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Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (often abbreviated to SDOIT or 6DOIT) is the sixth full-length studio album by progressive metal band Dream Theater. It was released on January 29, 2002 by Elektra Records.
[edit] History
Fans' reactions to the album were mixed, with many pointing to the obvious differences between the two CDs as two different types of Dream Theater style. The second disc seems more pop-oriented in its songwriting, somewhat in line with the previous album Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory, while the first disc seems to be more experimental and metal-oriented.
- The first track of the first disc begins with the white noise that ended Scenes from a Memory, while the last track, Losing Time/Grand Finale ends with a long chord played by (synthesized) strings, which was also used as the intro to their next studio album, Train of Thought.
- The entire second disc is occupied by the 42-minute title song broken into 8 tracks.
- The first track of the album, "The Glass Prison," tells Mike Portnoy's story of rehabilitation from alcoholism. "The Glass Prison" is composed of three parts and Portnoy intends to extend the song into twelve parts that mirror the twelve steps of the AA program by Bill W. for rehabilitation of alcoholics. This song is continued in tracks on the next albums ("This Dying Soul" on Train of Thought, "The Root of All Evil" on Octavarium and "Repentance" on Systematic Chaos).
- The Great Debate is a non-partisan song dealing with the topic of stem-cell research.
- The recording is a type of concept album wherein the five songs which comprise the first disc explore different themes of lifetime struggle, such as Alcoholism, Loss of Faith and Death. The sixth song—-that is, the complete second disc—-explores the stories of six individuals suffering from various mental illnesses. Particularly represented are bipolar, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia, post-partum depression, autism, and dissociative personality disorder. Furthermore, the title of the album may also allude to the fact that each song on the album could be seen as a different form of inner turbulence, with the six tracks making another reference to the six degrees.
- The musical styles of each section of the title track are direct reflections of the band's large variety of influences. Indeed, classical, folk and metal styles combine effortlessly within the track. Additionally, certain parts of the track are direct nods to specific songs from influential artists. The main theme, which appears in the "Overture", at the end of "Goodnight Kiss," and in the "Grand Finale," bears an unquestionable resemblance to Kansas's "The Wall" from their Leftoverture album. "Solitary Shell" is a nod to Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill" both in name and in musical style. Some fans see this as a citation, but others claim it's pure copying. Also, parts of "Solitary Shell" bear strong resistance to Billy Joel's song "The Entertainer," mainly due to the unique synth-organ which sounds alike in both songs, played over acoustic guitar.
- Influences for the album's writing and recording include Metallica's Master of Puppets, Tool's Ænima, Radiohead's The Bends (and also a Radiohead bootleg Mike brought in), Pantera's Far Beyond Driven, Megadeth's Rust in Peace, U2's Achtung Baby, Nine Inch Nails' The Downward Spiral, Soundgarden's Superunknown, Alice in Chains' Dirt, Kevin Gilbert's Thud, King's X's Faith Hope Love and Galactic Cowboys' Space in Your Face a Béla Bartók CD, Rage Against the Machine's The Battle of Los Angeles, Maria Tipo's Chopin Nocturnes.[1]
- "The Great Debate" was originally titled "Conflict at Ground Zero". "Disappear" was originally titled "Move On"[2].
- In the song, "Misunderstood," John Petrucci wrote and played the guitar solo, and then reversed it. He then learned how to play this reversed sound, and after recording it reversed it once more. This resulted in a solo that sounded like his original solo but with a unique twist to the way the notes played.[3]This technique was originally developed by George Harrison, on the Beatles song "I'm Only Sleeping"
- The number of songs on the record is another "nugget" by Mike Portnoy. The album officially has the smallest number of songs on any Dream Theater album, but if the parts of "The Glass Prison" and "SDOIT" are counted as separate songs, it has 15 songs, the largest number on a Dream Theater album.
- The number of songs on the album's 2 discs is a nod towards the "5 and 8" theme of Octavarium. The first disc contains 5 songs, while the second disc is divided into 8 movements.
[edit] Track listing
[edit] Disc one
| Lyrics |
Music |
| 1. |
"The Glass Prison"
- I. "Reflection"
- II. "Restoration"
- III. "Revelation"
|
Mike Portnoy |
John Petrucci, John Myung, Jordan Rudess, Portnoy |
13:52 |
| 2. |
"Blind Faith" |
James LaBrie |
Petrucci, Myung, Rudess, Portnoy |
10:21 |
| 3. |
"Misunderstood" |
Petrucci |
Petrucci, Myung, Rudess, Portnoy |
9:34 |
| 4. |
"The Great Debate" |
Petrucci |
Petrucci, Myung, Rudess, Portnoy |
13:43 |
| 5. |
"Disappear" |
LaBrie |
Petrucci, Myung, Rudess, Portnoy |
6:46 |
[edit] Disc two
| Lyrics |
Music |
| 1. |
"Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence"
- I. "Overture"
- II. "About to Crash"
- III. "War Inside My Head"
- IV. "The Test That Stumped Them All"
- V. "Goodnight Kiss"
- VI. "Solitary Shell"
- VII. "About to Crash (Reprise)"
- VIII. "Losing Time"/"Grand Finale"
|
Petrucci, Portnoy
- (instrumental)
- Petrucci
- Portnoy
- Portnoy
- Portnoy
- Petrucci
- Petrucci
- Petrucci
|
Petrucci, Myung, Rudess, Portnoy |
42:04
- 6:50
- 5:51
- 2:08
- 5:03
- 6:17
- 5:48
- 4:05
- 6:01
|
[edit] Chart performance
Billboard 200:
- Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence - #46
Billboard Top Internet Albums:
- Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence - #1
[edit] Personnel
[edit] References
[edit] External links
