Riff Analysis 054 - Dream Theater "In The Presence of Enemies pt 1"

[@paveantelic7876]

"Babe come over Metal Music Theory just uploaded" 😌

[@jonajon91]

The principle at 6:20 is an absolute prog metal staple and pretty much defines DTs music, once you start hearing it you notice how many of their riffs are built like this.

[@jameelshehadeh9011]

I searched for in the presence of enemies analysis and this gem popped, brilliant take and breakdown for such a very complex piece of music

[@lamniformes]

Very cool to hear the Jordan Rudess parts on guitar, gives the song a slightly different flavor

[@TheSquareOnes]

Yeah, Dream Theater without Rudess wouldn't be Dream Theater... but I kinda want full album covers with all his parts replaced by extra guitar shredding now. It just sounds more intense in a way you can't get with goofy prog synth tones.

[@cunjoz]

6:03 hehehe constant montion

[@DJTheMetalheadMercenary]

Love that you got a BTBAM shirt on while covering the Prog action, they're right up there as one of the top-tier greats for the subgenre. Thanks for the education! Also, would love to hear/ see you cover some of the stuff coming from the band Ad Nauseum, they're fantastic. Also also, cool that you got a track on the newest Milim Kashot vol. 4 compilation (our band Decoherence was on vol. 2).

[@grocheo1]

The quality of these videos is incredible. Amazing content. Thank you! You're setting very high standards. Among the best theory videos available on youtube!

[@EdenPorterMusic]

that sweep picking you did right to match the keyboard before the bumblebee part sounded so tasty!

[@Nihhiu]

Explained it perfectly, I'm not a player myself, more of a composer, but even then I understood it perfectly Great video!

[@stevesullivan8405]

Love these installments! And my friend your proficiency (as with your graphics) is mighty mighty fine

[@ravenecho2410]

u got buried in the algo, found ur channel again - u inspired me to learn a couple of prog songs (got 2 by periphery, 1 by dillinger, and learned logic or crocodiles) 😋 - learning these definitely helped me clean up my bad rhythm habits

[@gagedezoort6152]

Thanks for having me on!!

[@DustinWHiser]

I can't wait for the different day to come so I can hear that rant!

[@lamniformes]

Same!

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Haha I've been chewing that script for a full year, probably time to get it finished...

[@masterchain3335]

Sick playthrough of that section, my guys.

[@terbo2000]

"today I'm going to explain ______ using this very sick string of riffs."

[@JothJackson]

Subbed because the synth part on guitar sounds so sick

[@Metalton95]

Fun to see you go into DT now - I already loved your channel (you help me appreciate bands I discovered 10-12 years ago like pre-Incurso Spawn of Possession, Origin and Anomalous), but to now see stuff I listen to regularly is easier to resonate with. I'm gonna have to re-string my axes and binge some videos soon, thanks!

[@shannonmccarthy7094]

Great information as always, thanks again! That jam at the end was amazing!

[@auellaitaela8035]

I've always considered that divide as using progressive as either a noun or an adjective. "Progressive Metal" (noun) is a singular noun and describes an existing concept, like Dream Theater or BtBaM style, where "Progressive" (adj.) "Metal" (noun) is an adjective-noun pair where "progressive" is the modifier to the existing concept "metal", as in literally progressing metal in someway by pushing boundaries. I very much like Orthodox and Unorthodox though, is quicker and easier in discussion.

[@podhditalia]

I think you mean to refer to "progressive metal" as an established genre label in music history (80s-90s to early 2000s) versus "progressive metal" as an overall aesthetic, as in "metal that's progressive"? Kinda like talking of bebop and jazz, it's still jazz but maybe we need to be clear about what jazz we're talking about exactly :) i don't think it's really useful to distinguish between "music critique terminology" and "plain adjectives", since music journalism needs to be time-contextualized nonetheless, and labeling something shouldn't mean limiting it. after all, anything in the label "progressive (rock/metal/younameit)" pushed a lot of boundaries at the time of its first appearance, hence why it got that label itself in the first place. then "that" kind of boundary-pushing has been normalized, so boundaries need to be pushed again, and around it goes. but that seems pretty normal to me in the plain concept of "evolution". we do know that not everything "progressive metal" is dream theater, and not everything dream theater is still "progressive metal" :)

[@metalmusictheory5401]

This is a great way of putting it, I think that's a great way of parsing it!

[@DreamPurpleFloyd]

This absolute chad actualy learned the keyboard part

[@dminorshero]

Have you looked into improvisation in metal? I’m thinking about bands like Sumac. I would be interested to hear you talk about it in contrast to most metal that’s completely composed. Really enjoy the videos!

[@metalmusictheory5401]

I have one video about Sumac but didn't really talk about the improvisation-I might dive into that, though analyzing improvisation gets pretty tricky.

[@TheApostleofRock]

Is that THE Douglas Blumeyer I see in the Patrons list? Of xenwiki fame?

[@pokemousse9990]

Cool video

[@joegarcia3214]

What kind of woods are the body and neck of the headless made of?

[@divinasi0n]

I feel like we need a new genre for prog written in the 2000s or 2010s as it can be a blend of tech death, mathcore, math rock, metalcore, post hardcore, prog metal, jazz fusion, etc. etc. "Prog" has a certain connotation - more traditional and stagnant. I was thinking of using the term Extrafusion but perhaps someone can come up with something better?

[@joegarcia3214]

And fretboard ?

[@trialbyicecream]

Anywhere we can find stuff your friend’s doing?

[@ClaraDeLemon]

It's in the description

[@trialbyicecream]

Somehow missed the first line?! Thanks

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Yeah his current band Echoes of Earth is most active on Instagram right now, but it seems they're gearing up to record an album, and they're playing shows in the NY/NJ area!

[@boarderking133]

subgenres annoy me. I'd much rather refer to bands as progressive when they're actually doing new things than a band who sounds like another band that's doing the same thing. r/progmetal refers to all metal that breaks verse/chorus/verse/bridge/chorus boundaries as progressive, which annoys the hell out of me.

[@deadSalesman_GD]

Bro what? BTBAM sounds way more like The Safety Fire than they do Dream Theater

[@metalmusictheory5401]

I guess timbrally sometimes, but I mean more structurally in that BTBAM writes long, linear instrumental sections as part of long, almost through-composed songs that are shaped like Dream Theater's stuff (the chopped up riffs, motivic development, millions of different riffs, etc. that I talk about in this video as well as rapid genre mixing and other quintessential prog things), while The Safety Fire's songs are more based on a few repeating riffs. Insert whatever other band you want instead of BTBAM (Haken, maybe).

[@deadSalesman_GD]

@@metalmusictheory5401 alright that’s a fair assessment I suppose. I can see how structurally BTBAM is pretty similar to Dream Theater. I was thinking about the genres they draw on and the similarities in sound. On that criteria I’d say BTBAM and The Safety Fire sound much more similar.

[@BorisBr1tva]

@@deadSalesman_GD he is absolutely right, BTBAM breathes Dream Theater music sometimes. Aint a bad thing if you ask me