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Last Active 01-02-23 7:35 am
Joined 03-29-10
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| Dream Theater, Ranked
Ever since I was 14 years old, Dream Theater has been my favorite band. They inspired me to start playing electric guitar (up until that point I only played acoustic) and started my love for progressive music in general. There was a time (about two years) when DT was pretty much the only thing I listened to, and I've played most of their records countless times. Ever since that time, every time a new record comes out I take a good hour to myself to listen to it front to back, which became a kind of ritual for me. My love for this band will be forever, even though in recent years my love has waned a bit. Here is my personal ranking of all of their albums. | | 14 |  | Dream Theater
The Astonishing
Dream Theater's throw at a big epic fantasy tale fell flat on its face. It could've been a pretty great 45 min album, but instead they opted for it being 130 minutes (!!) long. The remainder 85 minutes? Ballads, piano songs and owh wait, more ballads. It was boring to no end, with laughably bad lyrics and a boring, unimaginative story. A tip for every band trying their hand on a fantasy-book style musical album: let an actual fantasy writer help you with the story, so that you can avoid this mess. | | 13 |  | Dream Theater
Dream Theater
For me their self titled record feels like they were trying to create an album that was the best starting point for new listeners. What they ended up doing is making a record that has every type of Dream Theater song on it (heavy metal single, ballad, epic, instrumental), but every one of them has been done better... by THEM. 'Dream Theater' was also the first time I started to really get annoyed by their lyrics, every chorus being written around the name of the song. This is fine if your name is Rammstein, but with Dream Theater I expect more than that. | | 12 |  | Dream Theater
When Dream and Day Unite
The one that began it all. When Dream and Day Unite is a fine record in its own right, but you can feel that they were just starting out. The songs are a lot rougher around the edges and the voice of Charlie Dominici just doesn't fit as good to the music. The album did have a lot of character and vibe though, which certainly cannot be said about some of the later albums. | | 11 |  | Dream Theater
Systematic Chaos
After Octavarium Petrucci & Co. wanted to make something with a little more 'balls'. The result was Systematic Chaos, the record that saw them at their most Metallica-esque. This is also the first time they started incorporating more fantasy elements in their lyrics which made their music a lot cheesier. Although there are more good songs on Systematic than bad ones, it felt like they were struggling to find fresh ideas and it comes across as being a bit forced. | | 10 |  | Dream Theater
Falling into Infinity
Falling into Infinity saw Dream Theater trying to be more mainstream because of influences from the record label, and it shows. It's not an accessible record, and some songs are downright skipable, but for someone who dives a little deeper there are some definite highlights on here. Hollow Years is a great ballad and Trail of Tears is a fantastic, if overlooked, epic. | | 9 |  | Dream Theater
Distance Over Time
The new one! I'm rating this a little low for now because, although the quality of the songs is very consistent, nothing really sticks out for me. There is not a single sub-par song on this, but I am really missing highlights that make my heart go faster. If you want a quintessential DT record to know what they are about on average, this album is definitely the way to go! I can see this jumping to spot 8 or even 7 as this sinks in. | | 8 |  | Dream Theater
Black Clouds and Silver Linings
A great record that saw the conclusion of the AA-suite with The Shattered Fortress. For people new to DT this songs will actually not make sense at all, since it's the culmination of ideas from 4 previous songs. The Best of Times is great, but unfortunately there the greatness ends for me. A Nightmare to Remember and The Count of Tuscany are both sub-par songs for me in their respective categories, and A Rite of Passage and Wither are pretty forgettable. | | 7 |  | Dream Theater
A Dramatic Turn of Events
The first album without the charisma of Mike Portnoy, and it will always be remembered as such. But when you remove that fact and listen to it with a fresh ear, there is actually a lot to enjoy here. It is diverse and has a good overall quality. Breaking all Illusions is still the best song of the Mangini era, Bridges in the Sky is an absolute banger and Beneath the Surface is a very sweet ballad that I actually enjoy (I don't like DT ballads. There I said it). | | 6 |  | Dream Theater
Octavarium
Octavarium's title song singlehandedly raises this at least 2 places higher on this list. It remains to this day my favorite Dream Theater song and is an amazing roller-coaster ride from start to finish. It's a pity that most other songs on Octavarium (These Walls and Panic Attack excluded) are very sub par and lower the overall enjoyment of the album as a whole. | | 5 |  | Dream Theater
