In regard to Dream Theater (incorrect spelling), I didn’t purchase anything past Falling Into Infinity. Their fourth album and I could already hear a trapped beast lurking within. I did listen online to their next few albums, but man, it all sounded too cliched, what they had already done in many ways. Too much emphasis on technical attempts at being both ‘progressive’ and heavy metal, thrash metal even in places. The songs suffered, just how good a band has to be with their arrangements and melodies, DT were struggling. At least they were a little different to most of the metal bands I had heard at that time. I enjoyed those two albums at the time, but have left it all behind me. Their second album Images and Words had a few good songs on it, I had a cassette of that album from a friend. Even all the metal heads I knew didn’t get into DT, maybe the ‘prog’ aspect threw them as they were not into that genre at all. The metal genre is a rather boring one for me, all things considered. When Living Colour (correct spelling) released their third album Stain, I was immediately disappointed in a lot of it. Too much emphasis on metal, they were a better band than that on their previous two albums. Maybe they had to get it out of their system and it was also a message to many. That just because they were black, didn’t mean they couldn’t thrash with the best of them. Uwe will be shocked at this next statement, well possibly. Sit down and relax with a nice cup of herbal tea Uwe. At that time, 1993 I even purchased the Metallica ‘Black’ album…
My first emoji’s, ever! I am a luddite don’t forget. Cheers.
In my own way, I’m a metal fan. (Not the kind that rotates air.) There is something in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal that speaks to me. The more the band in question sounds like Lightning to the Nations -era Diamond Head or early Angel Witch, the better it is bound to be. There is something magic in NWOBHM in or around 1980 (e.g. Rainbow’s Magic 1981 and Gillan’s Magic 1982, to name a few) The spell starts wear off once one gets to Metallica, Slayer, and the like. While I enjoy my Sound of White Noise as well as Rust In Peace, and even the occasional more extreme piece of music, once heavy metal starts getting all these sub-labels, it indeed becomes boring as a genre.
But hey, Dream Theater does a pretty good Perfect Strangers on A Change of Seasons.
I bought the album EP just for that track, and boy, was I disappointed! But the title track was what hooked me into Dream Theater.
Vague points of contacts there…
- Jordan (DT) playing with Steve (DP) in The Dregs…
- Derek (DT) retroffiting Hammond on Whitesnake’s recent remixes…
- DT covering the entire Made in Japan set and having it mixed by Roger…
Personally, I loved Images & Words (still on my Top 5 fav ever albums), liked Awake and Change of Seasons (GREAT title track) and got bored from then onwards pretty quickly.
Once Kevin Moore (the sensitive one) left in 1994 there was a void in the songwriting and melody department that could never be restored.
And once John and Mike started producing themselves the music (de)evolved into a virtuosic-at-all-times mess, meant only for hardcore fans.
Don’t forget him standing in for Don at one of the shows.
Plus, he was in BCC with Glenn Hughes.
I think DT have reached their peak at around Train of Thought time. After that it gradually became more of the same. I was also surprised how much less melodic the band became once Portnoy left. Apparently he has a lot of input into songwriting.
But of course!!!
Thanks, Nick 
(Dumbness R Us 
)
That title track being probably the best thing they have done.
I totally agree, Derek did a great job, but the magic of Dream basically faded when the genius Kevin Moore left the band.
Change of Season is a prog masterpiece as much as the previous albums full of winning, non-trivial melodies and riffs never heard before, Falling into Infinity was a great album with a different keyboard sound and I would have liked to know how DT had evolved with Derek, but unfortunately the tightrope walker Jordan arrived and the era of exasperated technicality began.
One more thing: Bruce Payne was credited on their early albums from the 90s. I wanted to ask him what was that about, but never got a chance…
A Change of Seasons got me hooked, but it’s not even in my top 5 anymore =)
Besides, it’s really a bunch of music pieces strung together.
My absolute favourite gotta be Home from Metropolis Pt.2. It has pretty much everything I like about the music: slow start, killer riffs, theme development, buildup, and resolution. It’s a mini symphony in 13 minutes.
Honourable mentions: Trial of Tears and Stream of Consciousness.
I only agree with you 100% 
Thames Talent managed DT in the early noughties (non-UK people: it means the decade from 2000 to 2009). Another figure called Frank Solomon was also there and I think remains DT’s manager to this very day.
It is possible (but can’t confirm) that Steve Morse (a smiling American virtuoso guitarist who did not wear black onstage) helped bring that help to the then-ailing DT fold.
Best, J.-
Are you sure about that? I know there was quite a bit of cross-pollination between the two bands at the time (including, but not limited to Roger’s bass tech Matt becoming DT stage manager), but I don’t think they were full-blown managed by Thames Talent.
Thames Talent credited as management 2000-2003 era, yes.
Steve recommending them to John, not sure, sorry, just speculating,
Finally (and I will shut my big mouth up):
The bridge from Flavio’s “I would have liked to know how DT had evolved with Derek” to Metropolis Part. 2.
Chill I now will.-
Agree Fla76, when Rudess joined DT it was probably the worst case scenario, not specifically blaming him of course for his musical ability. But they became even more ‘virtuosic’ if that is a word. That was the last thing they needed, looking back in hindsight. Moore wasn’t as ‘flashy’ and as busy with his playing, much more melodic as you said. Mind you, I have always had a fair amount of compassion for any keyboard player in DT. How in the name of hell are you going to continually compete with Petrucci’s chugging over the top guitar chops all the time, not to mention his lead playing. Also, the drummers are over playing often too. Oh well, it is what it is. Cheers.
Yet they’ve never been bigger as a band. Not stadium level, of course, but Petrucci’s persistence has paid off and of course it has helped their profile getting Portnoy back in the band again.
I am glad that DT have had good decent success and built a rather respectful following. I just lost interest in that style they were developing, not to worry. I did wonder way back then how long they would go on for and they have done reasonably well. Excellent musicians all round and good luck to them. I did watch the new drummer auditions online all those years ago and I still have a listen to a few new tracks every now and then. And I still own those couple of cd’s. Cheers.
In Italy, up until Metropolis pt.2, they regularly entered the charts at the top for a few weeks, and at the time people bought a lot of records, not like now.
Dream Theater probably sold even more records than Deep Purple in those years.
That ‘Black’ Metallica album I purchased around the same time as DT and LC, I sold it a year or two later. I couldn’t get into it. I tried and it was more accessible to my ears than Ride the Lightning, and Master of Puppets and other albums of theirs. A few metal heads I knew and often jammed with were right into those albums, plus Venom, Anthrax and god knows who else. It was a testing time for my ears let me tell you, and my sanity, he he he. I survived. Cheers.
I think Johns solo on “A Broken Man” from “Parasomnia” is very good, not at all DT-ish but more heavy rock-ish (maybe even Steve Morse-ish) (a lot of ish’s, but I hope you know what I mean).