I saw Bradley in a pet store once. I asked to take a picture with him and he knee capped me with a baseball. He’s a really nice guy, i hope to meet him again soon
Awake has arguably the best production out of all of them. Their sound is HUGE. A long with Train Of Thought of course in terms of production. But Awake is No.1
My first exposure to the band, and my favourite to this day. They were on fire. Samples, industrial undertones, vocal melodies that are actually interesting as opposed to whatever they have been doing for the past 20 years, music with actual breathing space between the demisemiquavers, singable melodies _and_ chugging riffs, and LaBrie who can still do absolutely anything with his voice. Majestic.
The most ironic thing about DT's discography is that people give Black Clouds a lot of shit while 3 of its 6 songs are considered among the best the band has ever written
The fact is, DT just have some albums which fully consist of some of their best songs) So any other album which is not fully masterpiece goes a little down
James LaBrie lives in my town. I've seen him at the grocery store probably a dozen times by now and have talked to him a couple of times. My mother did too, haha.
@@ikarusxv I've noticed that when famous people live within an hour or two from Toronto, they're often billed as being from Toronto, just because it's a famous city name, and more relatable. For example, pro wrestler Edge is from Orangeville (an hour northwest of Toronto), but I've seen him billed as being from Toronto. :p
If nothing else, Dream Theater is just plain old dumb fun sometimes. I like the fact that they don't really take themselves TOO seriously like a lot of other prog bands.
I also find so ridiculous that you'll see a lot of haters writing reviews about the band, and criticising the over the top proggy instrumental passages, saying it's "wankery for the sake of wankery", and "typical DT". That's like an Iron Maiden hater criticising their music for having "too many guitar harmonies and dueling solos". Dude, just say you hate the band and don't even bother with a review, like wtf...
I find the chorus on Sacrificed Sons a bit corny (it was probably less corny at the time when 9/11 was more fresh) But other than that Octavarium is a fantastic album
Same with FII. Astonishing may not be the best, but the nerve of this prick calling it being made by high schooler. Let's see him make a better album than that.
falling into infinity is severely underrated imo peruvian skies, hollow years, hell's kitchen, lines in the sand, take away my pain, and trial of tears are all good
The most slept on thing in the entire Dream Theater catalogue for me is the guitar tone on Systematic Chaos. Especially on tracks like In the Presence of Enemies and Ministry of Lost Souls. Legit might be the greatest guitar tone EVER!
Scene from a memory is about a young man who has dreams, nightmares, about a woman, then he goes to the hypnotherapist, hypnotizes him and discovers that in his previous reincarnation, in his previous life, that woman is his brother's wife and he was her lover, then the brother discovers them and kills them and it turns out that he continued his life and became the hymnotherapist who is an older man, then when he discovers that this patient is the reincarnation of his brother he goes to his house and kills him again.
@@Chet_Philodenge Pretty much, yes. If you look up the album (Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory) on Wikipedia there is a section called "Synopsis" that has a much longer summary. For all the talent that progressive rock/metal musicians have, lyrics usually aren't part of the package. They're often bloated and dumb - just like a lot of the album artwork.
I think you need to dig into Six Degrees again, that is for sure S tier! The six degrees songs alone make that an absolute s tier album not to mention the glass prison. At first i wasn't sold on the album until i realized that most of the album was actually one big song that tackles some really interesting subjects. for sure worth another listen.
yup already Six degrees (song) alone hits me different for reminding of past and some life long shit I gotta deal with. Anyways it was same for me at first just got into few first songs and didn't realize 2nd half was Epic
My wife and I had the orchestral interlude from Illumination Theory as her entrance music at our wedding. Despite her not liking Dream Theater or prog metal in general - apparently it makes her anxious (yes, I'm looking at you Jordan!) - she said it was one of the most beautiful pieces she'd ever heard. It was a beautiful moment.
What a fantastic choice...and I have to agree with your wife. It is one of the most beautiful pieces of music I have ever heard and brings me to tears 😢😢❤
As a man, you are not allowed to cry unless one of three conditions are met: 1. A loved one dies. 2. Your bride is walking down the altar. 3. You’re listening to one of the following DT songs: “Home, The Spirit Carries On, Finally Free, Goodnight Kiss, Solitary Shell, Vacant, Octavarium (Pt. 1: Someone Like Him).”
Bradley, I would like to briefly speak in defense of Six Degrees It's one of the only albums where the lyrics aren't super cheesy (Bonus shoutout to Octavarium though) Example: Misunderstood. Fucking brilliant song
My first encounter with Dream Theater was in 2017 when my guitar teacher liked how my 15yo ass played through "Highway To Hell", then went like "Now let's do something, let's say, more ambitious" and slapped the tabs to "Pull Me Under" onto the notestand. Fast forward 7 years and I have a neckbeard, 7 string Music Man, a desktop prog project on its way to fame and no romantic life - but I'm happy so 🤷♂️
Everyone hates on Falling Into Infinity but I think they managed to squeeze so much prog into it while under constraint that it birthed a new sub-genre
Peruvian Skies has such an awesome build-up, catchy rhythms, and great lead tones. I love that some of DT's albums sound a fair bit different from their others (although Petrucci always sounds like Petrucci lol). It keeps things interesting imho. Unpopular opinion possibly: Systematic Chaos is in my top 3 albums - it gave us the badass riff that opens The Dark Eternal Night.
Yeah, I don't really understand the hate for FII. The songs are still well written and there's definitely a decent amount of prog elements on there. If there's one DT album people sleep on, it's this one.
