but heavier and has an epic ending. Or "The Shattered Fortress (Live at the Boston Opera House)" so you can see what they sound like live and how they all play.
I always love how the verse starting with 'Sailing on the seven seas' is one long portmanteau (the last word of each phrase is the first word of the next)
The song ended where it begun, the album ended where it begun, and this was actually the end of a string of albums that were actually connected by a note starting from Metropolis pt1 skip to Scenes From a Memory and ended at the final note of Octavarium leads back to the beginning of track one, and if you have the albums on the string, on repeat, it could start again at Metropolis pt1.
Ending of finally free, are the begining of the glass prison. And ending of 6DoIT are the begining of As I Am (train of thought).
Everything's ended, where it began.
Please do Count of Tuscany. You will get to hear more of James Lebrie's vocal range. Also, the second half of the song is not just one of the most epic and emotional parts of songs Dream Theater has done, but one of the most of any song I've ever heard. Please do this song....
funny you said the word DREAMSCAPE, one of petruccis sig pedals are called dreamscape :D
Dreamscape is an old progressive metal band from Germany; I believe the bass player of Subsignal was a member of it.
The song is about someone waken from a coma... that explains the use of the wah (dizziness) and the reference for panic attack song (he was about to panic!!) :D
great analysis ;P
For that last part to "work" it's intended to work with the first song from that album called The root of all evil
It's even more impressive to watch them play this live on the "Score"concert. It's in two parts on TH-cam. You get a good look at him playing the Fingerboard.
The last section and the solo section of Octavarium still gets me every time I hear it!
Magic how the build with the last vocal passage, which starts as all but the drums with crunch picking coming in soon after that chuckitalloutthere solo... is so similar to the Vincent Price finish of Michael Jackson’s Thriller track! U get that huh!?!?
I'll recommend Milliontown by Frost* as another great epic, 26 minutes of bliss
And Black Light Machine too.
An Epic song that I have yet to see anyone do a reaction to is Marillion’s “Ocean Cloud”. The story was inspired by a real life ocean rower or oarsman named Don Allum, the first person to row to both sides of the Atlantic. It’s an awesome song.
It's added to the list! I hope to get around to it sometime.
I've used to skip the long intro, but now it give me a chills everytime I heard it
It always builds up the song and gives it a boost
Rock opera is an interesting observation. This song is, according to the booklet, divided into 5 acts, and is the last song on the album. The first song on the album, "The Root of All Evil", is listed as act 6, and begins with the same note as the last note in this song, the dummmmmmmm.
In regards to what song to listen to next by Dream Theater, I would recommend "In the Presence of Enemies". It is divided into 2 parts; part 1 is the first of the album, part 2 is the last, all because they liked the song so much they wanted to begin and end with it. A lot of people might disagree with me, but I prefer part 2, and that is what I would suggest you hear next. It is in a similar vein to this Octavarium.
You keep mentioning “tension”... in the beginning...😂you are spot on... need we remind you... that before this lineup there was the group... “Liquid Tension Experiment”. 😂👍. Subscribed. Obviously you catch on to the “tidbits”. 😂👍👍👍. We musicians are nitty gritty.
Yeah panic attack from this same album, about the song you reffer
And a whole lot of the point of this song is about cycling through, recalling past things, and actively referencing earlier songs in the spoken-word part. I wouldn't be surprised if cribbing musically wasn't an intentional element of that.
This is one of those albums, like Pink Floyd's _The Wall_ that cycles in on itself, where the last sound is the same as the first sound and it loops.
Love you brian but I can't help it: "More theatrical than a rock song......Almost like a kind of dreamscape" Dream Theater!
I love Octavarium (this piece) ... it's got so many beautiful, epic and uplifting (or incredibly melancholy) themes and the way DT expanded on those themes and used their brilliant musicianship to the hilt ... it's just an amazing piece.
i'm sure it's been said (and maybe even in your video after the song) but this song reflects on the other songs on this album. during the "horror movie" part, each line is referencing the songs in numerical order and actually plays clips of each song in the background. finally ending with the 8th song - the octave - which is this song itself, referencing itself and ending with the intro motif again.
One cool thing about Dream Theater's "epics" (A Change of Seasons, Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, Octavarium, Count of Tuscany, Illumination Theory) is that they're all quite different. Octavarium was their great ode to prog history. Speaking of which, it would be awesome to hear you react to some classic prog: Yes, Genesis, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Rush, Gentle Giant. I get why people recommend newer stuff, but there's plenty of classics that need attention too.
