And it's called...eh, Dream Theater.

http://gunshyassassin.com/news/dream-th ... september/

I'm kinda underwhelmed that they went the Satyricon route and just made it a self titled, as if they couldn't think of anything better to call it. Still, Dream Theater are one of my all time favorite bands so of course I'm gonna be checking this one out.

I wonder if they'll release another safe as fuck album as the last one. It was pretty underwhelming and a S/T now sounds just lazy.

In their case I'm actually pretty damn surprised by this one. Didn't see a s/t coming. Anyway, imo they haven't ever released an album below "good", A Dramatic Turn of Events was imo one of their best (it was sort of safe maybe, but it was really, really, really good in every aspect), and well, it's fucking Dream Theater, so I'm ultra-excited to say the least.

Another one?! (do notice that I'm actually a fan)

This sounds awfully like "tic-toc" to me. Write another 80 minute long, safe and unadventurous as fuck, album and tour again. Money, money, money!

"We’ve fully explored all of the elements that make us unique, from the epic and intense to the atmospheric and cinematic."

Translation: The same shit.

Don't know what to expect. I think the only reason why I like some Dream Theater songs is because I used to listen to some way back in the day when I first got into metal. Now though, I don't know if anything new from them would catch my attention. I'll still check it out but their latest didn't impress me so I don't expect this one to.

At least it's not called 12. Bah, I liked the return to a more classic sound on the last album, letting go of some of the groovy influences. Anyway, I don't think they ever made a bad album to be honest.

Interesting. I'm not the biggest fan of this band, but usually when a band releases a self titled album so far into their career, it's either a more 'back to roots' album, or a more experimental/different approach than usual. It could be interesting either way as I prefer old school Dream Theater, and a fresher more experimental approach could be cool as I think they've stagnated for quite some time. I could be wrong though. They could just be being lazy and didn't want to think of a cool title. I'll still be curious to hear it regardless. I always am with Dream Theater for some reason.

Am I the only person here who thinks that all self-titled albums (barring most debuts that are also self-titled) tend to go from "fairly underwhelming" to "pretty damn awful"?

Nonetheless, I'll probably give this a listen, if only out of curiosity.

Don't really mind the title. It's still one of my most anticipated albums of the year. Can't wait!

Sodom self-titled wasn't bad, no Agent Orange of course, but not bad.

But yeah, usually a self-titled that isn't a debut is a lazy thing to do. If you are that lazy with the titles...

I have no problem with the title. I usually see self-titling an album as an attempt at making it as pure and streamlined as possible. Not a bad thing in my book. I'll be checking it out for sure; I do love me some Dream Theater.

Interesting title choice, kinda surprised they never tried it sooner now that I think about it. Either way, I'm expecting another Dramatic Turn Of Events and would be pretty okay with that.

I don't think Mike Mangini's presence in the band over the course of the songwriting and recording processes from beginning to end should be underestimated. Dream Theater has never really repeated themselves entirely on consecutive albums alhough I'm sure there are arguments that could be made to the contrary, Images and Words to Awake being the closest example I'd concede. While they've kept all of their expected "DT-isms" intact over the years, the delivery has always varied a least somewhat with each release. Whether the end result has been for better or worse albums is up for debate, but I'd be surprised if they merely continue where A Dramatic Turn of Events left off in spite of it being my favorite album since Six Degrees.... Naming the direct follow-up as a self-titled album should be evident they aren't but it's all suspicion for now.

o_o this was probably the biggest stylistic jump in their discography after only WDADU vs. Images & Words. Awake got a lot heavier and darker, as well as a lot more focused in the songwriting (which is why I've always considered it very superior to I&W).

And agreed about Mangini, they had said he would contribute to this one, and I'm curious how it turns out.

I would second this if Metropolis Pt. II didn't exist.

Fuck that album.

Noooooo

I like Metropolis Pt. II. I perfectly understand why someone would hate it, but personally, I enjoy it from time to time. Only rarely do I listen to it in its entirety though.

Scenes From a Memory is my favorite album by them. That's one of those albums where a band just gets everything right.

Octavarium and Systematic Chaos were great, but since then they've been on a 'good but not great' sort of stride. Why the fuck are all these bands releasing self titled albums now?

This is pretty much my idea.

I also find it sort of funny that people here say Systematic Chaos is a very good one (and I definitely agree with this), after I spent like three years battling half the internet which claims that it's their worst. It's funny how different opinions are depending on the source.

Can't wait for this one. I am a huge DT fan, and will be picking this up on day one. My initial reaction was WTF?? to the s/t album title, but I got over it in 5 minutes. I didn't really like the name "A Dramatic Turn of Events" either, but it's a pretty damn good album. I've seen them 11 times, and will absolutely see them in support of "Dream Theater". I've seen them every year since 2005, so they better not disappoint in 2013

Yeah, I get why people don't like it but Systematic Chaos is still in my top three.

