BLACK CLOUDS & SILVER LININGS

Coming off an incredibly dark yet engaging album in Systematic Chaos, Dream Theater has gone back to its roots. Fans have desperately been waiting for Dream Theater to find the magic prog touch once more, and if your a prog nut, you will absolutely love this album, myself on the otherhand, not so much. Never before have I been so swayed in my opinion on a DT album, but here goes.

1."Nightmare to Remember" - Excellent album opener. Wonderful progressive elements and catchy heavy riifs. Perfectly timed instrumental sequences by Rudess and J.P Overall a very typicial DT song which essentially equates to awesome!!! Due to length and certain uninspired sections I won't say this song reaches epic status, but it's a great opener nonetheless 9/10

2 "Rite of Passage" - Ok, here's my problem with Dream Theater. SInce you're never going to get radio play, why write a song as putrid as "Rite of Passage"? This song is a snooze from beginning to end, and it's made even worse by the most annoying and ghastly keyboard solo in Dream Theater history. It's almost as if Jordan Rudess tries to simulate a John Sterling broadcast of the Yankees with his keyboard. It's hideously bad. 3/10

3. "Wither" - Oh no, another easily forgettable track. I guarantee this song will be skipped numerous times. Not to say it's bad, it's just etched in the same mold as Silent Man and Hollow Years which I'm getting sick of. 5/10

4 "Shattered Fortress" - Whew. A welcome listen to cap off the Portnoy AA saga. Heavy riffs with memorable and reminiscent DT goodness. Ode's to Glass Prison, Dying Soul and other songs in the saga appear. I wish a little more originality was involved, yet hearing old favorites are always good too. 7.5/10

5. "Best of Tmes" - Ok Dream Theater fans. You will either hate this song, or love it. There is no inbetween, It's an anthem song with little to no progressive elements. It's the type of song that will probably get stuck in your head whether you hate it or not. Therefore I'm going to give it two scores. Personally I love it, however it could be a bit shorter due to the lack of a progressive nature. 3/10 and 8.5/10

6. "Count of Tuscany" - Remember Images & Words? Of course you do. Well this song is quintessentail I.A.W. Not to mention it's almost 20 mins of pure progressive goodness. Epic in everyway, and is far and away the most progressive Dream Theater song since A.C.O.S. Fans who were worried Dream Theater could no longer tap into their roots are in for a welcome treat. Not to mention this may be an album saver as well. My only gripe is the song ended a bit too abruptly for my liking, however it doesn't deterr from a highly memorable experience. 9.5/10

So there ya go DT fans. A new album, not a great album. However, there's enough here to keep DT fans happy. 2 Great tracks, possibly 3 depending on your POV. 1 solid track, 1 mediocre track and 1 stinker. Overall it's a solid effort. I want to give it a 3.5 to be honest, but I'll round up to make all you DT fans happy, haha!!!