You should react to Ministry of lost Souls by DT in the future! Considering how good you are at understanding tension and release, that song is a perfect example of it.
Dream Theater got me hooked in ‘92, Pain of Salvation took my soul in ‘99 and recently I’ve been hooked and intrigued by Native Construct (sadly already disbanded; I saw your great reaction of their song “Mute”) and Others By No One. Seeing how exceptionally well you react to music (progressions, patterns, rythms, themes, tones, etc), it would be very interesting to see how you would react to Others By No One. They use a broad range of musical ideas, techniques and instruments to create well thought out songs you’d be delighted to dissect and react to. The song I’d recommend for Others By No One is (and I’d be most interested to see this one reacted too, because OBNO need and deserve it):
Dr. Breacher and the Time Travel Anomaly (20 minutes)
I’d be happy to provide you with the right link, if you’re interested.
Thanks for your great reactions and keep up the good work!
one of my favorite bands! been a fan of theirs since the beginning, and i still am. Their new album Distance Over Time is amazing.
I remember back then when I bought this album in 2006, I didn't really knew what I got in my hands until I arrived and played it at home... It was like, dude... continuous mindblow from beginning to the end
Watched/listened to all 41+ minutes, Bryan!
Love putting these videos on the second monitor while I play Mythgard (digital CCG) on the main.
I sometimes wonder how many people actually make it through these longer videos and what percentage of that group listen to it like a podcast. Not that I take any offense to that -- I don't offer much in the way of visuals so moving the video itself elsewhere and mostly listening to it while doing other things is probably how a lot of people do it. Maybe I should start a podcast.....
@@CriticalReactions I'm sure it varies, but personally I have a lot of down time so I do actually sit and and actively watch many of your videos all of the way through.
That being said... those are probably the 20-25 minute long videos for bands that I really enjoy. Anything over 25 minutes and that is when I usually play a game or something and put it up on the second monitor.
100% would listen to a podcast, but we would miss some of your awesome reactions (like during Ants of the Sky, watching that one now lol).
You've got to love the little Christmas interlude by the keyboards
Wow dude. If this was indeed your first listen I am amazed of all the details you picked up. I watched the whole video and listened carefully to everything you said. It was very interesting listening to one of my favorite DT songs from a composer/musician's point of view. I truly believe that you have to listen to this one more than once. That's actually the case with most of DT songs. I am still picking up details after years of enjoying DT music. Not only Panic Attack is a DT song, it's on the Octavarium album. Finally, you have to do more DT songs and maybe whole albums (if it's a consept one). Scenes from a memory is THE masterpiece in my eyes (or should have said ears :P ) but you have to do the whole album. Six degrees of iner turbulence (double disc album) is insane although maybe a bit underated. Maybe do A Change of Seasons which is another epic song of them as many suggest. Whether you come up with another DT video or not, I strongly suggest to keep listening to their music. You are in for a treat! Cheers!
Edit: Needless yo say, you earned another subscriber. Thanks.
This is an homage to previous music genres that inevitably come back around in popularity. Initially it is repelled, then accepted, then embraced. The realization of the perpetual circle seems foundational to music and life.
Some sounds you heard in the end of the song at around 25:20 in the vid is the beginning of the first track of the album, 'The Root of All Evil', which begins with the final note of the track 'In the Name of God' from the band's previous album, 'Train of Thought'. 'Train of Thought's first track, 'As I Am', started with the last note from the title track of their album 'Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence', which in turn started with the noise that ended their 'Scenes from a Memory' album at the end of the song 'Finally Free'. So basically for 4 albums they've started their first track from the ending of the last track of the previous album, but in this case they've ended with the same theme that started the album, which made the album a cycle in itself, allowing the band to have a clean start with their next album
It sounds a bit complicated, but having heard all these songs it's pretty much understandable. And I think it was a brilliant touch to the album's concept of the circle of things in our life (the ending lyric of the song is 'This story ends where it began', huh)
Brilliant! I've never noticed that...thanks for sharing. I've always been fascinated with how they hid an entire concept album ("Twelve Step Suite") within several other albums...didn't realize that they also linked the albums you cited in another way.
There is a LIve version of this song from the Score DVD that will show off the Continuum Fingerboard with full orchestra
So as Chris Connolly has mentioned, the instrument at the beginning is (mostly) a Continuum Fingerboard from Haken, but what isn't mention is the price, that single instrument is $5000 and only one of three instruments Jordan Rudess (steel lap guitar and keyboard/synth) plays live on stage when performing songs such as this.
Highly recommend checking out this song live btw, it's amazing to see Rudess get absolutely lost in the beauty of performing this opening and the live has a full orchestra.
