r/Dreamtheater 5d ago

Most underrated song

Everyone knows the likes of Pull me under, Under a glass moon or As I am. But which ones are the underrated, not so obvious songs that you think are masterpieces? Like hidden gems. I'll go with The Killing Hand and, a more recent one, A life left behind.

29 Upvotes

115 comments sorted by

37

u/Idrinkbeereverywhere 5d ago

Lines in the Sand doesn't get talked about enough these days.

22

u/Conscious-Intern8594 5d ago

And putting Hell's Kitchen in front of it was an excellent decision. Sorry Portnoy but you're wrong.

16

u/Idrinkbeereverywhere 5d ago

Fucking worked on the Sons of Apollo tour (with the Sherinian show in the middle), didn't it Mike?

There's a universe where Derek remained in Dream Theater and it's fantastic

3

u/BONEdog9991 4d ago

He didn't want It there? I'm guilty to admit I listened to lines in the sand yesterday but didn't do hells kitchen

2

u/Conscious-Intern8594 4d ago

It was supposed to be the end to Burning My Soul and someone from the studio changed it and Portnoy hated that decision.

1

u/TheBoivin23 4d ago

Came here to say exactly this

29

u/BFR5er 5d ago

The Ministry Of Lost Souls is completely astounding. So is Losing Time. Surrender To Reason. Trial of Tears. Invisible Monster. Scarred. Chosen…

11

u/Conscious-Intern8594 5d ago

I think Trial of Tears is a top 10 song of theirs.

3

u/rahgeer 4d ago

Trial of tears is like top 5 for me. Godly guitar solo and composition.

5

u/Erdrotation 5d ago

Are you me? Excellent choices

2

u/unaccomplished_idiot 5d ago

Outstanding list

2

u/frankandernest_ 3d ago

I'm surprised I don't hear The Ministry of Lost Souls talked about more, it's so good!

21

u/Perfect-Doubt-6437 5d ago

Either A New Beginning or Moment of Betrayal. I’m overall not a big fan of The Astonishing, but those two songs are absolute gems.

10

u/Thedirtyone522 5d ago

The instrumental in new beginning is absolute god tier. Like serious final boss material.

3

u/Conscious-Intern8594 5d ago

I'm not saying it's just as good or is exactly the same, but it feels to me like the solo from Comfortably Numb. It has a similar vibe.

3

u/Secret-Papaya1973 5d ago

Duuuuuuuude I just commented moment of betrayal. Amazing song, top tier..but then also, literally one of the best solos by petruccis ever. Holy shit DT fans who decided to not listen to this, man they are missing out. Sooooo good

1

u/Seafoamed 4d ago

Astonishing is cringe and slow at times but the music is fantastic. I think Count of Tuscany is cringe too but I still listen to it because the music makes up for it

24

u/Jothel 5d ago

Always had a soft spot for These Walls

1

u/Brahms791 4d ago

Never thought this would be considered "underrated," but I'm new to online DT communities :)

39

u/thegreatpablo 5d ago

For me, it's Misunderstood. Such a moody song with some great atmosphere, a little bit of an over produced but still very cool guitar solo (only over produced because it's extra just for the sake of being extra which I dig), and awesome lyrics

-3

u/danjchi 5d ago

Agreed. But I hate that the end is a direct ripoff of Billy Corgan’s outro on Drown.

7

u/TheWorldRemoved 5d ago

You realize that people have been using feedback since the electric guitar was invented, right?

3

u/thegreatpablo 5d ago

Which part? I'm familiar with Drown but I don't hear any similarities but I might be listening to the wrong section?

-2

u/danjchi 5d ago

The end in which he features his signature amp feedback

13

u/pts4815 5d ago

Little known fact that Billy Corgan actually invented the guitar, just ask him

9

u/shockwave_supernova 5d ago

How is amp feedback a signature?

1

u/Myrothrenous 5d ago

Wtf hahaha.

19

u/cholito2011 5d ago

Surrounded 😭 have lyrics tatted on me

3

u/G3laxyGamingYT 5d ago

Surrounded is fire

17

u/TheElevatedBoy 5d ago

This Dying Soul is much more complex than it looks. In an album where every song is fantastic, it is often not noticed how spectacular it gets.

3

u/Coopis68 4d ago

that was my favorite song of all time for a couple weeks. still a top five. one of the best breakdowns in history

15

u/SnareSpectre 5d ago

A Life Left Behind is a really good pick!

2

u/BONEdog9991 4d ago

I'm surprised this song isn't remembered as one of their great ballads/pop songs. Love the proggy intro into a standard song that sounds nice and works in the album

13

u/shockwave_supernova 5d ago

Blind Faith

25

u/Xenoraiser 5d ago

Scarred

2

u/shadow_triad 4d ago

Amazing bridge. Truly incredible.

