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Post by phillip on Nov 26, 2008 18:39:16 GMT -5
John Petrucci is Catholic... so I'm pretty sure he's probably the best "Christian" metal guitarist. I really don't find anything too special about Jani Stefanovic. I like his songs, but I don't think he's all that amazing.
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Post by Fyacin on Nov 26, 2008 19:56:28 GMT -5
I like Alex because he plays Bass
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Post by xasaintx on Nov 26, 2008 19:56:48 GMT -5
I have a couple of opinions I'll throw in. First of all, I'm not going to state a preference either way on who I think is better. I think it's mostly irrelevant.
However, I do think it is worth noting that we haven't heard what Alex would have been properly capable of writing with BTA if he had been non-pressurised by time (as with TPOF) and able to record with Devin.
Another thing to note is that if Alex had of still been on board then Dichotomy would have sounded very different for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that Alex is a tech metal guy and like a lot of that ilk, if he was writing, he'd probably need a lot of control of what was happening. Most tech metal bands have one guy steering them and that would probably have been Alex. But on Dichotomy, it sounds a bit like Jason had the vision for it and although all the others wrote and put their stuff into the album, it sounds like it was Jason's vision that defined what this album was. I'm not sure that would have been the case if Alex was still in the band. We would have still got an amazing album to be sure, but I think it would not in the least resemble this one.
Chris
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Post by radar on Nov 26, 2008 20:01:13 GMT -5
I have a couple of opinions I'll throw in. First of all, I'm not going to state a preference either way on who I think is better. I think it's mostly irrelevant. However, I do think it is worth noting that we haven't heard what Alex would have been properly capable of writing with BTA if he had been non-pressurised by time (as with TPOF) and able to record with Devin. Another thing to note is that if Alex had of still been on board then Dichotomy would have sounded very different for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that Alex is a tech metal guy and like a lot of that ilk, if he was writing, he'd probably need a lot of control of what was happening. Most tech metal bands have one guy steering them and that would probably have been Alex. But on Dichotomy, it sounds a bit like Jason had the vision for it and although all the others wrote and put their stuff into the album, it sounds like it was Jason's vision that defined what this album was. I'm not sure that would have been the case if Alex was still in the band. We would have still got an amazing album to be sure, but I think it would not in the least resemble this one. Chris And if Napolean had B-52 Bombers at Waterloo... We can play this game all day.
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Post by xasaintx on Nov 26, 2008 20:43:54 GMT -5
I have a couple of opinions I'll throw in. First of all, I'm not going to state a preference either way on who I think is better. I think it's mostly irrelevant. However, I do think it is worth noting that we haven't heard what Alex would have been properly capable of writing with BTA if he had been non-pressurised by time (as with TPOF) and able to record with Devin. Another thing to note is that if Alex had of still been on board then Dichotomy would have sounded very different for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that Alex is a tech metal guy and like a lot of that ilk, if he was writing, he'd probably need a lot of control of what was happening. Most tech metal bands have one guy steering them and that would probably have been Alex. But on Dichotomy, it sounds a bit like Jason had the vision for it and although all the others wrote and put their stuff into the album, it sounds like it was Jason's vision that defined what this album was. I'm not sure that would have been the case if Alex was still in the band. We would have still got an amazing album to be sure, but I think it would not in the least resemble this one. Chris And if Napolean had B-52 Bombers at Waterloo... We can play this game all day. I think you miss my point. Chris
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Post by phillip on Nov 26, 2008 21:19:21 GMT -5
However, I do think it is worth noting that we haven't heard what Alex would have been properly capable of writing with BTA if he had been non-pressurised by time (as with TPOF) and able to record with Devin. I agree.
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Post by radar on Nov 26, 2008 23:05:04 GMT -5
And if Napolean had B-52 Bombers at Waterloo... We can play this game all day. I think you miss my point. Chris Haha, I was totally kidding.
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Post by AletheianAlex on Nov 27, 2008 0:32:59 GMT -5
HA! I can't believe this thread has survived for so long. But since it has, I'll chime in: I will be the first to say that I think that Jon is probably a better fit in BTA... he has the groove thing and the catchy/memorable thing going and I have the shreddy and techie thing going. I do my best in Aletheian and in the BTA stuff to exercise enough restraint that the emotion of the passages is not only conveyed to the few that can comprehend the headier stuff, but still... I felt out of my element in BTA. Plus every song i wrote on TPoF was written in about a week with the exception of 'Autopsy' and 'Second Death'. Jon focuses more on the riffs and sections whereas I focus more on the overall feel and flow of the song, how the parts transition and where it takes you along the way... it is just a different way of looking at things.
I also agree with the poster who warned about doing an injustice to the rest of the band... the other guys wrote a whole lot of TD and Dichotomy and a good portion of TPoF as well as doing a ton of the editing and brainstorming. Jason is the master of getting a song structure just right and Seth if the king of the metal epic. Don't discount their contributions! BTA is where it is because of everyone and I busted by butt to get them there, and I am proud to turn it back over to Jon and the rest of the guys. Heck, when Jon came back I had been in BTA longer than he originally was and did a heck of a lot more touring, but I still considered it his project that i had just kept alive until he was at a point in life where he could pick up again.