Dream Theater is definitely one of if not my favorite band ever. This video was great and your reactions seemed fair and you definitely seemed like you knew your stuff. If you ever get interest in Dream Theater their album The Astonishing is a masterpiece. It's a long one, but 100% worth the listen.
The beginning is actually played by the Jordan Ruddess on a Haken Continuum Fingerboard. It's like the fretless version of a keyboard. Very interesting peice of equipment.
You can get a lot of content with Dream Theater, specially both images and words and metropolis pt. 2 albums, I'm following your channel from now on!
I recommend to react to The Dance of Eternity by them
You must watch at listen mo often to dream theater. Bec they were so great musicians, to to also discover their style so atleast you know them well. Inlove them so much. And thank you for reacting them .
Excellent ... PANIC ATTACK is on the Octavatium lp. Many of their tracks do begin as an epic intro but most of them finish up as such ... Ya just must listen to their array ... I really enjoyed that ... I felt as we were communicating ... I don't read music, so i consider myself blessed and well learned ... by the intensity i applied listening to so much great composition since i'za wee lad ... in '74 I was 12 and began listening to ELP, Kansas, Yes, Styx, Supertramp ... Alan Parsons, Genesis, etc. Then in '76 I was introduced to Return To Forever, John McLaughlin, Gino Vanelli, just so much ! Of course, Chicago, Grand Funk, Earth Wind & Fire ... all the groovy things ... I admire soooo many musicians & the likes of this Dreamtheater band ??? I've seen them many times & they are on the top of my list ... Enjoy, young man & keep up the great work ... ✌💙🙏
Dream Theater's work can roughly be divided into a few eras: The Kevin Moore era(original keyboardist), the Derek Sherinian era(2nd keyboardist), the Jordan Rudess era(current keyboardist) and the post-Portnoy era(after the band split with the original drummer). Octavariam is arguably the best of the Rudess era material, so I'd recommend trying some songs from the other eras. Some of their stuff is divided into multiple tracks, but meant to be listened to as a single piece like this song was. I'd recommend the "A Mind Beside Itself" trilogy from the Moore era, consisting of "Erotomania," "Voices" and "The Silent Man." If you search for it by the trilogy name, you can find them in a single video.
After that, I'd go with "A Change of Seasons" or maybe "Trial of Tears" for the Sherinian era.
And to be honest, I'm not much on what they've been doing since Portnoy left since I wasn't a huge fan of the last album he was with them on, but I hear the latest album is pretty great. Maybe someone else can give you suggestions from that era.
The song is the end to the circle starting from scenes from a memory all next albums started where the previous album ended. Octaviarium ended where the album began, on that first note of the album. The whole song is thematically bringing an albums long epic to an end
Always goosebump every time 😵💫😵💫
Yess sir "panic attack" the most beautiful song from them ,
As a long standing fan of them, and specifically of this song, it was great to see a musician/composer listen to this for the first time, and to see the reaction. Watching this reminded me very much of my own reaction when I first heard it. This made for great viewing. Thanks!
You should really check out “the count of tuscany“ by dream theater also a great medley
You should listen to the whole album, it's a full concept around the number eight, starting by the fact each song is in a different key from the scale. Thanks for daring reviweing this song.
Not sure if anyone's mentioned this, but there's only 1 guitarist
can we get a DT ee song on Tranzit remastered?
@@Toiletman24 That'd be so out of place hahaha
PF´s Shine on you crazy diamond is a PRETTY big influence here. :D Also, there´s no wah on the keyboard sound. Its the portamento settings that makes the sound you refer to.
Breaking All Illusions
for only 12:25 minutes..short EPIC
True! I just wish Portnoy played drums on that track. I really dislike the mix of Manigni’s drums: it’s night and day, really
octavarium is pretty interesting album from the composing sense - from Wiki - When starting to work on what would become Octavarium, Portnoy noted that it would be their eighth studio album and that they had recently released their fifth live album, Live at Budokan. This sequence mirrored the octave on a musical keyboard: each octave contains eight naturals and five accidentals. Portnoy suggested that they use that concept for the entire album.[12] When writing, the band delegated each song a different key. Sound effects were placed between songs to connect them: for example, "The Root of All Evil", written in F minor, and the following track, "The Answer Lies Within", written in G minor, were connected by a sound effect in the key of F♯ minor. The album's lyrics and song titles featured references to this concept. Portnoy cited the titles "The Root of all Evil" (referring to the musical term "root") and "Octavarium" ("the octave of the octave") as two examples of this.