Nobody talkin' 'bout Systematic Chaos giving us the badass riff that opens The Dark Eternal Night? One of my fave riffs of all time. I'm prob in the minority but Systematic Chaos is one of my top 3 fave DT albums (it's hard to choose lol). It's all good though. There's stuff I like on every album.
Man, for me 'six degrees' is a freaking masterpiece! Especially once I really got into it's concept and lyrics. I would definitely recommend listening to it in depth.
My dad is a drummer and has been listening to DT my whole life, since 1989. Thanks to him I not only know and love DT, but can play the entirety of a change of seasons. Thanks dad!!
"Dreaamm Feartah" lol Bradley your are exceedingly british! In all seriousness if you play guitar or just know really good music then you love bands like Dream Theater. Well done
Post-Portnoy albums had some straight up bangers & people are sleeping on them Illumination Theory Breaking All Illusions (my favourite solo) Fall Into The Light Barstool Warrior Transcending Time Just to name a few (also, I quite enjoy The Astonishing as a whole, with cheese and all)
I don’t get this whole ‘so you don’t have to’ thing. Isn’t that phrase only meant to apply to bad experiences? Like, I watched every Zack Snyder movie so you don’t have to. Makes total sense. But like I listened to every Opeth or Dream Theater album? That’s a pleasure!
When dream and day unite is such a masterpiece. The words raw and prog usually dont go together lol. Its just very magical. Dnd vibes. And the production has alot of character.
Yeah he listens to the first album for a few seconds then ranks it D tier and says there are no classic songs on there lol. Ytse Jam is one of the best. That first album is better than most of their later formulaic albums.
top-10: 10. Systematic Chaos/Dream Theater 9. AVFTTOTW 8. BC&SL 7. WDADU/Distance Over Time 6. Dramatic Turn 5. Octavarium 4. Six Degrees 3. Train of Thought/Falling Into Infinity (LOVE it!!!) 2. Images and Words/SFAM 1. Awake haven't listened to The Astonishing
Someone that is sane. Unfortunely, for me, something went wrong after Octavarium. I think I enjoyed DT more when the were into some rock/funky riffs, we had a lot of that in the 90s. And maybe... some external producers would help them sometimes...
Of course FIF is the black sheep album of them early days, but I think its still a damn great album! I mean come on, hells kitchen? New millenium? Lines in the sand? Trial of tears?
I enjoyed it more than Awake. It has lots of great ballads like Hollow Years, Take My Pain Away, Anna Lee and also it has Peruvian Skies and Trial of Tears.
I think that once you get used to the production and Charlie's voice, WDADU goes much much higher on the list. A bunch of awesome songs on that record!
i saw bradley in a guitar shop once. i asked to take a picture with him and he stuck a whammy bar violently up wherever it would fit. he's a really nice guy, i hope to meet him again soon
This video saved my marriage, did my homework, mowed my lawn, erased my debt, and pet my dog. Thank you Bradley for your arduous and selfless work as always with these videos. These are truly life-changing times.🙏
A dramatic turn of events should've been higher on the list. There are four absolute bangers: On The Backs of Angels, Bridges in The Sky, Lost Not Forgotten and Breaking All Illusions
When Dream and Day Unite is such a hidden gem Imho. Yes, it was their first album, and in some ways it shows, and of course it was before James Labrie, but that first album has some absolute bangers. It's quite different from their later works but you still gotta love songs like The Killing Hand or Light Fuse and Get Away. Still absolutely 1 of those metal albums in general that I listen to as a guilty pleasure. Also, did you just say that Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence is a boring album? Disk 2 of that album is a concept album not too dissimilar to Scenes from a Memory in many ways, though less of a masterpiece than the former of course. Disk 1 is full of bangers Imho with The Glass Prison being 1 of their all time best songs. Train of Thought is an easy S tier Imho, every song is a masterpiece. Octavarium is a great album, not sure why it receives as much hate as it does from Dream Theater fans. Systematic Chaos is where Dream Theater started going a bit downhill Imho(with the exception of Falling into Infinity of course which was a massive downer). I mean there are still some good songs in that album, but the songs are all so long and unlike their previous long songs, don't fully justify their excessive run time. It's where Dream Theater officially entered their overindulgent stage Imho.
I discovered Dream Theater when I saw Pull Me Under on Headbanger's Ball in late '92 early '93! I immediately bought the album on cassette right after! Then I wanted the debut album and since then I've bought every one of their albums when released. Well minus The Astonishing and the new one coming out. lol
I actually quite like their debut. It's definitely different (more Rush-like, really), and the production is kinda weak, but I really like the songs and the way the album flows. I would have put it at A, myself. (I'd probably also put Images and Words over Metropolis 2.)
I know Awake isn't quite "typical" for the band, but I'd personally put that as their best album. Just fits my style of music better I guess, but otherwise pretty spot on list!
My tierlist (in no particular order within each tier): S: Images, Awake, SFAM, SDOIT, ToT, SC, AVFTTOTW A: Octavarium, BC&SL, ADTOE B: Self titled, Distance Over Time C: WDADU D: FII F: The Astonishing
@@DiegoDeschain For someone who puts AWFTTOTW in front of Octavarium and ADTOF (the pale copy of IAW) in front of FII that's pretty cheeky 😂😂😂😂 you snobbish guy
@@Ziri0615 you're now looking for comments of mine on videos from a month ago? rofl, if you're in love just say so brother, but I have a wife already, sorry my guy.