In terms of music though, ironically Jon and I actually worked back and forth quite a bit on a few songs on the new CD and we pretty much saw eye to eye on most things... but no one person can usually se what is best for the song overall. BTA cut some revisions from the songs that I had made, and they stuck with some decisions that I was against and Devin cut some things that they had done, but in the end I think it turned out great and Devin did a fantastic job of bringing out the best in everyone. If I had stuck through the process, I would have had a hard time with the amount of 'core' on the CD and the guys probably would have had a hard time with the amount of fretwork that I would have wanted on it... so yeah, apples and oranges. But look at it THIS way: you got to hear TWO different flavors of a band you like, and even though a lot of people will always like TD better, TPoF kicked open some doors in the metal world that TD failed to get BTA into and also gave the band more 'street cred' in the eyes of shredders and breakdown-haters. Just think of what would have happened to BTA if they had gotten some doofus metalcore guy on the 2nd CD instead... ick!
Either way... 'X vs Y' is always a loaded comparison. A more fair and less inflamatory way to present the question would probably have been something more like: 'What do you think Jon brings to the band as compared to what Alex brought to the band' or something like that. Consequently, when I got the CD a few months ago, I thought it was great and listened to it on repeat. In terms of the Jon CDs, I liked this one a whole lot better than TD... NOT to take anything away from that CD, but like 4 or 5 songs really stuck out on it for me, whereas on Dichotomy, I don't find myself skipping tracks PS I have to skip tracks on TPoF too).
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Post by augustwinterman on Nov 27, 2008 0:59:51 GMT -5
Words of wisdom (no, not the man) from the man himself.
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Post by dlectronic on Nov 27, 2008 2:21:54 GMT -5
John Petrucci is Catholic... so I'm pretty sure he's probably the best "Christian" metal guitarist. I really don't find anything too special about Jani Stefanovic. I like his songs, but I don't think he's all that amazing. I dont believe either Dream Theater or Liquid Tension Experiment proclaim the gospel to their fans.. . I do know for a fact that John, Alex, and Derek put forth great effort to proclaim Christ via their various musical projects.
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Post by clareabel on Nov 27, 2008 3:08:18 GMT -5
How metal would it be if Alex re-joined Bta with Jon in the band too? 3 guitarists again baby! It'd be so metal the world would headbang with fury and wonder! At the glorious site of metal incarnate form heaven above! I don't think any band needs 3 guitarists.
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Post by augustwinterman on Nov 27, 2008 3:14:44 GMT -5
BTA actually had 3 guitarists when Terminate Damnation was released. Seth, Jon, and Sean Cunningham.
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Post by clareabel on Nov 27, 2008 13:30:19 GMT -5
I still don't think any band needs 3 guitarists.
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Post by Solid on Nov 27, 2008 13:31:41 GMT -5
Plus every song i wrote on TD was written in about a week with the exception of 'Autopsy' and 'Second Death'. LIAR!
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Post by Fyacin on Nov 27, 2008 13:33:54 GMT -5
HA! I can't believe this thread has survived for so long. But since it has, I'll chime in: I will be the first to say that I think that Jon is probably a better fit in BTA... he has the groove thing and the catchy/memorable thing going and I have the shreddy and techie thing going. I do my best in Aletheian and in the BTA stuff to exercise enough restraint that the emotion of the passages is not only conveyed to the few that can comprehend the headier stuff, but still... I felt out of my element in BTA. Plus every song i wrote on TD was written in about a week with the exception of 'Autopsy' and 'Second Death'. Jon focuses more on the riffs and sections whereas I focus more on the overall feel and flow of the song, how the parts transition and where it takes you along the way... it is just a different way of looking at things. I also agree with the poster who warned about doing an injustice to the rest of the band... the other guys wrote a whole lot of TD and Dichotomy and a good portion of TPoF as well as doing a ton of the editing and brainstorming. Jason is the master of getting a song structure just right and Seth if the king of the metal epic. Don't discount their contributions! BTA is where it is because of everyone and I busted by butt to get them there, and I am proud to turn it back over to Jon and the rest of the guys. Heck, when Jon came back I had been in BTA longer than he originally was and did a heck of a lot more touring, but I still considered it his project that i had just kept alive until he was at a point in life where he could pick up again. In terms of music though, ironically Jon and I actually worked back and forth quite a bit on a few songs on the new CD and we pretty much saw eye to eye on most things... but no one person can usually se what is best for the song overall. BTA cut some revisions from the songs that I had made, and they stuck with some decisions that I was against and Devin cut some things that they had done, but in the end I think it turned out great and Devin did a fantastic job of bringing out the best in everyone. If I had stuck through the process, I would have had a hard time with the amount of 'core' on the CD and the guys probably would have had a hard time with the amount of fretwork that I would have wanted on it... so yeah, apples and oranges. But look at it THIS way: you got to hear TWO different flavors of a band you like, and even though a lot of people will always like TD better, TPoF kicked open some doors in the metal world that TD failed to get BTA into and also gave the band more 'street cred' in the eyes of shredders and breakdown-haters. Just think of what would have happened to BTA if they had gotten some doofus metalcore guy on the 2nd CD instead... ick! Either way... 'X vs Y' is always a loaded comparison. A more fair and less inflamatory way to present the question would probably have been something more like: 'What do you think Jon brings to the band as compared to what Alex brought to the band' or something like that. Consequently, when I got the CD a few months ago, I thought it was great and listened to it on repeat. In terms of the Jon CDs, I liked this one a whole lot better than TD... NOT to take anything away from that CD, but like 4 or 5 songs really stuck out on it for me, whereas on Dichotomy, I don't find myself skipping tracks PS I have to skip tracks on TPoF too). Well said. By the way, when do we get new Aletheian ? ;D ;D
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