BLACK CLOUDS & SILVER LININGS

I consider this the first DT album since the late 90's where things don't change in comparison to the previous album = very little progress. The band took combined approaches from "Systematic chaos" - accessible more polished prog-metal and heavy tendencies from "Octavarium/Train of thought" + added a couple of lame death-metal vocals by Portnoy to create this yummy "haven't I heard this already before" piece of progressive metal. The first track "A nightmare to remember" is by far the best one, sounding fresh and inspired; which is something I miss later through the album. If you want to hear the metallic highlight, go for the first half of the "The shattered fortress". Sadly, it's also the last Portnoy's album with the band as of 2022 so there are still more reasons to get than to let it go.