Trial of Tears is an absolute BANGER! I know Falling Into Infinity as an album wasn't the best but I can't believe your video here cropped off the final track of the album. The guitar work by Petrucci on that track alone is his best at that point in time, with the exception of maybe Under a Glass Moon. Octavarium for me deserves to go in S/God Tier because of the insane amount of thought that went into constructing it, relating it to their signature 5:8 time, working through every key of an octave and finishing on the epic title track that tells a beautiful story and brings about so many emotions, which for me personally is the greatest DT song of all time and up there in the company of Stairway to Heaven, Comfortably Numb, Stargazer, etc.
Fun fact : metropolis part 2 has material from both prior keyboard players as well ! (Kevin Moore and Derek sheranian). I think the fact that they were sitting on some of those demos for years contributed to the final product becoming so rich and refined.
I'll never, ever understand why apparently every DT fan on the internet thinks that The Count Of Tuscany is a strong song. But I don't have to, either.
A Nightmare to Remember is such an emotional roller coaster! If you aren't tearing in that middle part, you have no heart! And The Count of Tuscany is pretty awesome too!
When I saw Dream Theater back in 2009 Mikael Åkerfeldt walked on-stage and growled the "day after day" bit, and that's when I thought "oh ok, *that's* what they *thought* they were doing on the album"
I was introduced to Dream Theater in 1994, been a fan ever since. I've been to maybe 70 or 80 concerts (national acts like stadium & amphitheater shows & 95% metal. (I've seen Tom Petty, Queensryche etc...) so I'm not counting those, but from Sabbath to White Zombie to Type O, Twisted Sister, Megadeath, Metallica, Emperor, GWAR, O-tep, Testament, Machine Head... I've seen a lot!) plus, idk... a hundred more club act tours. And in the vast majority of all those shows; I was front row center stage, but the ONLY show I ever actually got hurt in (Well... there were two, but only one in which I had to be escorted out of the crowd) was Dream Theater. Three songs in and I got a boot heel to the crown of my head from a crowd surfer being thrown toward the stage where I was. Instant Concussion. I didn't fall, but I was dazed, I couldn't look up or lift my head; fortunately, security saw it and pulled me out. I spent the rest of the show sitting at a lone table at the side of the stage with my head down. Migraine headache, the lights, the sound, the vibration... It was killing me, but I obviously couldn't drive. I even think security took my keys away just so I couldn't. Honestly, I don't even remember how I got home. The next week, I had trouble lifting and keeping my head up, it was so painful. I'm not someone to make excuses, but work was hell! I finally went to the Dr and found out that my neck was broken (multiple C1 vertebrae fractures). Basically, it was crushed. I haven't had the chance to go see them again. I hope I get the opportunity though. New album, new tour... 🤞🤘
Never got into Dream Theater, but as an old skool metal head I would argue Fates Warning deserves recognition for their prog metal works, especially the earlier stuff. Awaken the Guardian is my all time favorite!
9:43 Not only the "what was he thinking" bit, but those lyrics..... So Porntoy's supposed to come across as "DEATH" and the last line says: "in the end, everyone survived! GGGRRRROOOOGHHHWWWWWLLLLLLLLLLGGGOOOO" That bit made me laugh ever since I heard it for the first time. It's ridiculous really, hahaha. It's like Gorefest going like: "I BOUGHT MY MOTHER A CHRISTMAS GIFT AND SHE LOVED IT!! GGHHHOOOOORRRRRROOOWWWWLLLLLLLLL" F****'n hell, haha
I first heard DT during my freshman year of high school. I'd been hearing about them for a bit in an old MUD online, and then one day saw the A Change of Seasons cd, so I had to grab it. They're the band that shaped what I consider to be my first real musical tastes. Before then it was always just something to put on the background, but after finding them I started actually seeking out specific bands and listening to as much as I could. ACoS is definitely still my favorite song of theirs to this day.
Awake, Systematic Chaos and Train of Thought are S tier! Agree with everything else. Who can not love the keyboards on Space Dye Vest? Love the change of pace on all of the above albums....
The only song from their latest album that stuck with me was Answering The Call - it sounds like a pleasant dad-rock jam despite being in 13/8 and 7,5 minutes long
I remember a friend in our musician circle who swore he hated dream theater. Later he found TOT off Limewire (so downloaded but it didn’t have the band name.) Later he showed me some honor tye father rapping on his personal solo material. I caught it immediately, then later he showed me this heavy album he’s been into. Love it when things come full circle.,
Falling Into Infinity demos slap too, but the label made them scrap all the stuff (double album) and even hired an external composer to write that crappy chorus on You Not Me (You Or Me, the original was better). In youtube you can find the demos with all the liner notes from Portnoy. Really worthy of your time.
They don't invented "Prog Metal" they reinvented the genre. They made a real turn for prog music and turned "mainstream" again (in the music scene and to prog and metal fans). Fates and Queensryche was the "true inventors" in the more "accurate sense".
@@selim6033 They were also a bit different, meaning Dream Theater, with concentrating more on viruosity with instruments than those others. Fates Warning and Queensryche were prog "only" in the sense of "song" structure, etc, but were not trying to play a million notes a second all the time. Everyone can decide for themselves if that's for the better or the worse, I don't think it's either of those, they are just a bit different. Dream Theater sounds from time to time like jazz fusion, Fates Warning and Queensryche never sound like that. My point is though, that that instumental virtuosity played a big role in Dream Theater getting so successful and poplular in the beginning, it made them look and sound spectacular.
