US Tour Setlist

[handmadeguitars87]

Just saw the NYC show last night...here's the rundown:

1). Russell gets better each time I see him. Sung his face off last night, absolutely mindblowing.

2). These shows need to become 21+ to get rid of all the morons moshing to every single song. I know there are normal under-21 people on this forum, and I apologize to 'em, but EVERYONE who was doing that stupid crap last night was a teenager. I'm 24, it's not that I'm old...but I came to see some amazing musicianship, not have to worry about being clocked in the back of the head while I'm turned towards the stage. You can tell that the people there don't know the songs or even care about what band's playing. They just came there to beat people up and run into each other, and pretty much ignored the band and the stage completely. There were people literally slamdancing last night and it was beyond pathetic. Take that shit to a Dropkick Murphy's concert and leave it there.

3). I honestly don't know why they play Paradise Lost (the song) live. It kills the momentum, and people just stand there nodding. The solo is killer but otherwise that song is probably the worst track off the album IMO. Eve of Seduction however absolutely slayed live. Great choice! There's nothin' wrong with a slow song, but how about Candlelight Fantasia? That's one of my favorite SX songs, and Russell once told me the reason they don't really play it live is because it kills the momentum...but now with PL being played that doesn't make much sense.

Overall, an amazing show as always. This was my 9th time seeing SX and it's always great.

 

[blackstar1971]

i hate moshing! ruins a great show.

 

[TerminusDeus]

I was at the NYC show as well, and it was definitely one of their best shows I've seen, topped only by their NYC show in 2008:

(Oculus Ex Inferni
Set the World on Fire
Domination
Serpent's Kiss
Masquerade
Paradise Lost
Through the Looking Glass
Inferno (Unleash the Fire)
Smoke and Mirrors
Sea of Lies
Revelation / Divine Wings of Tragedy
-----------------------
Eve of Seduction
Of Sins and Shadows)


Russell was definitely great and I'm impressed he can keep that up after the extensive touring they've done so far. Also, I appreciated being able to hear Pinella's playing for once when he WASN'T performing a solo. Romeo, Lepond, and Rullo were amazing, as always.

The Odyssey was a great encore. And even though I feel the live version I heard in 2003 was better, it was still awesome and I made sure to take it all in since it may be the last time I get to hear it live.

I was standing in the center in the mezzanine section by the railing, so I got the unfortunate full view and whiff of the meathead moshers/potheads. Really, who moshes during the Champion of Ithica? It's stuff like that that keeps me from the floor level since, as it has been said before, some people go there to be violent without any context of the stuff that is being played.

Overall, it was a good Friday (har har...Ok, I'll go).

 

[blackstar1971]

so they did the odyssey in nyc ? I'm going to worcester tonight!

 

[SymphonyXV]

They played TTLG, DWOT AND Odyssey? DAMN! That's kind of weird people mosh to prog but whatever. I love moshing but I wouldn't do it at a prog concert.

 

[Marwen]

I rather have them drop Serpent's Kiss or Eve of Seduction

+1

those two songs

Really, who moshes during the Champion of Ithica?

Idiots do.

Revelation / Divine Wings of Tragedy
The Odyssey was a great encore.

That alone is an epic show.

 

[JesterIF]

It is true, and awesome:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pIV-06Vg2o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FHz3PPkqvw

If they play it this tuesday I can die in peace.

 

[zappafrank]

Well, I'll be the 1st and say that this set list is extremely disappointing, downright insulting. (Minus the 2 new songs), this set list is simply a snapshot of the last 2 tours: minus Eve of Seduction, all of this was on the '07 tour, and minus The Odyssey, all of this was on the '08 tour (a tour I really should have gone to, for Masquerade and Through the Looking Glass). Making a 2+ hour drive, tolls, gas, the ticket price, and just a couple of new songs (one of which - Dehumanized - didn't do much for me) is not enough to entice me to see them this tour. Sorry, guys.

Why do they ignore the early albums? It's the same 2 songs all the time (OSaS, SaM). The PL album does not need to be represented with so much, especially considering the fact it's FOUR YEARS OLD. I'd rather see TDWoT for a change, or just play (substantial) parts of it. The live album has a great set list, though I realize that was in Europe. V is actually my favorite album of theirs, simply b/c it's so different from the others. Why not show love for it?

As for other stuff, how about Rapture or Pain? Slow things down with one of The Accolades? More stuff from The Odyssey? Hell, their short set at Gigantour '05 had more variation in it.

Better luck next time, guys, but FAIL this time around, IMO.

