Time to drop The Odyssey and shake up the set list

[zappafrank]

I saw the boys last night in Pittsburgh, and it was great seeing all of the Iconoclast stuff live. However, I'd be lying if I said that their choice of The Odyssey as the encore didn't leave me disappointed.

Why? Well they've been pushing the song FOREVER now. This is my 3rd time seeing the band, and the 2nd time I've seen them place the Odyssey as the encore. The other time was over 5 years ago.

I honestly think it's time for them either to only play part of it or to eliminate it from the set completely. To dedicate time to it means that they're eliminating 25 minutes that could be spent on deep cuts, forgotten classics, etc. I *really* wish I'd seen them in '08, when the show I would have gone to (Cleveland) got Egypt, Masquerade, and part of TDWoT. Ever since Paradise lost came out, up until Iconoclast, the set list, though, has appeared to be at least half some form of Paradise Lost, The Odyssey, and then some combo of Of Sins and Shadows/Sea of Lies/Smoke and Mirrors. That's not cool, IMO. Will they run the risk now of simply repeating the cycle with Iconoclast in place of PL?

Is there a reason the band never wants to dig into their history? So much good stuff to choose from. Think of how much rare stuff we could get were The Odyssey to be removed. I think that by always playing it, they run the potential of diminishing its legacy. It really should become a special attraction number.

Don't get me wrong; I think it's a great song, and after I loosened up a bit last night I got into the groove of it. But I still kept thinking back to my overall viewpoint, that bands need to give the die hards who come to shows something special. I feel like The Odyssey no longer satisfies that need, and that energy could be better focused on other stuff (like ANYTHING from V!!!).

What does everyone else think?

 

[Kenneth R.]

what the hell is a "deep cut"? Is that some kind of deli DJ slang?

The Odyssey > most SX songs. It's just a fact. It'd be better musically to remove all the IC and PL crap, but they won't do that as it would be shooting themselves financially.

 

[wdiv]

Odyssey's there masterpiece. That's like asking Led Zeppelin to drop Stairway to Heaven from the setlist.
They should keep Odyssey & drop a couple of the Iconoclast from the setlist to make room for some of their other classics.
Also, their show is pretty short... I think the Baltimore show was only about 1:15 long, inclduing short encore break. I'd like to see them add a couple of more songs & stretch the show out a little more.

 

[Krowsnest]

I think the overall consensus by this forum is for the band to use old, less-played songs more often and drop IC and PL songs, but I think most wouldn't mind seeing the Odyssey either. It's a song written in the sweet middle-ground between their older style and the Paradise Lost/Iconoclast style, so fans of both can usually be pleased when it's played live.

 

[AsoTamaki]

Odyssey's there masterpiece. That's like asking Led Zeppelin to drop Stairway to Heaven from the setlist.

Uh. Not quite. I'm pretty sure approximately zero people heard "The Odyssey" on the radio and then decided to check the band out. It's not a song that the casual listener buys a ticket to see and it's not a song that the hardcore fan considers the definitive masterpiece that must be played. "Stairway to Heaven" is also not 20 minutes long. As you say, their show is pretty short. No need to be playing the same 20 minute song every show.

 

[Detective Clarence Beauregard]

I love The Odyssey, but I'd rather hear Divine Wings, Looking Glass, or Rediscovery in its place.

As far as them playing mostly Iconoclast and Paradise Lost stuff, I believe they're under the impression that it is their strongest material. Either that, or they fear that not playing the newer stuff will lead to decreased ticket/album sales. We know that MJR prefers the more progressive, multi-faceted stuff, but Symphony X isn't at Iron Maiden level where they can dedicate entire tours to nothing but the "classics."

 

[Kenneth R.]

Bunch of stuff:

1. Stairway as the Led classic? WTF? Okay.
2. Longer set lists - this is not an easy decision. It depends on booking, ticket sales, etc etc etc.
3. IC/PL as "best material" - I think they're just promoting their latest work. Tied into #2 - ticket sales and booking. If they really thought it was the best thing ever, it would be the encore.
4. Odyssey on the radio - actually, it has been on Satellite radio. So has the new Circus Maximus. I don't listen to Satellite or normal radio except maybe 3% of the time, but I've heard both. Metal doesn't make radio at all most of the time other than the classic station and the rock station so it'd have to be on satellite.

 

[Postulate]

Yes, I think they should play A Lesson Before Dying and The Edge of Forever.

