Listen twice the whole album, it wasn't like I would say Wow!! but it's a good album

Written by Fat & Sassy! on 17.09.2013 at 03:36

LOTS of Rush moments.

as if that's surprising. They've Always had that and then esepcially on When Day & Dream UNite where they really do sound like a mix of Rush and Metallica

This album is awesome! Very melodic and technical as usual.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 17.09.2013 at 15:30

as if that's surprising. They've Always had that and then esepcially on When Day & Dream UNite where they really do sound like a mix of Rush and Metallica

Indeed. "The Looking Glass" totally sounds like something off that album, at times. Which I prefer over the direction they went after Scenes From A Memory. And as others have said, there are many classic DT moments, but it doesn't really blow me away or anything like those albums did.

So great to hear Myung as a prominent figure in the album! I'd say I hear him better in this album than in any DT album that has been released in the last 10-15 years!
I'll listen to it for a few more times before I make any certain decisions about this album, but this could very well be the best DT album in a LONG time!

This, fellow metalheads, is an incredible well polished album.

Feels like the album has an identity crisis, and there's too much focus on petrucci and the new drummer.
choruses feel uninspired, but most verses and in-between sound alright.
overall I think it's an okay album but it's not more than that. I expect a lot more from the upcoming fates warning album.

One of the worst albums i´ve ever heard in Progressive Metal. Monotonous riffs and melodies with some little variances compared with their previous albums. The last track was the only good song. The others are so common and boring. Totally forgettable except for the last track that was the only one that has new and great moments
Highlight: Illumination theory
4/10

Listening to this album right now, and i think it's very solid! I really like it, I'd give it about an 8.5/10 or something.

EDIT: I'd give it about a 7 now.

Written by Donnie Darko on 18.09.2013 at 22:15

One of the worst albums i´ve ever heard in Progressive Metal. Monotonous riffs and melodies with some little variances compared with their previous albums. The last track was the only good song. The others are so common and boring. Totally forgettable except for the last track that was the only one that has new and great moments
Highlight: Illumination theory
4/10

The Enemy Inside was also great, The Bigger Picture and Along For The Ride and also the instrumental tracks were good except some disappointing moment in them (changing rhythm so badly or stuff like that). you voted very strict, I think a vote between 7-9 is a fair vote.

I love the riff of "Enigma Machine", the new boosted bass guitar production, the bad vocal production (which actually makes the whole thing better) and the fact that it is not a borefest at times.

Not bad of an album, its very solid stuff that reminds me of Rush much of the time. I especially enjoy the song "The Looking Glass" quite a bit.

Looking forward..... update : listening...

A little bit disappointing but a good release. Very very influenced by Rush in bass lines and guitar lines.

Anyway this album marks a new way in Dream Theater music.

I still haven't heard the entire album, but The Enemy Inside is as tight as it gets! I love it.

Best thing DT have put out for a long time. I can't stop listening to it!

Track by Track interview.

No such theatrical musical story as M part II. Guitars I think are degraded. A fair good album comparing to 2011 release. Listening the full album you can recognize older DT melodies. Score 8.5

Excellent album. Large parts of "Illumination Theory" could be the soundtrack for some epic movie like "Legends of the Fall".

It doesn't have to be the most technical, heavy, new, whatever to be...Excellent!! Absolutely love it.

Really great album. Has a kind of movie soundtrack feel to it with the orchestrated parts. Much better than ADTOE. The strong thing of this album in my opinion is the difference in songs and the shorter playtimes of some songs. And "Enigma Machine" is a briljant instrumental piece. And as I had with ADTOE, I here don't have any song that feels out of place/boring. Can't wait to see them play 'Illumination Theory' live

Eh, it's ok but simply another Dt album for me. 'The enigma machine' and naturally closer 'Illumination theory' are absolutely brilliant, but the other songs don't offer anywhere near as much creativity for me.

Amazing! What they could pull off without Portnoy NOR Moore (no I'm not that outdated but you get me; 2 and 3 were the best) is actually surprising, considering A Dramatic Turn Of Events had the most boring drums, the most yawny moments in a DT album, and the most crappy production of a DT album behind the first one. At first listen, I was like.. "impressive chocolate cake but meh", at second I liked more songs, and at seventh currently, I admit this is... hugely awesome. I gave it a 10 simply because.. it's perfect to my tastes; perfect! Shorter songs then an epic, everything just.. mhmhmhmhmrurughghghg... I'm gonna have to review this a few months later to actually point out what I liked and didn't and sound more objective. But woah, guys. They've outdone themselves.

(P.S. Certainly not as mindblowing as Scenes, Awake, IAW or 6DOIT Disc 2, but as high quality as TOT with a slight bit more).

Hm... hm... hm... So far it is still nothing special for me... I don't like the sound of this album, with the exception of bass. Musically it is like Dream Theater + Rush + Nevermore. 7/10 for now.

Finally we could see a glimpse of what Dream Theater used to be... globally it's a good album with very good performance by John Petrucci, Mike Mangini and Jordan Rudess. I'm not to keen on two tracks but the rest of the album seems consistent enough to have a 8/10.

Sub-par production. Drums sound really bad. Decent album but not worthy to be their s/t.

Written by 3rdWorld on 23.09.2013 at 08:23

Sub-par production. Drums sound really bad. Decent album but not worthy to be their s/t.

Agree 100%

Checked out the stream 2 times last week and I have now listened to the CD a couple of times over the weekend. It doesn't grab me. Some of the songs are ok and the album will probably grow on me - Dream Theater's stuff usually takes a while to sink in - but so far it's pretty underwhelming. It's too early to give a rating, but I suspect it will end up around a 6 or 7. Right now it's in the bottom four of DT albums.

Great album, actually the best I heard from them since Train of Thought.. they mixed various moments of their career and I think they did it very well..

P.D: I didn't miss MP on this one..

For me, it's a completely uninspired album. Way too pop. Bigger Picture is probably their worst song ever.
Bad transitions throughout the album (Behing the Veil starts so well, but the rest of the song doesn't connect with the intro). Illumination Theory has its moments, but I feel it's just a sequence of riffs that dont' really make a whole. And let's face it, the song is 19minutes long, not 22. What comes a minute after it's finished is completely irrelevant.

I feel it's an album made by amateurs. Truly.