I’m one of those old heads that saw Pull Me Under on MTV and lost my shit! I wore out their Live In Tokyo VHS, mostly because of the Petrucci solo. Hadn’t seen it in 25 years and stumbled upon the video of it earlier this year and damn near started bawling… Nostalgia is a mother fucker 😂
My rankings from best to worst; Awake, Images and Words, Train of Thought, Six Degrees, Scenes, Seasons/Infinity, When Dream & Day Unite, Systematic Chaos, The Astonishing, A Dramatic Turn, Black Clouds, Distance Over Time, A View From, Octavarium, Self Titled.
🎸 Get started at Bradley Hall's Guitar School FREE for 7 days! 👉 www.patreon.com/bradleyhallguitar
Bradley please start liking Six Degrees
specifically the song Misunderstood
also do Devin Townsend next
@@o-mega7515 Agree! I love Misunderstood and the whole 1st disc of Six Degrees!
I saw Bradley in a pet store once. I asked to take a picture with him and he knee capped me with a baseball. He’s a really nice guy, i hope to meet him again soon
Had the same experience ☺️
💀
Did he shoot the baseball at your knees with a bat, or how did he go about it?
Sorry bro I just really dislike your knees
It's called a British hello
Old school DT fans love Awake. It's only "slept on" by the more recent fans.
I’m a more old school DT fan
Awake has arguably the best production out of all of them. Their sound is HUGE. A long with Train Of Thought of course in terms of production. But Awake is No.1
First three albums and even a bit of falling into infinity are cool. Kevin Moore left and everything pretty much went to sh*t
My first exposure to the band, and my favourite to this day. They were on fire. Samples, industrial undertones, vocal melodies that are actually interesting as opposed to whatever they have been doing for the past 20 years, music with actual breathing space between the demisemiquavers, singable melodies _and_ chugging riffs, and LaBrie who can still do absolutely anything with his voice. Majestic.
@@ricarcorpsecan't ignore SFAM, 6doit, Octavarium...!
The most ironic thing about DT's discography is that people give Black Clouds a lot of shit while 3 of its 6 songs are considered among the best the band has ever written
The fact is, DT just have some albums which fully consist of some of their best songs) So any other album which is not fully masterpiece goes a little down
The only song that I think is considered one of their best on black clouds is The Count Of Tuscany
You often hear people saying Best Of Times has one of JPs best solos though
And those 3 songs also make up almost two thirds of its runtime
Which 3? The last 3?
James LaBrie lives in my town. I've seen him at the grocery store probably a dozen times by now and have talked to him a couple of times. My mother did too, haha.
Doesn't he live in Toronto?
@@ikarusxv North of Toronto.
@@Ripplin nice, I thought he lived in the city of Toronto itself
@@ikarusxv I've noticed that when famous people live within an hour or two from Toronto, they're often billed as being from Toronto, just because it's a famous city name, and more relatable. For example, pro wrestler Edge is from Orangeville (an hour northwest of Toronto), but I've seen him billed as being from Toronto. :p
Yell some chungus and run away
If nothing else, Dream Theater is just plain old dumb fun sometimes. I like the fact that they don't really take themselves TOO seriously like a lot of other prog bands.
Very true!
I also find so ridiculous that you'll see a lot of haters writing reviews about the band, and criticising the over the top proggy instrumental passages, saying it's "wankery for the sake of wankery", and "typical DT". That's like an Iron Maiden hater criticising their music for having "too many guitar harmonies and dueling solos". Dude, just say you hate the band and don't even bother with a review, like wtf...
@@DiegoDeschainyeah if anything they'd be the first people to make fun of their virtuoso ridiculousness
I feel like sometimes it's done ironically
@@eduardozepol2000that interlude before the first verse of Lost not Forgotten is confirmed ironic, and all of Dance of Eternity most definetly too
Mike from Opeth doesn't take himself seriously at all either
Nor do the Meshuggah guys or Devin
The first seven songs on Octavarium are good, but the closing title track is among the greatest prog songs ever written
It's way too long imo and I like Opeth
Agreed, the track Octavarium is one of the best songs I've ever heard. I love 'Razor's Edge' so much.
Panic Attack is one of their best songs ever.
@@TimothyGodshall Octavarium is long but really dynamic .
I find the chorus on Sacrificed Sons a bit corny (it was probably less corny at the time when 9/11 was more fresh)
But other than that Octavarium is a fantastic album
Jokes on you, I already listened to all of them. AT MY OWN PLEASURE
The Six Degrees slander is unforgiveable wtf
Same with FII.
Astonishing may not be the best, but the nerve of this prick calling it being made by high schooler. Let's see him make a better album than that.
The chap talks absolute shite.
only the real ones get FII and SDOIT
He barely mentioned 12 step suite, which DT fans love
So is any When Dream and Day Unite slander ever
Honestly though Lines in the Sand is one of my favorite songs, the Falling into Infinity album is really underrated IMO
falling into infinity is severely underrated imo
peruvian skies, hollow years, hell's kitchen, lines in the sand, take away my pain, and trial of tears are all good
Based opinion
Yes! I love those tracks as well!
Absolutely!!!
Lines in the Sand is one of my favorite Petrucci solos of all time
It's my fav DT album.
Six Degrees is a Masterpiece. Fight me! I don't freaking care. I will die on this hill!
Yes!