Train of Thought
Dream Theater goes full on 'Metal'. A fan-favorite album that delivers punches left right and center. The quality of the separate songs make me enjoy this just slightly over Octavarium. Train of Thought's highs aren't as high, but it's lows aren't as low either. | | 4 |  | Dream Theater
Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
In the early to mid 2000's, Dream Theater went on a experimentation streak, and nowhere is that more prevalent than on Six Degrees. The key's are more on the forefront and more experimental, the themes are more diverse and the guitars are more all over the place. It resulted in a double album with a lot of character. This is the naughty child that you still love with all your heart, despite of the mischief and the imperfections. It was also the start of the AA-suite with The Glass Prison still being my favorite of the series. | | 3 |  | Dream Theater
Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory
The public's favorite and rightly so. The concept is tight and well executed, the songs are diverse and interesting, and there are a lot of highlights here to enjoy. The Dance of Eternity stands out as the most crazy and complex song I've ever tried playing myself (I failed). If you've never really listened to a DT record and want to dive into their discography, I suggest you start here. | | 2 |  | Dream Theater
Awake
My first Dream Theater record. I still remember when I first listened to this album and the impact it had on me. Hell I can still remember the way the booklet smelled. It might be their least accessible record but it has so much to give. For my money Space-Dye Vest still remains as the best ballad they have ever written. | | 1 |  | Dream Theater
Images and Words
The absolute number 1 and the true masterpiece. Every single song on this record is a highlight and there are arguably no weaker songs or even little missteps here. Pure perfection in music. | |
Scheumke
02.25.19 | This felt like a fitting list to do with the new record out. With a discography this large people will probably have very different opinions. I would love to know them! | Koris
02.25.19 | Nice ranking. I agree with the top 3 and Six Degrees also rules, although I would have also put Octavarium in the top 5 (although I realize that's a bit of a controversial opinion) | BerryGarlicia
02.25.19 | 6 is 1, 8 is 2, 11 is too low | Koris
02.25.19 | ^ wut | BerryGarlicia
02.25.19 | Yes I’m aware I have some odd Dream Theater picks | SitarHero
02.25.19 | It's been so while since we've had a DT rank list. This brings back some memories. Good ranking too. | PyramidNoise
02.25.19 | 3 is 1. Everything else is spot on. | kalkwiese
02.25.19 | Your reasons are interesting, the top 3 is kinda fixed for most people, I guess, so it's the other albums and opinions that are really interesting | Scheumke
02.25.19 | I think there are a lot of people who would put 3 on 1. This might be the only band that has this big of a discography where I actually know all their albums thoroughly lol. | kalkwiese
02.25.19 | Oh, yea, then it's not fixed like I said, I wanted to say that most people would put Awake, Images And Word and Scenes From A Memory in their top 3 | Scheumke
02.25.19 | Yeah def. Maybe people have personal favorites, like the first album they heard by them etc. But I think we can't really argue about the quality of those 3. | PyramidNoise
02.25.19 | They're all 5s easily. As you say, it's very personal which one you like most, but I wouldn't trust a person who claimed their favourite Dream Theater album was an album outside of those three. | dante1991
02.25.19 | Pretty similar to mine, the top 4 are the same. Then I'd have ToT as #5, ADTOE as #6. New one is probably 7th for me. The rest follows after.
I agree with your points on 13. It's a great album, however there's not much reason to listen to it compared to the others as most of the songs there have been done better previously.
D/T is similar in it's approach, but a lot more inspired and ballsy. | StrikeOfTheBeast
02.25.19 | Top 3 is VAMP: Very Awesome Music Period. 2 is my fave | kalkwiese
02.25.19 | With the self titled one there seems to be no identity on its own. It's just ... yea, alright. It's the very definition of a 3 for me. Nothing is really bad about it, some tracks are very enjoyable, but overall it's nit very memorable either | Meridiu5
02.25.19 | 1 gives me the cheese farts but its got some of their best songs for sure | kalkwiese
02.25.19 | cheese farts are the best farts tbh | Space Jester
02.25.19 | 12 is severely underrated, better than most of the stuff that came after. | kalkwiese
02.25.19 | I would put 12 higher, too. And Octavarium a lot lower | Scheumke
02.25.19 | Looks like Octavarium might be one of the most polarising of the lot. Didnt expect that. I thought my rating for ADToE would kick up the most dust lol. | Kompys2000
02.25.19 | Haven't heard 1 or 2 but Six Degrees is a lot better than Scenes From a Memory | Meridiu5
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