 

[Frontal Lobotomy]

V is actually my favorite album of theirs, simply b/c it's so different from the others. Why not show love for it?

I'm with you on this one! V is simply
Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think Romeo has said that V is his least favourite album because of...something I can't remember The love's simply missing... How sad that he fails to appreciate his own genious.

I would also love more of Damnation Game! Why do people never talk about how fantastic that album actually is? Or is it just me..?

 

[Detective Clarence Beauregard]

The reason I believe they're playing a lot of stuff from Paradise Lost is that they think the songs are more concise and come across better live. Most of us want to hear the older classic stuff, but as long as the band looks out and sees many people (ignorant moshers) going crazy to Paradise Lost material, they're going to keep playing it. Also, we know that Russ just loves to sing all gritty and somewhat screamy now, and the Paradise Lost material pretty much covers that.

I agree with zappafrank that this set is somewhat disappointing, although not terrible.

Of Sins and Shadows
Domination
Serpent's Kiss
The End of Innocence
Paradise Lost
Smoke & Mirrors
Eve of Seduction
Dehumanized
Set the World on Fire
The Odyssey

Now don't get me wrong; I don't mind a few songs from Paradise Lost in the set. However, when almost half of the set is from one album (and the band has eight), that pretty much speaks for the band as to what their favorite album is.

Here's my suggestions:

Drop "Of Sins and Shadows" already. The song is a decent metal tune, but it's overrated and overplayed. "Domination" is a good live song, but "Serpent's Kiss" is pretty one-dimensional and rather dull (even for Paradise Lost). The title track is also overrated, and if Symphony X needs a staple 'pretty' song in their set, they have far better to choose from. "Smoke and Mirrors" is also overplayed and in my opinion not strong enough to be in a live set (the Twilight album has far better songs to choose from). "Eve of Seduction" is a good live tune, but I have a feeling that the band thinks "Set the World on Fire" is a much better song than it really is. I really hope it doesn't become their new 'closer' song - it's easily one of the weakest tracks from Paradise Lost.

I have to hand it to them, however - this is the first time that they haven't played "Inferno" in almost a decade. It's a good song, but I'm glad they're sick of it, because we are too.

I don't think it's possible to be disappointed by "The Odyssey," although I'd honestly rather hear three or four other songs in its place.

My suggestions for what would be a more entertaining set, realistically:

Eve of Seduction
Domination
The End of Innocence
Communion and the Oracle
Church of the Machine
Dehumanized
The Walls of Babylon
Accolade Medley (or Through the Looking Glass)
Prometheus
Dressed to Kill

Or get rid of the last three songs and play The Divine Wings of Tragedy.

 

[zappafrank]

When I saw them in '05 on Gigantour, the set list was:

Inferno (Unleash the Fire)
Evolution (The Grand Design)
Wicked
Sea of Lies
Of Sins and Shadows

So that's the only time I've ever seen Inferno. Are they the kind of band to change up set lists from night to night like (wait for it) Dream Theater?

And I agree that it's hard to be disappointed with the song "The Odyssey," but IMO it should be reserved for special occasions. In fact, I wonder if it was a last moment addition when they got more time due to Nevermore dropping off. When I saw them in '07, when they came out for the encore, Russ said something like, "Do you guys want to hear Evolution or The Odyssey?" I can't recall if he restricted the other choice just to Evolution, but I find it hard to believe anyone seriously considered they'd go with the shorter choice. This time, however, it really might be a case of "well, we might as well play it, we now have the time" vs. '07 when it most likely always was meant to be there.

A song that sticks out to me that would be very good live is Out of the Ashes; I love the way Jason drives things along during the chorus.

 

[chriscc]

I'm with you on this one! V is simply
Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think Romeo has said that V is his least favourite album because of...something I can't remember The love's simply missing... How sad that he fails to appreciate his own genious.

I'm not sure what his least favorite album is, but doesn't like their first album. In this interview:

http://live4guitar.com/article/interview-with-michael-romeo-symphony-x

he says:

We made our first album, Symphony X, which is not really good, I don’t think.

And in this interview (before PL):

http://www.metal-rules.com/interviews/SymphonyX.htm

he says:

The first album [SYMPHONY X], I really consider a demo, because everyone had just met and it happened so fast. We tried to record it ourselves, and it kinda sounded like we did. [Laughs]


He also said:

The last album [V: THE NEW MYTHOLOGY SUITE] was very polished and that kind of thing. It was cool because it was a concept album and it works.

and:

It's so hard to compare one against the other. Like with THE ODYSSEY, it's probably my favorite album and "The Odyssey" is probably my favorite song. But if I look at, like TWILIGHT IN OLYMPUS, I don't think it's our strongest album, but I think it has some of our strongest songs. Like "Smoke and Mirrors" and "Church of the Machine". Even "Through the Looking Glass" was one of my all time favorites for a long time. So, each album has something that I'm really proud of. Even our last album, I thought it was really good with this whole concept thing. "The Communion and the Oracle" and "Rediscovery", those longer kinds of tracks, that's the stuff I like.