^ to me, SC is good, but definitely toward my bottom 3. It might actually be their worst, right next to Falling Into Infinity. Keep in mind that neither of these albums are "bad" just not as good IMO. I think that SC is a little too generic with songs like Constant Motion and Forsaken, and a bit odd with them going sorta-death metal with Dark Eternal Night (although kinda fun live). I think that the main downfall of SC is that it goes on for too long. There are very long droning parts of Ministry of Lost Souls and Repentance. Also, the instrumental part in TDEN goes on way too long as well. Believe me, it's not a bad album when comparing it to other bands, but I feel like they could have cut it down a decent amount and it would have benefited exponentially.

SC is good but my personal fave is Six Degrees.
Anyway what is with all the self titled albums??????????
Dream Theater have never made a bad record so hopefully this won't be as lazy as the title suggests.

Nobody's mentioned Black Clouds at all so far. Thoughts, people?

I generally like BC&SL very much, it's a pretty safe but also incredibly solid album. My only complaint is that the longer songs could be a little bit shorter here and there, but overall it's a pretty consistent album and very fun to listen to. And A Nightmare to Remember is by far one of my favourite heavy tracks they've made.

I could live without everything in between the first and the last tracks.

For the most part it's incredibly bloated. "A Nightmare to Remember" and "The Best of Times" are really the only two worthwhile tracks on the whole thing, as far as I'm concerned.

I could live without just tracks #2 and #3.

Yeah, BCSL is a strange album for me. I mean, on the one hand, ANTR is ballsy as hell, ARoP is, well, okay, but Wither is just horrible. A Shattered Fortress brings nothing new. TBoT, it's nice that it's sentimental, but the lyric delivery seem so insincere. NIce solo though. The Count Of Tuscany's perfect, IMO. First metal song I ever properly listened to too.

I actually think Disc 2 in the special edition, with the 6 covers, is actually better than disc 1.

I actually enjoy Wither very much. It's not a revolutionary song to say the least, but just everything works. The vocals are damn powerful, everything is played in a pretty tasteful way, and the solo is great. One of their better "heavier ballads" sort of.

I have never liked it when Dream Theater attempts slow songs. They all give me a really pretentious vibe as if to say "we are all well respected musicians so this song must have a lot of great meaning behind it" when each sounds the same as the rest. And Labrie's vocals are whiny as ever on ballads.

This is coming from big Dream Theater fan too, and someone who is very open to slower songs, but regardless of the album I have always disliked their ballads.

Do you mean slow songs or long songs? Because I myself have no problem with slow songs, it's the monstrously long ones that scream pretention to me. I have never been impressed with any song from any band that approaches or exceeds 20 minutes. There's never any reason for that kind of an abomination.

No, I'm fine with their long songs. Off the recent album Outcry and Bridges in the Sky were two of my favorite songs and they are both at about 11 minutes each. I also love The Glass Prison which is over 13.

I just really don't like it when DT goes all ballady because I feel as if every time they do it sounds the same as all of their other slower songs and bores me to death. For example, the three shortest songs on the most recent album are my least favorite, because to me they all sound the same and have nothing special to offer. (To be honest the fourth shortest isn't much better.)

Why not just call it "In The Theater Of Dreams"?

I'm completely the opposite, I love their calmer tracks and they always pull it off perfectly with a lot of atmosphere. And how do Far From Heaven and Beneath The Surface sound the same in any way?

I like Black Clouds quite a bit. It seems to be one of their most consistent albums and is pretty well put together though it's not a major favorite.

Track Listing;

1. False Awakening Suite
i. Sleep Paralysis
ii. Night Terrors
iii. Lucid Dream
2. The Enemy Inside
3. The Looking Glass
4. Enigma Machine
5. The Bigger Picture
6. Behind the Veil
7. Surrender to Reason
8. Along for the Ride
9. Illumination Theory
i. Paradoxe de la Lumière Noire
ii. Live, Die, Kill
iii. The Embracing Circle
iv. The Pursuit of Truth
v. Surrender, Trust & Passion



Release date: September 24th

Hope that their creativity in the songwriting department doesn't go out of the way like it has with the album cover and title

That being said, I love DT. I'm looking forward to hearing what they have here. I loved ADTOE, especially after the absolutely terrible BC&SL and the completely average Systematic Chaos. It was like modern Dream Theater's take on classic Dream Theater, and I guess that means they're not coming up with much more original stuff, but I'll take good rehashed songwriting rather than them out of new ideas such as BC&SL.

Also looking forward to hearing Mangini's input, since he really didn't have much on the last one.