Fully agree. The Great Debate, Blind Faith, Misunderstood, and of course Glass Prison are fucking bangers in their own right.
i'll die on that hill with you 🙏
If you mean the second disk, totally agree. First disk, not much.
@@MnyFrNthng both are exceptional
The most slept on thing in the entire Dream Theater catalogue for me is the guitar tone on Systematic Chaos. Especially on tracks like In the Presence of Enemies and Ministry of Lost Souls. Legit might be the greatest guitar tone EVER!
I agree.
DT always sounds good when they sound heavy.
@@HenriqueM-jh1ye It also helps if LaBrie shuts up.
Stream of consciousness has to be my favourite DT song ever
L take buddy
always gotta listen Vacant before that
@@VacantSpirityesss
Hot take my man
@@vitorbueno4301 nuh uh
Scene from a memory is about a young man who has dreams, nightmares, about a woman, then he goes to the hypnotherapist, hypnotizes him and discovers that in his previous reincarnation, in his previous life, that woman is his brother's wife and he was her lover, then the brother discovers them and kills them and it turns out that he continued his life and became the hymnotherapist who is an older man, then when he discovers that this patient is the reincarnation of his brother he goes to his house and kills him again.
chat is this real
Si
Did they watch Inseption 20 times in a row, while being stoned 24/7 to come up with that?
@@Chet_Philodenge Pretty much, yes. If you look up the album (Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory) on Wikipedia there is a section called "Synopsis" that has a much longer summary. For all the talent that progressive rock/metal musicians have, lyrics usually aren't part of the package. They're often bloated and dumb - just like a lot of the album artwork.
@@indomitable7734Inception came out in 2010 you dimwit.
I think you need to dig into Six Degrees again, that is for sure S tier! The six degrees songs alone make that an absolute s tier album not to mention the glass prison. At first i wasn't sold on the album until i realized that most of the album was actually one big song that tackles some really interesting subjects. for sure worth another listen.
yup already Six degrees (song) alone hits me different for reminding of past and some life long shit I gotta deal with.
Anyways it was same for me at first just got into few first songs and didn't realize 2nd half was Epic
Completely skipped over "Learning to Live", gotta be one of their best songs
May be my favorite off its album.
I've used that great vocal track where you hear all the great range James had back then! It is actually a good warm up part to help me sing at times!
@@JubaDeMetalAlumínio My 3rd behind Metropolis and Under a Glass Moon.
My wife and I had the orchestral interlude from Illumination Theory as her entrance music at our wedding. Despite her not liking Dream Theater or prog metal in general - apparently it makes her anxious (yes, I'm looking at you Jordan!) - she said it was one of the most beautiful pieces she'd ever heard.
It was a beautiful moment.
What a fantastic choice...and I have to agree with your wife. It is one of the most beautiful pieces of music I have ever heard and brings me to tears 😢😢❤
We had Metropolis pt.I, that was the memorable moment for all people attending.
The true highlight of Dream Theater:
“Big chungus, big chungus”
BIIIG
BIG CHUNGUUUS
I love "Astonishing" so much, it has so many beautyful songs
This video is the same length as Dream Theater’s shortest song
Lmao
As a man, you are not allowed to cry unless one of three conditions are met:
1. A loved one dies.
2. Your bride is walking down the altar.
3. You’re listening to one of the following DT songs:
“Home, The Spirit Carries On, Finally Free, Goodnight Kiss, Solitary Shell, Vacant, Octavarium (Pt. 1: Someone Like Him).”
4. Depression
5. Failed to suicide.
And we must add “The best of times” . I can't listen to it without crying
Throw in The Ministry of Lost Souls
Disappear, Space-Dye Vest
Bradley, I would like to briefly speak in defense of Six Degrees
It's one of the only albums where the lyrics aren't super cheesy (Bonus shoutout to Octavarium though)
Example: Misunderstood. Fucking brilliant song
Misunderstood gives me goosebumps every time
I think its even better than Scenes From A Memory
"From thief to a beggar
From a god to God save me"
Fricken hits every time
@@TOAOM123 Ikr?!? And the delivery in those lines is so raw and pure as well
My first encounter with Dream Theater was in 2017 when my guitar teacher liked how my 15yo ass played through "Highway To Hell", then went like "Now let's do something, let's say, more ambitious" and slapped the tabs to "Pull Me Under" onto the notestand.
Fast forward 7 years and I have a neckbeard, 7 string Music Man, a desktop prog project on its way to fame and no romantic life - but I'm happy so 🤷♂️
That feel when laughing in 13/8
This is the way
Everyone hates on Falling Into Infinity but I think they managed to squeeze so much prog into it while under constraint that it birthed a new sub-genre
it's such an underrated album
Peruvian Skies has such an awesome build-up, catchy rhythms, and great lead tones. I love that some of DT's albums sound a fair bit different from their others (although Petrucci always sounds like Petrucci lol). It keeps things interesting imho.
Unpopular opinion possibly: Systematic Chaos is in my top 3 albums - it gave us the badass riff that opens The Dark Eternal Night.
Yeah, I don't really understand the hate for FII. The songs are still well written and there's definitely a decent amount of prog elements on there. If there's one DT album people sleep on, it's this one.
The live album Once in a Livetime was so good and had a ton of these songs on it. Made me love falling.
What new sub-genre are you referring to?
seeing "16 seconds ago" is crazy! I already know this is a banger video even tho I haven't watched it yet, Brad never dissapoints
Nobody talkin' 'bout Systematic Chaos giving us the badass riff that opens The Dark Eternal Night? One of my fave riffs of all time. I'm prob in the minority but Systematic Chaos is one of my top 3 fave DT albums (it's hard to choose lol). It's all good though. There's stuff I like on every album.
