If you were Symphony X's advisor...
- Thread starter LittleTortillaBoy
- Start date
Detective Clarence Beauregard
Dehumanized
Phanto
Alalalalalalalala.
Baroque
Active Member
Write more, perform less. The recorded music is what's going to last beyond this generation, it's what people will be able to remember 100 years from now. And write what you want to write. There's more to life than money.
AsoTamaki
Member
- Jun 10, 2011
- 236
- 0
- 16
1. Release a live DVD.
2.
2.
This. A dubstep remix album of classics like "The Odyssey" and "Serpent's Kiss" would be just what they need to finally get them to the next level.
I think that just about sums up everything.
As an added note, don't play EVERYTHING from your most recent album on tour. As harsh as it may sound, no one who goes to concerts really pays to hear new stuff (this point is applicable to pretty much every band). It's more about hearing the classics and older, back-catalog stuff, with maybe a few (max 4) songs from the new release sprinkled throughout.
Kenneth R.
Cináed
Try something completely different. Break out of the shell of mediocrity that characterizes most prog once the gimmick has run its course. Be actually progressive.
Care to share the study/survey you conducted that led you to such conclusion?
And since when do artists need "advising"? It would defeat the very purpose of making art.
A less self-important way to put it would be "What do you wish to hear?", and my answer is: Something a little less "modern", "in your face", etc. (you get the idea) and more musical and dynamic. However you want it to be, I'm interested in what you have to put out; just not the former. As Ken said, be progressive.
Care to share the study/survey you conducted that led you to such conclusion?
Okay, maybe that was a little bit of an exaggeration, but you get the point. When people go to see any band, it's primarily because they want to hear the classic stuff, or some obscure songs that don't get much live play. Maybe some new stuff here and there, but not to the extent that SX do. It's ridiculous to think that this band with such an expansive discography played a set of 12 songs when I saw them, with the first 7 coming from IC. Granted, I still enjoyed the show, but damn...
Detective Clarence Beauregard
Dehumanized
I definitely think Symphony X plays more of their newer material than they should, but they must think it's their strongest material (or sounds the best live) if they're continuing to play it. I believe MJR once said that he prefers the more progressive stuff, but apparently he changed his mind because all they ever seem to play are the heavier, shorter tracks.
EyeballKid
Shyamalan'd
The biggest piece of advice I would give is to stay active. They take so long to record albums that they lose all momentum from a marketing standpoint. When they tour, it's usually for short runs in limited regions. Obviously, some of this is due to financial issues, family priorities, etc., but the only way to legitimately grow a band is through new music and constant touring. We all know they are never gonna tour as much as some other bands, and that they don't want to, so the only way to augment this is by releasing new music and doing one-off shows or interviews to stay relevant.
In regards to the setlist issues, this is a moot point. We can whine all we want about new material, but as it has been pointed out before: we are 20-30 people on a message board. Most people that buy records, go to shows, and talk about Symphony X do it off of this website. The same live show setlist pattern can be seen with most successful bands. They always stack the set with as much new material as possible to encourage new fans to buy their new material. After their popularity peaks, they begin to do greatest hits shows, and eventually devolve into shows heavy on old songs in a last ditch effort to please old fans and hold on to a respectable fanbase.
Even huge bands like Metallica eventually succumb to this live show loop. They will still release new material, but no one cares because they pay to go to a live show and are treated to a novelty greatest hits set. To not tour on your new music is to admit that your old music is better, which shows you have no confidence as a song writer anymore. The only band that has this down to a science is Iron Maiden. They release a new album, tour heavily on that album (sometimes playing the entire disc live), release a live album that focuses on their newest album, do another tour that features all of the classics to get people interested again, and then release a new album and start the whole cycle over again. The key here is a constant presence, which Symphony X does not maintain. They disappear for years at a time with no new material, no old material, and little presence in online, print, or televised media. The only way to keep pleasing old fans and gain new fans is to stay active.
In regards to the setlist issues, this is a moot point. We can whine all we want about new material, but as it has been pointed out before: we are 20-30 people on a message board. Most people that buy records, go to shows, and talk about Symphony X do it off of this website. The same live show setlist pattern can be seen with most successful bands. They always stack the set with as much new material as possible to encourage new fans to buy their new material. After their popularity peaks, they begin to do greatest hits shows, and eventually devolve into shows heavy on old songs in a last ditch effort to please old fans and hold on to a respectable fanbase.
Even huge bands like Metallica eventually succumb to this live show loop. They will still release new material, but no one cares because they pay to go to a live show and are treated to a novelty greatest hits set. To not tour on your new music is to admit that your old music is better, which shows you have no confidence as a song writer anymore. The only band that has this down to a science is Iron Maiden. They release a new album, tour heavily on that album (sometimes playing the entire disc live), release a live album that focuses on their newest album, do another tour that features all of the classics to get people interested again, and then release a new album and start the whole cycle over again. The key here is a constant presence, which Symphony X does not maintain. They disappear for years at a time with no new material, no old material, and little presence in online, print, or televised media. The only way to keep pleasing old fans and gain new fans is to stay active.
+1 in writing together.
Yeah... Stop playing so many new songs off the album.
When All Is Lost was awesome live, Iconoclast was gnarly and End of Innocence was pretty rad.
But Heretic, Dehumanized, Electric, and Bastards. All those songs off the new album do not need to be played.
Two or three at most is all that should be done for the size they are. They are not Rush who can play six new songs live and not have an issue.
Too many new songs in my personal opinion are played live. Not to mention they still played Set the World on Fire, Eve of Seduction and Serpent's Kiss.
That's too much new material.
They only play two "old" songs. All the old songs are truly, truly what turned me onto Symphony X. Everybody is missing that.
I believe it was recently... They were being interview and asked what there favorite albums were and Pinella was the only one who said not 'Paradise Lost and Iconoclast' and they were all shocked.
As he told the interviewer, he told me his favorites were "V: Mythology Suite and Paradise Lost."
They need to go back to playing the old stuff in my personal opinion, starting writing together again and quit taking long amounts of time to make a new album.
Yeah... Stop playing so many new songs off the album.
When All Is Lost was awesome live, Iconoclast was gnarly and End of Innocence was pretty rad.
But Heretic, Dehumanized, Electric, and Bastards. All those songs off the new album do not need to be played.
Two or three at most is all that should be done for the size they are. They are not Rush who can play six new songs live and not have an issue.
Too many new songs in my personal opinion are played live. Not to mention they still played Set the World on Fire, Eve of Seduction and Serpent's Kiss.
That's too much new material.
They only play two "old" songs. All the old songs are truly, truly what turned me onto Symphony X. Everybody is missing that.
I believe it was recently... They were being interview and asked what there favorite albums were and Pinella was the only one who said not 'Paradise Lost and Iconoclast' and they were all shocked.
As he told the interviewer, he told me his favorites were "V: Mythology Suite and Paradise Lost."
They need to go back to playing the old stuff in my personal opinion, starting writing together again and quit taking long amounts of time to make a new album.
Kenneth R.
Cináed
Advice to Michael Romeo: you have only 1 solo album, you should have like 5! Make some solo album!
just keep being as you are,just add more live dates ,expecially along with other bands as Fatew warning,dgm,vanden plas,pagan's mind ,just for getting more
prog audience.Making records is not an easy job,so keep all the time that you need for I can wait for years because I'm sure that it will be a good record
prog audience.Making records is not an easy job,so keep all the time that you need for I can wait for years because I'm sure that it will be a good record
Similar threads
