TRAIN OF THOUGHT

Dream Theater continue from Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence getting more and more metal as they begin to less resemble their progressive influences and more resemble their metal influences and prog-metal contemporaries. Train Of Thought shows them taking a heavier, much more technical approach than previously with melody taking a second hand to crushing riffs. The atmosphere of the album is very dark. But unlike Awake which was dark in a detached, isolated, desperate way, Train Of Thought is dark in an angry and violent way.

Those anti-LaBrie listeners out there won't be surprised much by what stands as his worst vocal performance, but LaBrie fans may be a little surprise by him abandoning his operatic sequels for a Hetfield imitation grunt that comes off far from successful. Petrucci takes the limelight showcasing his newfound love for highly technical shredding. Personally, I must say it fit the album, but I much prefer the Petrucci of old than the shredder. Portnoy gives an inspired and overall louder performance than he has in awhile, notably with his impressive use of bass drum.

I don't really appreciate the new pure metal sound. I much prefer their epic qualities and feel their melodies compliment their metal leanings better than having them stand on their own. Also, many songs tend to get dragged down by long-winded instrumental parts that fail to capture the listener's attention. "In The Name Of God" seems to drag on without end due to endless soloing by Rudess and Petrucci, and some of the more metal moments get repetitive such as in "As I Am". The album hits hard with the angsty "Honor Thy Father", and the bombastic instrumental "Stream of Consciousness" which avoids two of the album bigger flaws: LaBrie's performance and bad, cliché lyrics. Overall, all the album tracks have their moments when they're enjoyable, excluding Rudess' unsuccessful attempt at a "Wait For Sleep", but they also all seem to have bits of fat that missed trimming.

Fans will find something to enjoy, and those less fond will find even less of what they enjoy then usual.