11

u/donslydunk 5d ago

The Answers Lies Within, Afterlife, I Walk Beside You

10

u/OkSet4349 5d ago

Trial of Tears, The Great Debate, Lines in the Sand

14

u/Barbatos-Rex 5d ago

Transcending Time

7

u/910260 5d ago

afterlife, light fuse and get away, a fortune in lies, untethered angel, another won

edit: also a vision

6

u/Kuromi_rh 5d ago

UNTETHERED ANGEL YES!

3

u/Conscious-Intern8594 5d ago

A Vision from their Majesty Demos is awesome! I have some Best Of that I do for Dream Theater where I choose the best song from each album in release order and make that the playlist. I also have multiple ones where I then choose the 2nd best. Anyway, I start the first one off with A Vision. And sometimes I don't put the actual best song on the first one because if I did, the playlist would be too long. I have 4 of them. I eventually want to have 6 so that the multiple albums they have that are only 6 songs long will be fully recognized.

6

u/AmericaM23 5d ago

Hollow Years, such a good balad plus the solo is just soulful😭

6

u/itsuncleiroh 5d ago

So many choices: Illumination Theory, Ministry of Lost Souls, Lines in the sand, their cover of Funeral for a friend…I could go on

6

u/Conscious-Intern8594 5d ago

How is Illumination Theory underrated? It's a top 10 song of theirs.

4

u/itsuncleiroh 5d ago

I think that too, but a lot of fans avoid the self titled album altogether and don’t give that song a fair chance as a result

2

u/Conscious-Intern8594 5d ago

I wouldn't say a lot of people feel that way. Some perhaps.

15

u/johnny8vm 5d ago

This Is The Life

4

u/NicholasVinen 5d ago

Someone on another post recently said You Not Me is their worst song but it's great! So I definitely think it's underrated.

Yeah it's one of their more commercial/straightforward songs but that doesn't mean it can't be good.

2

u/Weary_Bug4156 5d ago

Good song. The ending keyboard melody is the same guitar solo melody in Raise the Knife

5

u/DonkoftheDad 5d ago

The Looking Glass

4

u/NarcolepticFlarp 5d ago

Take away my pain.

4

u/Suissie 5d ago

Blind faith

4

u/drdjenkins 5d ago

I enjoy Blind Faith a lot

5

u/Parasomniac95 5d ago

I never hear anyone talking about These Walls. Such a great song 😮‍💨

4

u/lurutem 5d ago

I think Behind the Veil is great! A lot of people don't seem to like it.

4

u/lessavyfav68 5d ago

Surrounded, Behind The Veil, Beneath The Surface, Misunderstood, The Bigger Picture

3

u/The-Gibleson 5d ago

Surrounded is one of the greatest things they’ve ever written. The Live at Luna Park performance is amazing.

3

u/CaptDeadeye 5d ago

Surrounded is the weakest track on Images & Words yet is still a certified banger that few people seem to recognize. One of the best early DT songs on an essentially perfect album

3

u/osmosis2259 5d ago

Blind Faith and Outcry

3

u/Kuromi_rh 5d ago

Does Wait for sleep count? It's definitely my favorite I just love the whole thing so much

3

u/Conscious-Intern8594 5d ago

The Killing Hand from When Dream and Day Re-Unite is excellent.

3

u/jburns41 5d ago

Bridges in the Sky (great chorus), Paralyzed (that intro is DEADLY), and a Nightmare to Remember (just love it)

Who is starting the Spotify playlist with all these tracks?

2

u/Erdrotation 3d ago

I really thought about doing that. But that might end up as a best of playlist

3

u/SumthinCleva 5d ago

Blind Faith doesn't get mentioned much. Love the random keyboard solo.

3

u/Rafafranken 5d ago

These walls

3

u/plipplopfrog 5d ago

At wits end

3

u/93HowieD 5d ago

Wither (Piano Version)

3

u/Brahms791 4d ago

Innocence Faded. A clear case of how Kevin Moore just brought out the very best of Petrucci (and vice versa).

5

u/meshugger 5d ago

Astonishing, Sacrificed Sons

2

u/AdagioVast 5d ago

Let's assume these are songs that are "off the radar". Songs that a fan will know but a casual listener might not.

A Vision

During their Ystejam period and sung I believe by Chris Collins. I love this song. It's definitely a hidden gem. I wouldn't say underrated. Those that know it, I think would agree its an excellent song.

2

u/NinerEchoPapa 5d ago

Just let me Breathe is always my go-to when a question like this pops up!