Yes that's actually my favorite dt song and also my favorite dt album.
Man, for me 'six degrees' is a freaking masterpiece!
Especially once I really got into it's concept and lyrics.
I would definitely recommend listening to it in depth.
Falling into infinity is one of their best Albums
Falling into infinity is one of the best and modern album of DT.
My dad is a drummer and has been listening to DT my whole life, since 1989.
Thanks to him I not only know and love DT, but can play the entirety of a change of seasons.
Thanks dad!!
You should do one for Rush. I'm interested to see where "Test For Echo" ends up.
It will reveal a truth nobody is ready for: Power Windows is made entirely of bangers.
@michlo3393 I adore Power Windows. Easily in my top 5 favorite Rush albums.
@@christianlight8511 it's one of their best.
6DOIT is my favorite DT album. The mix of 5 different songs, and the orchestral epic title song is just amazingly well done.
1:52 most controversial take ever
"Dreaamm Feartah" lol Bradley your are exceedingly british! In all seriousness if you play guitar or just know really good music then you love bands like Dream Theater. Well done
Post-Portnoy albums had some straight up bangers & people are sleeping on them
Illumination Theory
Breaking All Illusions (my favourite solo)
Fall Into The Light
Barstool Warrior
Transcending Time
Just to name a few
(also, I quite enjoy The Astonishing as a whole, with cheese and all)
Pale Blue Dot is pretty cool. Makes my brain hurt trying to count it though
S2N has a neat bassline
I can’t wait to hear Portnoy play Pale Blue Dot live
The only Dream Theater album I've "slept on" is The Astonishing. As no track on there has grabbed me like their other material.
I don’t get this whole ‘so you don’t have to’ thing. Isn’t that phrase only meant to apply to bad experiences?
Like, I watched every Zack Snyder movie so you don’t have to. Makes total sense. But like I listened to every Opeth or Dream Theater album? That’s a pleasure!
Maybe to you, that sounds like torture
It’s just a shtick, a phrase which doesn’t really mean anything..
When dream and day unite is such a masterpiece. The words raw and prog usually dont go together lol. Its just very magical. Dnd vibes. And the production has alot of character.
I used to really not like The Astonishing but it’s REALLY grown on me the past few weeks
The Ytse Jam is most definitely a classic!
WDaDU is A/S tier! :D
Yeah he listens to the first album for a few seconds then ranks it D tier and says there are no classic songs on there lol. Ytse Jam is one of the best. That first album is better than most of their later formulaic albums.
@@deadliestassassin3092 "The killing hand", especially the live versions, is one of my favourites.
top-10:
10. Systematic Chaos/Dream Theater
9. AVFTTOTW
8. BC&SL
7. WDADU/Distance Over Time
6. Dramatic Turn
5. Octavarium
4. Six Degrees
3. Train of Thought/Falling Into Infinity (LOVE it!!!)
2. Images and Words/SFAM
1. Awake
haven't listened to The Astonishing
A Change Of Seasons where?..
oh it's definitely on the same level as I&W and SFAM or even Awake
Someone that is sane. Unfortunely, for me, something went wrong after Octavarium. I think I enjoyed DT more when the were into some rock/funky riffs, we had a lot of that in the 90s. And maybe... some external producers would help them sometimes...
The discipline of DT band members is insane. Their output is consistent and their technical ability just keeps improving
Thanks. Never actually listened to Dream Theatre. Don't think I'll start, but enjoyed the crash course - and can see why some people love them.
Gird your loins
Dude your reactions to everything are freaking GOLD lol basically subbed for this reason. Besides that I am also a huge DT and A7X fan. :P
Of course FIF is the black sheep album of them early days, but I think its still a damn great album! I mean come on, hells kitchen? New millenium? Lines in the sand? Trial of tears?
I enjoyed it more than Awake. It has lots of great ballads like Hollow Years, Take My Pain Away, Anna Lee and also it has Peruvian Skies and Trial of Tears.
REST IN POWER CHARLIE DOMINICI...NEVER BE FORGOTTEN!
I think that once you get used to the production and Charlie's voice, WDADU goes much much higher on the list. A bunch of awesome songs on that record!
Yeah. The Killing Hand and A Fortune in Lies are still some of my favorites (when sung by James lol).
The Dominici band was great and he still sounded good when he was older. Their are 3 check them out!
Gratz on Twilight Force mate, glad to see you're in their lineup!
i saw bradley in a guitar shop once. i asked to take a picture with him and he stuck a whammy bar violently up wherever it would fit. he's a really nice guy, i hope to meet him again soon
This video saved my marriage, did my homework, mowed my lawn, erased my debt, and pet my dog. Thank you Bradley for your arduous and selfless work as always with these videos. These are truly life-changing times.🙏
😂😂😂
A dramatic turn of events should've been higher on the list. There are four absolute bangers: On The Backs of Angels, Bridges in The Sky, Lost Not Forgotten and Breaking All Illusions
The chungas joke that got me the most was “six degrees of inner chungas”
9:23 Messi when his teammate robs him of an assist
You really expect Dream Theater fans to know football?
@@donclarence3644 idk bro I just couldn’t fight the urge to keep the dumb joke in this time
Amazing reference omg hahaha
I just bought a ticket to my first DT show in Feb. I have loved them since 1992....finally seeing them
You are in for an awesome treat! I've seen them live 5 times! Enjoy!
