What a splendid album. The second it arrived at my house, I was bursting with anxiousness and hurriedly popped it into my CD player. Little did I know that I was about to achieve a state of aural ecstacy.

First off, this isn't an "album full of pop songs" as so many put it. Octavarium is a diverse album with heavy tracks, ballads, catchy songs, and a 24-minute epic title track.

Octavarium starts out with The Root Of All Evil, the third song in an ongoing series dealing with the Alcoholics Anonymous 12-step program. The intro starts off slow but then gets right into a great lead riff. Right away, I was hooked. It starts to get kind of repetitive after the intro for a few minutes, then gets into a part referencing the past two tracks in the AA saga. Any fan of the past two albums by Dream Theater will want to sing along at this point. This section leads right into a keyboard solo, which in turn leads into a guitar solo. Some more riffs are played until the ending is reached, which is basically the lead riff from before with some keyboarding over it leading into a slow keyboard fadeout.

The next song, The Answer Lies Within, is probably my least favorite on the album. A slower ballad song. Rudess's keyboarding is predominant throughout the entire song. The bass can be heard clearly as well, which is a warmly-welcomed occurence.

Moving on to the third track, These Walls, we again hear a slow, but short, introduction composed of muted guitars. This leads into an immediately ear-catching riff from Rudess that foreshadows an even catchier remainder of the song. As soon as the fast-paced riff starts, it slows down, and then speeds right back up into the chorus. Again, the song slows down, then speeds back up into the chorus. Next is a slower, shorter, more restrained guitar solo from Petrucci. The chorus is played again, followed by some repetition, then the outro.

The fourth track, I Walk Beside You, is probably the one which gets criticized the most as being too "poppy." Indeed, it is a catchy and more radio-friendly tune. That doesn't necessarily make it a bad song, though. IWBY maintains moderate speed and pretty much just repeats itself throughout.

Panic attack, the fifth song, is probably the heaviest on the album. A nifty bit for a few seconds followed by a fast and heavy guitar riff makes up the introduction. The heaviness continues for the next few minutes, with some exceptional keyboard overludes, varied vocals, and great bass work by Myung. Rudess struts his stuff in a wonderful keyboard solo, which again leads into a matching guitar solo by Petrucci. The chorus plays and the song is over after eight thrilling minutes.

Next up is Never Enough, the sixth track off the album. The introduction is nice and fast, leading into some rad vocals from LaBrie. The chorus is heavy and relatively slower. A neato guitar interlude leads into some more vocals. The song slows down for the chorus again at this point. Rudess then starts playing a nifty sounding keyboard bit, followed by Petrucci again with a lower sounding guitar solo. Just when it sounds like the chorus is going to start again, a higher pitched solo is played, followed by the chorus. For the rest of the song a heavier riff is played, followed by a techno-sounding fadeout.

Track seven is titled Sacrificed Sons. The introduction is reminiscient of The Great Debate off of Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, as it is made up of people's voices discussing terrorist attacks. A keyboard riff is played under LaBrie singing some slower lyrics dealing with the attack on the World Trade Center back in 2001. The chorus sounds great. Following the chorus is a pleasing riff, leading into some quite unexpected, faster-paced guitar riffs. Solos alternating between keyboards and guitars are played, eventually leading into an enthralling guitar riff bit, and then back into a verse and the chorus. Another verse is played and then gets back into some nice riffs and the ending.

Finally, we arrive at the title track: Octavarium, the 24-minute long epic. Split into five parts, this song easily rivals and possibly surpasses A Change of Seasons in terms of grandeur.

The introduction is calm and atmospheric. It's a pleasant, relaxing piece of music to listen to. After over 3 and a half minutes, it finally transfers into a faster, keyboard-led section. Following this is an acoustic, slower part of the song. After a few minutes, it then speeds up and then abruptly slows down.

Octavarium then proceeds into an instrumental section featuring mostly bass and keyboards, which is actually the intro to the next major part of the song. This soothing mini-song almost sounds like a mix of The Answer Lies Within and These Walls. It's got the slow, relaxing qualities of the former and the catchiness of the latter. Rudess take the lead with a catchy solo.

Next is a heavier, almost haunting section reminicent of Panic Attack. This is where the real fun begins. The lyrics become somewhat confusing and are saturated with references to Dream Theater's influences, as well as their own past. The chorus is odd, but pleasing. Following it is another section full of references and confusing lines. The chorus is again heard.

Proceeding it is an fast and varied instrumental section filled with solos. This is where the song gets spooky. Low vocals, chilling lyrics, and heavy instruments all lead up into LaBrie actually screaming.

Immediately following the haunting vocals, the song slows down and begins to end with the final part of the song. A slower, captivating section is heard. Finally, instruments take over all leading up to a glorious orchestral ending to one of my favorite songs (not to mention albums) of all time.

Overall, Octavarium is a diverse, enthralling musical adventure. It's got its heavy parts, soft parts, slow parts, fast parts, dark parts, and upbeat parts. If you are a fan of Dream Theater or if you are just wanting a new album, this is the one to buy. You will not be disappointed.