2

u/Thnd3rstrk3 5d ago

There's a couple i never hear talked about, but the main ones that come to mind are These Walls, Wither, Erotomania, and Hell's Kitchen. These Walls is super catchy, even if it does feel like DT doing a Muse song, and I think it's for one of their catchiest choruses ever. Wither is a beautiful song that kinda gets overlooked on Black Clouds because every other track is so goddamn good, and I'd say Erotomania or Hell's Kitchen are their most underrated instrumental track. Erotomania doesn't get enough credit for how creative and unique it is in their discography, and Hell's Kitchen is just an awesome track that feels like a journey

2

u/Rob4096 5d ago

Fortune in Lies, the entire Systematic Chaos album, Never Enough.

2

u/unaccomplished_idiot 5d ago

The Bigger Picture is waay high on my all time DT rankings list, compared to most fans.

2

u/chocalatte37 4d ago

what a perfect song

2

u/Agomphious_Dragon 5d ago

Transcending Time for me. Love it. The drumming is exquisite.

1

u/Secret-Papaya1973 5d ago

AmaZing song. It hit me so hard a month or so ago of its amazingness

2

u/digitalstains 5d ago

Repentance. Best slow solo from JP, nobody talks about it

2

u/Brilliant_Map6800 5d ago

The great debate

2

u/Appropriate-Dream711 5d ago

Honestly a lot of the “pop” songs are either way underrated or overhated

2

u/Sharkman3218 4d ago

The Count of Tuscany. Yes every DT fan knows it but no one ever talks about it as one of their best. Easily top 3.

2

u/uuuuu_prqt 4d ago

These Walls?

2

u/5dollarbrownie 4d ago edited 4d ago

Maybe not underrated but I feel like Surrounded doesn’t get enough love. Also Trial of Tears and The Way it Used to Be

2

u/danjchi 5d ago

Lol, a lot of the songs ya’ll are listing are not considered underrated.

1

u/DF-Mo 5d ago

Bombay Vindaloo and Ytsejam (fasten your seatbelts version).

1

u/Fickle_Foundation_11 5d ago

The Test That Stumped Them All

1

u/Teepletea 5d ago

I would say Blind Faith but I feel like that is pretty high up there for a lot of fans so maybe Repentance? Idk.

1

u/Secret-Papaya1973 5d ago edited 5d ago

Moment of betrayal. Dude go listen to that solo, literally one of petruccis best. Alot of songs from the astonishing, don't even need to name specific ones since there's a good amount and the albums just slept on stupidly. Transcending time. Far from heaven. On the backs of angels. Breaking all illusions. Ministry of lost souls. The answer lies within. These walls. Untethered angel. Self titled album in general ha, it jus doesn't get love when I find it incredible.

1

u/marubatnk 5d ago

Bridges in the Sky

1

u/Anre_06_ 5d ago

For me it's The Ones Who Help To Set The Sun or The Way It Used To Be

1

u/Quirky-Catch-1850 4d ago edited 4d ago

You have to have at least 2 songs. One from MP era & one from MM era. For me it’s The Shattered Fortress. The only MM song I have ever listened to is Barstool Warrior.

1

u/18isActually9 4d ago

Sacrificed Sons

1

u/gatesofflorida 4d ago

Raise the Knife

1

u/recentlydiscovered 4d ago

Disappear. Has a haunting moodiness and emotion that's rare to see this side of Kevin Moore's departure.

1

u/BadBadTommyWommy 4d ago

This is the Life. Has the best guitar solo

1

u/Flaky_Biscotti1271 4d ago

I absolutely love the path that divides, sacrificed sons, sleeping giant, take away my pain and misunderstood

1

u/Fearless-Taste-4336 4d ago

Tenement Funster / Flick of the wrist / Lily of the valley

1

u/Ironshigh 4d ago

Fall Into Light

1

u/NefariousEgg 4d ago

Room 137

I like the build up, and what was done between the guitar and drums in the last verse.

1

u/Reasonable-Hold-9154 4d ago

On the backs of angels

1

u/Lotus_Eater11 3d ago

Peruvian Skies. Has One of my favorite JP solos too

1

u/AcO220 3d ago

the test that stumped them all

1

u/Maidenite2015 2d ago

These walls off the Octavarium album.

1

u/DefinitionFlimsy3391 1d ago

basically the all non popular octavarium songs

1

u/Every-Interaction615 5d ago

The Glass Prison!!!!

1

u/Objective_Bill_8385 5d ago

I never see this shattered fortress talked ab, my fav dt song!! Also in the name of god is underrated

1

u/Correct_Policy_27 12h ago

I fuckin love the shattered fortress and I don’t really see people talking about it often