@atranfanatic I can't wait.
falling into infinity fkn crushes
When Dream and Day Unite is such a hidden gem Imho. Yes, it was their first album, and in some ways it shows, and of course it was before James Labrie, but that first album has some absolute bangers. It's quite different from their later works but you still gotta love songs like The Killing Hand or Light Fuse and Get Away. Still absolutely 1 of those metal albums in general that I listen to as a guilty pleasure. Also, did you just say that Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence is a boring album? Disk 2 of that album is a concept album not too dissimilar to Scenes from a Memory in many ways, though less of a masterpiece than the former of course. Disk 1 is full of bangers Imho with The Glass Prison being 1 of their all time best songs. Train of Thought is an easy S tier Imho, every song is a masterpiece. Octavarium is a great album, not sure why it receives as much hate as it does from Dream Theater fans. Systematic Chaos is where Dream Theater started going a bit downhill Imho(with the exception of Falling into Infinity of course which was a massive downer). I mean there are still some good songs in that album, but the songs are all so long and unlike their previous long songs, don't fully justify their excessive run time. It's where Dream Theater officially entered their overindulgent stage Imho.
it's not a guilty pleasure man, it fucking rocks
Don't know how someone (DT fan) can dislike Afterlife and Only A Matter of Time also.
I discovered DT with WDaDU in 1989 - it changed the way I listen to music, and it'll always be my favorite for that reason.
I discovered Dream Theater when I saw Pull Me Under on Headbanger's Ball in late '92 early '93! I immediately bought the album on cassette right after! Then I wanted the debut album and since then I've bought every one of their albums when released. Well minus The Astonishing and the new one coming out. lol
I am a woman and I love Dream Theater!
🤷
Always a welcome sight!
I actually quite like their debut. It's definitely different (more Rush-like, really), and the production is kinda weak, but I really like the songs and the way the album flows. I would have put it at A, myself. (I'd probably also put Images and Words over Metropolis 2.)
Just got tickets to the US tour for next spring, hitting Boston a week after my birthday. Perfect timing for this video.
This live stream was so much fun! Really enjoyed it as a DT fan :D
"COUNT OF TUSCANY'S DUNGEON" 😂 my braaathaar!
Distance over time is in the top 5, change my mind
11:00 DT's St. Anger moment with that snare.
I know Awake isn't quite "typical" for the band, but I'd personally put that as their best album. Just fits my style of music better I guess, but otherwise pretty spot on list!
My tierlist (in no particular order within each tier):
S: Images, Awake, SFAM, SDOIT, ToT, SC, AVFTTOTW
A: Octavarium, BC&SL, ADTOE
B: Self titled, Distance Over Time
C: WDADU
D: FII
F: The Astonishing
@@DiegoDeschain For someone who puts AWFTTOTW in front of Octavarium and ADTOF (the pale copy of IAW) in front of FII that's pretty cheeky 😂😂😂😂 you snobbish guy
@@Ziri0615 you're now looking for comments of mine on videos from a month ago? rofl, if you're in love just say so brother, but I have a wife already, sorry my guy.
@@DiegoDeschain Your wife should leave you for putting ADTOE (the pale copy of IAW) on the same level as Octavarium
Shame on you
Bradley you never speak of Symphony x bro 😢
Trial of Tears is an absolute BANGER! I know Falling Into Infinity as an album wasn't the best but I can't believe your video here cropped off the final track of the album.
The guitar work by Petrucci on that track alone is his best at that point in time, with the exception of maybe Under a Glass Moon.
Octavarium for me deserves to go in S/God Tier because of the insane amount of thought that went into constructing it, relating it to their signature 5:8 time, working through every key of an octave and finishing on the epic title track that tells a beautiful story and brings about so many emotions, which for me personally is the greatest DT song of all time and up there in the company of Stairway to Heaven, Comfortably Numb, Stargazer, etc.
Fun fact : metropolis part 2 has material from both prior keyboard players as well ! (Kevin Moore and Derek sheranian). I think the fact that they were sitting on some of those demos for years contributed to the final product becoming so rich and refined.
I'll never, ever understand why apparently every DT fan on the internet thinks that The Count Of Tuscany is a strong song. But I don't have to, either.
Thanks for saying the quiet part out loud. I personally prefer Ministry of Lost Souls better. Stronger lyrics and storyline, too, imo.
A Nightmare to Remember is such an emotional roller coaster! If you aren't tearing in that middle part, you have no heart! And The Count of Tuscany is pretty awesome too!
The way Pull me Under abruptly ends on the album always makes me scratch my head
Bradley and 66samus should collab on a prog record. The song will be a solid 5/7.
Train of thought is their best album period.
When I saw Dream Theater back in 2009 Mikael Åkerfeldt walked on-stage and growled the "day after day" bit, and that's when I thought "oh ok, *that's* what they *thought* they were doing on the album"
I was introduced to Dream Theater in 1994, been a fan ever since. I've been to maybe 70 or 80 concerts (national acts like stadium & amphitheater shows & 95% metal. (I've seen Tom Petty, Queensryche etc...) so I'm not counting those, but from Sabbath to White Zombie to Type O, Twisted Sister, Megadeath, Metallica, Emperor, GWAR, O-tep, Testament, Machine Head... I've seen a lot!) plus, idk... a hundred more club act tours. And in the vast majority of all those shows; I was front row center stage, but the ONLY show I ever actually got hurt in (Well... there were two, but only one in which I had to be escorted out of the crowd) was Dream Theater.
