I'm a new member and have read the entire thread. Just thought I'd post a few comments.
First, great to hear that DT is in the studio again. Man, are they prolific or what? I was also not a huge fan of 8vm (only *really* enjoyed Panic Attack, Sacrificed Sons, and 8vm). I thought the rest was subpar. In their defense, their goal was to write short songs, which they did. I just don't think DT excels at short songs. SX, on the other hand, can write awesome short songs, and it stays true to their style. (Not a comment on who's better, just on who's better at consistency within epic and short songs).
Anyway, the main point of my post was to share a few experiences with you guys (which may or may not relate to why many DT fans on the forums are a**holes). Growing up, my influences were bands like Motley Crue, Metallica, Pantera, Sepultura, and so on. I remained pretty much in the hard rock/metal realm, ignoring everything else. I learned all the Metallica songs on bass, and several on guitar as well (because, let's face it, playing bass alone gets old pretty fast). I still prefer to play bass in bands, but play guitar to do all my songwriting and arrangements.
Then one day, back in the early 1990s, I saw a video on Much Music (Canada's MTV equivalent). It was a bunch of long-haired guys playing a heavy song that I could groove to. Two things struck me as odd. First, the singer had an amazing, clear voice that was both powerful and trained. The second was the odd patterns that would creep up in the drums. At the end of the song, I saw the band was Dream Theater and the song was Pull Me Under. I'd never heard of them before. I was getting a little tired of the hard, crunchy vocals that I was used to and was really looking for something clean and powerful like I'd just heard, but with HEAVY music. So, I went out and bought I&W. What garbage, I thought! I listened to the tape once, and couldn't get through it. So many time changes, weird patterns, I was lost. Gave it a second listen about a month later, still too much. Eventually, I began to understand the patterns and really enjoyed it. Soon enough, I was hooked and bought WDADU, and a fan was born.
To make a long story short, I was a hardcore DT fan for the next decade, listening only to DT for most of that period. If it wasn't DT, it was either classical or jazz because nothing else I could find really satisfied me. I too was very protective of DT and felt they were untouchable. I couldn't understand when others said they sounded mechanical or that James LaBrie didn't have a great voice. After all, his voice had become part of me, representing over 10 years of my life, hearing that voice when I was depressed, or writing music, or going on a road trip, or after a long night of partying. DT had infused itself into my life.
I was growing a little tired of DT with ToT and especially Octavarium. It wasn't a bad CD, just didn't really quench my thirst. So I began to really seek out new music. I stumbled upon many great projects, like Circus Maximus, Coheed & Cambria, Andromeda, Devin Townsend Band, Pain of Salvation, tons of Italian prog, The Butterfly Effect, and so on. I still listen to all of those, and they have their amazing moments. But it wasn't enough. I still thought no one could touch DT.
And then I discovered Symphony X. I went to the Gigantour in Montreal and the opening bands pretty much stank up the place. My cousin and I were chatting while some band started its set as we were waiting for DT. As soon as the singer started, we both just stopped our conversation and watched, mesmerized, as SX really rocked the crowd. I couldn't understand a word he said, and I the guitars sounded like one big mush, but I *knew* there was something special about his voice. So, I picked up The Odyssey. Wow, I was blown away. I listened to it over and over, amazed by what I heard. The whole band was incredibly talented, and the singer, most of all, really captivated me. I really liked how they were similar to DT but not really. They are under the same umbrella, but sound nothing alike. ANd for the first time in over a decade, I understood what others had been telling me. 1.5 years since Gigantour, Allen has finally displaced Labrie as my favourite prog singer.
After the Odyssey, I got The Damnation Game, then TDWOT, TOO, and finally, V. V is the one that really put SX over the top for me. All their CDs are great in their own right, but V takes the cake. The symphonic elements are amazing; sometimes I feel like a Star Wars movie, other times I feel like I'm roving the fields of ancient Greece.
Anyway, this story is just to try and shed some light on why DT fans can be idiots. I was once there; mind you, I was *not* at all like them. I was not rabid, I didn't post on the boards because I also thought they were idiots, but in my mind, no one could dislodge DT from its pinnacle. Now that someone finally has, my range of prog has expanded exponentially. But SX has become, for me, the new standard bearer of thoughtful, melodic, well-crafted progressive metal music.
Happy holidays everyone!
For a new poster, I figured I'd make my first one a doozy