A lot of hard core DT fans dislike this album. I love it. But then again, I also think ToT is a solid effort. Derek added a while new dimension to the band.

I love this album for one reason... DT were so frustrated making it they just went bonkers on the next album, Metropolis pt 2. That album is magic and we would never have it without the troubled production of FII.

I'd definitely add Meshuggah from Chaosphere to Obzen. And really unpopular opinion, but: The five album run for Metallica would be Ride up until and including Load

So are you just reading off of the biography? I'm confused to why this was put out? Plus the demos of FII were far superior to the released material.

I really had to get used to the completely different sound of Falling into Infinity, but it’s like the creator of this video said: it grew on me over the years and it’s so much better now than it was back then. Awake still is my favorite after all these years, so I’m surprised it did poorly.

Underrated gem, I wish they would make another one in this vein.

I remember getting the Falling into Infinity CD upon it's release and being massively disappointed. All these years later, that opinion has not budged. It's pretty much terrible all the way through. Watered-down prog & pop sensibilities for the L. A shame that the producer & record company ruined what could have been an amazing album. Funny how Awake didn't have a "hit" and the label all of a sudden knew how to write Dream Theater songs better than Dream Theater! Awake is still my favorite.

The worst album of Dream Theater.

This video shows you how to talk absolute nonsense about great albums.

DT lost with Moore the soul that guy gave. The band grow and did great, but you cannot replace the artist....

This album is ridiculously good.

the music quiet underneathe is annoying

I've always liked most of this album. It is a bit heavy on the ballads, but it makes a nice contrast to something like Train of Thought.

I was a hardcore fan of Images and words and Awake. When the album came out, I bought it and I was very excited to listen to it the first time and I must admit, I was let down. I thought it was boring and nowhere close to the quality of the previous albums. Along the years, some songs grew up on me but I rarely listen to it. I'm more a fan of fast and complex music in all genres, may it be classical music like Paganini, Power Metal, Death Metal etc. When Metropolis part 2 came out, I fell in love with them all over again. I LOVE this album. I LOVE A change of seasons too, probably my favorite song from the band. It's a very special song to me.

Megadeth from Killing is my buisness to Countdown to extincion

You know what happened when you listen to the demos of FII vs the final album. Guitars sound weak and alternative style, the vocals are very grungy and in general the style has become way poppier. The production screams alternative and grunge and it is obvious that the label intervened significantly. Even the cover fell victim to this

Hell's Kitchen is a top tier instrumental song

I loved this album when it was released and I still do. It got almost more play than Images for me.

Derek being fired was a dick move but I'd argue in hindsight it was the right call as I don't think DT would've been able to maintain such an amazing streak of releases from Metropolis Pt. 2 to Black Clouds & Silver Linings if it wasn't for Rudess. The dude kicks ass

I didn’t like it at the beginning, now is one of my DT favorite albums.

Ιlove this album quite a bit

Falling Into Infinity officially killed my interest for DT, after being one of my favorite bands since When Dream and Day Unite. It was a bad attempt at trying to be Pink Floyd, from the label on down. Kevin Moore departure was a huge blow to the composition dynamics of the band IMO - and I felt Awake was a lot less interesting than IAW. Then, everything that came after FII was an overcorrection to be "the ultimate Prog Metal Band", with overlong tracks, focusing too much on technical prowess and losing the main strength of the band, i.e. being able to create inventive, melodically compelling tight pieces. I continued to check their new albums but found them uninteresting again and again. Then again, they found a lot of new fans with their later albums. Good on them.

This is one of my favorite albums of all time. If 'too commercial' means incredible melodies, then....

This album has some good songs. I thought it was just somewhat boring compared to the rest of their albums from this time. Still better than the Astonishing.

I'm surprised you did not mention once Lines In The Sand. That song is a top 10 song from the band to me. Its so awesome!!

One of their best albums but didn’t like the production. It’s the same feeling I get with Queensryche’s Mindcrime.

No matter how hard I try I just cannot get properly into this album, it’s not to say it’s bad but the safe direction and ballad nature of the album doesn’t do it for me. Still infinitely better than the astonishing. But saying that two of my absolute favourite tracks they’ve ever done are here, Trial of tears and Lines in the sand. If the album was full of tracks of this quality it would be a contender for my favourite record, which I think makes the album even more frustrating to listen to for me.

There's a parallel reality out there where Kevin Moore never left DT and they became the biggest band in the world.

Both Awake and FII are great.

Funny how this album is so "controversial" - I actually like it more than their other stuff, because it was more commercial (the shred/prog thing exhausted me after a while).

Your comment about it being a dick move towards Derek was spot-on. Sadly, it would be replicated in late 2023 when they did the same thing to Mangini. I grew up watching JP and KM play together in an HS band called Centurion with my best friend's brother on drums. He was a really cool guy who taught another of our friends how to play guitar. He seems to have lost some of that in his later years.

Hell Kitchen ❤

Loving your channel, can’t wait until you invest in a new mic 😅

Falling into mediocrity, best album of '97!

I actually LOVE Hollow Years!

You could argue they haven't been as accessible or as "good" since FII, depending on how you feel about JR and Scenes- I'd rather listen to FII, I think if I authored one or the other I'd pick Scenes (MP made a stink at me about this.. lol)

worst album of dt by far

Awake had always been my favourite, but FII is still a go-to

oh man, I was enjoying your video until 11:22 and it made me stop

At the time, in the mid 90's, I was not prepared to get into progressive music AT ALL. I had heard parts of Awake and really felt like the band was too full of themselves and needed to get to the point with their songwriting. The first time I heard Falling Into Infinity, I instantly fell in love with the band's musicianship. I loved this album so much, I remember burning up the amplifier on my home stereo system. It was the first album in my life that I couldn't turn up loud enough. It CHANGED me. And ultimately it prepared me for what came next. When Scenes From A Memory was released, I loved it more than anything I had ever heard. I was completely obsessed with it for months. I then listened to their previous albums and found myself much more welcoming to their long progressive jam style. People can say why they want about FIT, but if it wasn't for that album, I never would have been drawn into the DT world. They remained my favorite band up until Portnoy left. Now that he's back, I can't wait to hear what they come up with!

I love this album.

I was initially disappointed with this album after buying it as a new release, and when I had to purge a portion of my collection in 2004, it was one I wasn’t sad to let go. Having come back to it in recent years after buying the vinyl reissue, I was struck by how many of the songs I still remembered, and how much I liked it. It must have connected with me far more than I realized. I have since reacquired a CD copy, and I think of it fondly. I actually quite like the whole album, even the more overtly radio-friendly stuff. It was a different side of the band that was nice to hear, and at times I wish they would flex a bit of that muscle these days, as sometimes their stuff can feel like they’re just showing off for the sake of it, rather than writing songs meant to stay with you.

"Illegal alien is racist" oh shut up, Mr. Cringe.

I love all these 90s DT albums had totally diferent aproaches. There was always something outrageous. Love hollow years :) Sheridian was seriously dick moved and the band moved into faster and faster and more and more technical as the songs got more and more unmemorable for me.

You shouldve put rotten in lonliness by blade and bath in this list

Lifelover passes the tests as long as you consider dekadens an album instead of an ep (because it is) Also you should do a vid on lifelover cuz they deserve more attention

I sure would have liked to heard what a DT album would have sounded like with Kevin Gilbert producing and on the board.

11:20 wow u serious ?

Holy hell this channel is off to a great start, I love it wen I find something like this early on. Your channel is going to explode, & rightfully so.

I love this record! Definitely not as cool as the first 3 but better than most that came out that year.