Three songs in and I got a boot heel to the crown of my head from a crowd surfer being thrown toward the stage where I was. Instant Concussion. I didn't fall, but I was dazed, I couldn't look up or lift my head; fortunately, security saw it and pulled me out. I spent the rest of the show sitting at a lone table at the side of the stage with my head down. Migraine headache, the lights, the sound, the vibration... It was killing me, but I obviously couldn't drive. I even think security took my keys away just so I couldn't. Honestly, I don't even remember how I got home. The next week, I had trouble lifting and keeping my head up, it was so painful. I'm not someone to make excuses, but work was hell! I finally went to the Dr and found out that my neck was broken (multiple C1 vertebrae fractures). Basically, it was crushed.
I haven't had the chance to go see them again. I hope I get the opportunity though. New album, new tour... 🤞🤘
Never got into Dream Theater, but as an old skool metal head I would argue Fates Warning deserves recognition for their prog metal works, especially the earlier stuff. Awaken the Guardian is my all time favorite!
Had to do a double take when I saw you in Twilight Force last weekend, Epic dude \m/ \m/
I wanted to start listening to dream theater for a while and didn't know which album to listen. This video helped me a lot!
If you want to here their first album with James LaBrie singing, look up When Dreams and Day Re-Unite. It's an archive and should be streaming.
9:43 Not only the "what was he thinking" bit, but those lyrics..... So Porntoy's supposed to come across as "DEATH" and the last line says: "in the end, everyone survived! GGGRRRROOOOGHHHWWWWWLLLLLLLLLLGGGOOOO" That bit made me laugh ever since I heard it for the first time. It's ridiculous really, hahaha.
It's like Gorefest going like: "I BOUGHT MY MOTHER A CHRISTMAS GIFT AND SHE LOVED IT!! GGHHHOOOOORRRRRROOOWWWWLLLLLLLLL" F****'n hell, haha
OMG! Finally someone that says out loud that "A change of seasons" is the best Dream Theater song ever!
Awake #1
I and W #2
Can't wait to see a Twilight Force related video from you - maybe practicing some of their songs (forgive me if I have missed a livestream of this)
I first heard DT during my freshman year of high school. I'd been hearing about them for a bit in an old MUD online, and then one day saw the A Change of Seasons cd, so I had to grab it. They're the band that shaped what I consider to be my first real musical tastes. Before then it was always just something to put on the background, but after finding them I started actually seeking out specific bands and listening to as much as I could.
ACoS is definitely still my favorite song of theirs to this day.
I changed the playback speed 20 times watching this video to make it more topic appropriate
Awake, Systematic Chaos and Train of Thought are S tier! Agree with everything else. Who can not love the keyboards on Space Dye Vest? Love the change of pace on all of the above albums....
Awesome!!! Thanks for doing this video!
The only song from their latest album that stuck with me was Answering The Call - it sounds like a pleasant dad-rock jam despite being in 13/8 and 7,5 minutes long
I remember a friend in our musician circle who swore he hated dream theater. Later he found TOT off Limewire (so downloaded but it didn’t have the band name.) Later he showed me some honor tye father rapping on his personal solo material. I caught it immediately, then later he showed me this heavy album he’s been into. Love it when things come full circle.,
Dream Theatre is the only band that stuck with me through the years. Ever since finding the Live at Marquee tape, back in 2000s.
Falling Into Infinity demos slap too, but the label made them scrap all the stuff (double album) and even hired an external composer to write that crappy chorus on You Not Me (You Or Me, the original was better). In youtube you can find the demos with all the liner notes from Portnoy. Really worthy of your time.
Symphony X next tier list?
James LaBrie rapping sounds like Michael Scott and Dwight Schrute rapping Lazy Scranton.
Should have also had a drink every time you said banger too.
Putting Awake on A tier is criminal.
I think you rated the albums perfectly!
Fates Warning enters the chat. " They did not invent shit. "
They don't invented "Prog Metal" they reinvented the genre. They made a real turn for prog music and turned "mainstream" again (in the music scene and to prog and metal fans). Fates and Queensryche was the "true inventors" in the more "accurate sense".
@@selim6033 They were also a bit different, meaning Dream Theater, with concentrating more on viruosity with instruments than those others. Fates Warning and Queensryche were prog "only" in the sense of "song" structure, etc, but were not trying to play a million notes a second all the time. Everyone can decide for themselves if that's for the better or the worse, I don't think it's either of those, they are just a bit different. Dream Theater sounds from time to time like jazz fusion, Fates Warning and Queensryche never sound like that.
My point is though, that that instumental virtuosity played a big role in Dream Theater getting so successful and poplular in the beginning, it made them look and sound spectacular.
I never hear people talk about dramatic turn of events. Could use a remaster but still so many good songs
I’m one of those old heads that saw Pull Me Under on MTV and lost my shit! I wore out their Live In Tokyo VHS, mostly because of the Petrucci solo. Hadn’t seen it in 25 years and stumbled upon the video of it earlier this year and damn near started bawling… Nostalgia is a mother fucker 😂
Images and Metropolis being god tier is just right. I can agree with everything else by just looking at these two's placement.
My rankings from best to worst; Awake, Images and Words, Train of Thought, Six Degrees, Scenes, Seasons/Infinity, When Dream & Day Unite, Systematic Chaos, The Astonishing, A Dramatic Turn, Black Clouds, Distance Over Time, A View From, Octavarium, Self Titled.