Octavarium

After two years since I first listened to this album, many things in my life changed, a special one in my life came back from a year away on the other side of the planet, I finished high school, and now I almost can get to college. I don’t know if I would’ve seen those things happen if it wasn’t for this album, I owe it so much and still find plenty to enjoy from it, every song is perfect, I can’t really choose a song to live without, the message of this album really ... read more

Octavarium, octa, eight, their eighth album, with eight tracks, and the track Octavarium has 8 parts to it, get it? Eight.

While far from perfect, Dream Theater's Octavarium is easily their best work. This project is pretty ambitious and surprisingly delivers pretty well overall, considering their previous bumby track record.

This album definitely has some clear weaker tracks such as I Walk Beside you and Sacrificed Sons, but the stronger tracks really shine and lift up the album to the 90s, ... read more

Wowee I’m a pretentious prick

Dream Theater made their best album 17 years into their career.

2025 Advent Calendar Day 6! Dream Theater - Octavarium
Sorry I'm a day late with this it's exam season :(

This was quite the throwback to my power metal phase, and it's pretty good! I've heard a couple of Dream Theater's albums before but this is definitely my faovurite of theirs so far. It's technical and dynamic, but my biggest gripe is the length. It is not nearly interesting enough to warrant an hour and fifteen minutes. And I like long songs and long albums! ... read more

Welp, didn’t expect the day that I truly loved a Dream Theater album but here we are now, my journey through Dream Theater’s catalogue has been interesting to say the least because the first album that I review Images and Words was fine to me, like I didn’t love all the prog metal elements and the fact that they always focused on being complex but then I heard Metropolis pt 2 and that’s when I realized that they can make an artistic album without falling into some ... read more

I. LOVE. DREAM THEATER. We are 8 albums in and I haven't hated a single album / song from these guys. Sure I don't love When Dream and Day Unite and Falling Into Infinity, but I still say those are listenable albums. But anyways let's move on and talk about this album...it's a masterpiece, I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT. I don't even know what I can say because they've done crazy shit like this on the previous albums already, I guess I can say is that this album ... read more

Warning: A very in-depth review incoming...

So, Dream Theater is a band I wanted to get into but never got around to them. And since they're making a new album, it's better late than never. I decided to start with the album I'm familiar with the most, Octavarium.
I only really listened to the hits and some deep cuts, but never a full album up to this point. I guess I just found their songs too long, which is fair enough. But then again I like listening to prog like Rush and ... read more

Wait...Dream Theater...being over the top and theatrical? yOu dOn'T sAy?!

Despite me not being head over heals for this groups music in the past (seriously, those early records can like my taint) these guys have found a strange way into my heart with records like Metropolis 2 and Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence with solid riffage whilst combining more prog-influenced song structres and production. So, after the albiet clunky Train of Thought, I was kind of excited to see where this group would ... read more

I mainly listen to this album while studying but still i think it's a pretty good prog record

Edit 75>>80

Nah I fucking love this.

So as someone who was very much into metal a while ago Dream Theater always felt like a must. And while I love many songs across their discography, I was never intrigued to check a full album by them.

Now this album used to be background music for my boring studying cuz it was really fun in the ear and I had listened multiple times before yet never ... read more

who the fuck got rid of the must hear. i'm gonna get it back i'll find it i swe-

talk about progressive. this thing epitomizes the prog metal genre. tracks spanning up to 24 minutes, something new happening what feels like every two seconds, and a whole hell of a lot of theatrics and experimentation. there is a ton packed into the very wide timeframe this album provides, and it manages to keep itself consistently interesting which i very much respect. i wouldn't say it's a groundbreaking record, which prog can very much be, but it's very good at what it does and it's very ... read more

Decent

Is it a bit prog-tentious? Sure. But does it not also take everything Dream Theater does best and crank it up to 11?

THE TITLE TRACK IS SO FREAKING BORING
but Panic Attack is fantastic.

Dream Theater: Part 8 (GET IT?!?!?!)

I'm gonna try and keep this review short because I could gush about this album all day. Holy shit, another concept for the boys but not like a story-driven concept, but more like something like Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd. The concept is there are eight songs (oct, that's it), but each song is in a different key, mainly the main 8 notes (F, G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. The sharps and flats are used in those interlude type moments). It's probably not ... read more

One of the finest Dream Theater experiences. Aside from the very U2-y I Walk Beside You, every song is either emotionally moving or just hits hard as fuck (seriously, that guitar tone is lowkey nasty). I mentioned in my review for Awake that I love Dream Theater's heavier, more riff oriented side, and that side shows in The Root of All Evil and Panic Attack. The Title Track is arguably the best Dream Theater song ever composed, a full 24 minutes long yet it soars by every time. I feel like ... read more

Octavarium is one of the songs of all time

Octavarium is a great album and one I return to often. I love all the little details spread across it, there’s always something new to find. The only reason it’s ranked a little lower than other albums from this era is because some tracks don’t compare to the others. The title track is also very possibly my favorite song of all time.

Track Ranking
1. Octavarium*
2. Panic Attack*
3. The Root of all Evil*
4. I Walk Beside You*
5. These Walls*
6. Never Enough*
7. Sacrificed ... read more

This is definitely the best Dream Theater work to date.

Cycles. Everything goes in cycles. We're going in circles.

The Root of All Evil opens with a Pink-Floyd-ish intro - an F note; the ROOT. The theme of a musical octave is present throughout the album, the eight notes being the eight tracks on the album. The half notes are little ambiances in-between tracks - for example the voices in "Never Enough".

The Answer Lies Within is a nice, chiller track compared to the previous ... read more

Even though I don't think that Dream Theater should pride themselves on sounding like Muse or Foo Fighters (like on I Walk Beside You), it's a good album. I dislike several tracks on Octavarium and I also think the closing track is unnecessarily long. Still enjoyable though.

Best: The Root of All Evil, The Answer Lies Within, These Walls, Panic Attack

Another excellent album. The first half, apart from The Root of All Evil, has a few weaker songs, but the last four songs are *chefs kiss*

It has ballads, heavy songs and over the top moments. Top work!

pink floyd - meddle II: electric boogloo

has best dream theater song ever

favourite track: Octavarium (100/100)
least favourite track: The Answer Lies Within (100/100)

85 --> 91--> 94 --> 100

Saw them play the whole 24 minutes of 'Octavarium" live early this year. Did change my life.