LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT 2

This is such a great instrumental effort. It's metal combined with funk and other bizarre thins that make an incredible effort. The musicians, like always, are at the top of their game. This album contains so much technical masturbation, that it could drive the faint of heart nuts. I happen to like the incredible, virtuostic, bombastic musicianship. It begins and end great, and there are only a few filler tracks.

The opening track, Acid Rain, truly is one of the greatest openings. A 7-String Petrucci intro always makes an album start off great. Throughout the entire album, there is a feeling of improvisation mixed with incrediblly well written sections. 914 is a groovy track, where Levin really cuts loose. The bass line is really a great example of Levin's outstanding use of the Chapman Stick. The two epics, When the Water Breaks and Chewbacca are hit and miss. The first one, When the Water Breaks, is an instrumental masterpiece, going through fast sections, going through slow sections, and overall taking the listener to another world. Chewbacca (As much as I love the title), is a rather boring track that really doesn't go anywhere. The song starts off slow and just keeps getting slower, I can listen to it, but I never get any real satisfaction from it. The album closer, Hourglass, is an incredibly beautiful acoustic piece. This song features Petrucci on the acoustic guitar, and Rudess on the piano. It truly is one of the greatest endings I've heard. The guitar and piano mix and create such a tear-jerking atmosphere.

Overall, this album is a great experience from start to finish. The only weak track is Chewbacca, but still even that track is not bad. I give it a 4/5. It should not disappoint.