I thought last nights show in Worcester was great, but it was my first Symphony X show, so I'm just glad to have seen whatever they played. Although, I would liked to have heard Evolution, Fallen, Communion and the Oracle, or Rediscovery.

 

[efess]

I was at the worcester show last night, +1 everything zappafrank. I've seen them 5 times, each time the setlist has pretty much stayed stagnant (except for the show in '08 where they played TTLG!!). It's too bad they can't play for 2 or 3 hours like DT can.

We tried to stay up front, but with all the moshing with the opening bands and total lack of respect from *anyone*, we had to move back. Next time we'll just stay at the bar lol. Band played great though, they were really enjoying the performance and the energy in the crowed. I love that about them, they have so much fun when they perform.

Wormtown brewery has decent beer too.

 

[Metaldrumz]

I was at the worcester show last night, +1 everything zappafrank. I've seen them 5 times, each time the setlist has pretty much stayed stagnant (except for the show in '08 where they played TTLG!!). It's too bad they can't play for 2 or 3 hours like DT can.

We tried to stay up front, but with all the moshing with the opening bands and total lack of respect from *anyone*, we had to move back. Next time we'll just stay at the bar lol. Band played great though, they were really enjoying the performance and the energy in the crowed. I love that about them, they have so much fun when they perform.

Wormtown brewery has decent beer too.

I went to Wormtown brewery before hand as well. Was a little confusing as the sign actually said Peppercorns Tavern. Had the IPA and wasn't too bad but the prices were a little high for the proportions IMO.

I actually left before the encore and The Odyssey.

As for the moshers? Yeah I was on the floor, and actually leveled some pussy on his ass for almost slamming into my girlfriend (I was there in a Mystic Prophecy sleeveless t-shirt). Was the last time he came anywhere near me lol.

Oh and as for the setlist? I agree 100%. Not impressed but LOVED the new songs live. Shame they didn't have any tour shirts left...I would have bought 2.

 

[Drsrh]

Shame they didn't have any tour shirts left...I would have bought 2.

Not to derail the topic, but what kind of merch were they selling there? I'm going to the Chicago show and I want to figure out how much money I should bring with for it.

 

[Metaldrumz]

Not to derail the topic, but what kind of merch were they selling there? I'm going to the Chicago show and I want to figure out how much money I should bring with for it.

They had a basic shirt with the 2 heads from the special edition album cover....and a sweat jacket with the same picture on the back. They also had some leftover PL merch which didn't interest me.

Oh they also had a flag type thing almost like a small tapestry with the 2 heads as well...but nothing I cared for.

 

[Drsrh]

They had a basic shirt with the 2 heads from the special edition album cover....and a sweat jacket with the same picture on the back. They also had some leftover PL merch which didn't interest me.

Oh they also had a flag type thing almost like a small tapestry with the 2 heads as well...but nothing I cared for.

Alright, thanks! I won't bother bringing much then. I have a feeling I'll just get the basic shirt probably then.

On topic though, I'm thinking about asking the band when I meet them Sunday about how a lot of people aren't happy with the setlist, particularly the abundance of PL songs...

 

[Detective Clarence Beauregard]

A song that sticks out to me that would be very good live is Out of the Ashes; I love the way Jason drives things along during the chorus.

Well said. It's also one of their shortest tunes, which means they could pretty much squeeze it in anywhere. I've only seen them play it live once, and it was full of energy - just a quick, fun little neoclassical tune.

 

[intergalactic]

I didn't see them in march in Italy,but the set was nearly the same, only that
in USA they added "Odyssey". some friends of mine were disappointed too,
because too many tracks of the last 2 albums ,but they said the band was great,so why worry so much ? Of course I'd rather hear "Accolade","Candlelight
fantasia", "Dressed to kill","Egypt",but the band is growing with material,besides
if they play "Paradise lost" it looks like a copy of "Accolade" and "Communion and the oracle",makes no sense playing at the same gig

 

[Prismatic Sphere]

I would also love more of Damnation Game! Why do people never talk about how fantastic that album actually is? Or is it just me..?

Not at all.