So long as we're discussing pipe dreams, he he...

 

[wdiv]

According to setlist.fm, they've only featured Odyssey on 2011-2012 tour, 2007 tour, and 2003 tour. So it's not like they've been playing it every show for the past 9 years. I'm glad I got the chance to see them play it live this year, and also back on 2003 tour.


http://www.setlist.fm/search?query=artist:(symphony+x)+song:(odyssey)

 

[AsoTamaki]

Haha, Kenneth. If you're listening to a satellite radio station that plays 20 minute prog metal epics, you most likely know who Symphony X is. The point is "The Odyssey" was never something that made them popular whereas something like "Set The World On Fire" exposed them to a whole new audience and people might check out the show because of that song they heard. So I can understand why they keep playing that one.

According to setlist.fm, they've only featured Odyssey on 2011-2012 tour, 2007 tour, and 2003 tour. So it's not like they've been playing it every show for the past 9 years. I'm glad I got the chance to see them play it live this year, and also back on 2003 tour.


http://www.setlist.fm/search?query=artist:(symphony+x)+song:(odyssey)

Yeah, but that's only because they didn't really tour every year. Lol. 2008 was the only year where they did a proper tour and didn't play it.

 

[Marwen]

Yes.

Here's the deal:

>Play old stuff you never play, like Edge of Forever, Lady of the Snow, Lesson Before Dying, Church of the Machine etc.
>You can add stuff from V as long as it's NOT Evolution, and from Odyssey as long as it's NOT Inferno. (not saying they're bad songs)
>Play nothing from IC and PL, but if you have to stick only to Walls of Babylon, IC, and WAIL.
>Replace The Odyssey with DWOT.
>Play something very old and cool as an encore, like Masquerade.

= I'll fly to come see the show and then die happy.

/end of pipe dream

 

[Detective Clarence Beauregard]

The point is "The Odyssey" was never something that made them popular whereas something like "Set The World On Fire" exposed them to a whole new audience and people might check out the show because of that song they heard. So I can understand why they keep playing that one.

STWOF is a great live song. It's far from my favorite on PL, but I'd take it over half of Iconoclast any day. However, I don't think it makes a good closer. The intensity with which it ends (same with OSAS) is better suited for somewhere in the middle of the set.

2008 was the only year where they did a proper tour and didn't play [The Odyssey].

Yep, and instead we got Looking Glass or Egypt/DOB, and some of the better songs from PL (Walls, Revelation). I love The Odyssey, and in my opinion it is probably the crowning achievement of songs in their entire genre, but they do tend to overplay it.

>Play nothing from IC and PL, but if you have to stick only to Walls of Babylon, IC, and WAIL.

After just coming from the show, WAIL live has nothing on tracks like Communion, Candlelight, or Accolade II. If they're going to play a "ballad," it should be one of those.

 

[Savage79]

It may well be that I'll never get to witness this band live as they've missed Finland on tour pretty regularly. Still I would't mind seeing a set like this:

Bastards Of The Machine
Heretic
The Walls Of Babylon
Seven
Wicked
Accolade II
The Turning
Egypt
Absence Of Light
Church Of The Machine
Through The Looking Glass
The Accolade
Pharaoh
Dressed To Kill
Secrets
Masquerade

I mostly picked two songs from a record leaving a lot of absolute killers out. I also left their normal picks out on purpose. The order would naturally be different, but the point is a setlist should have songs from different eras of the band. Not just the last two albums. Not that this is a new thing for Symphony X. Live On The Edge Of Forever was just the same. First they played seven or eight songs from their latest album V in a row and then some from their previous stuff.

This setlist would be 1 hour 50 minutes long. If they add the usual stuff (Of Sins And Shadows, Inferno, Set The World On Fire and End Of Innocence) in and circulate the others they would have a much more interesting set in their hands.

I'm not holding my breath waiting but one can always hope.

 

[Baroque]

I started an Od-ys-sey! chant at the last Symphony X show I went to in Anaheim, for the Iconoclast tour. They didn't play it, but when Russel went off stage, he sang a couple lines of it on his way back out, I was happy, felt like he did it for me

I would always love to see the Odyssey live again, I loved the chants for it they used to get on the Odyssey tour, and even the Paradise Lost tour. It was surprising that not that many people were chanting for it this time.

I did get to see them perform it live twice though!