I'm not sure how to review this album. It's been done a million times before. Whether you're a relatively new Dream Theater fan or you've been following their work since the Majesty days, you probably know that Train of Thought is Dream Theater's most straightforward heavy metal album. Some of you find this as a good thing, while others believe applying traditional metal aspects to Dream Theater songs automatically ruins them. Personally, I welcome the heavy riffs and blazingly fast solos. The lengthy, often chaotic instrumental passages are somewhat of a bore, however. Dream Theater is all about variety and while some may argue that this album is their most monotonous piece of work, Train of Thought definitely has it's high points.

To open up the album, a haunting chord fades into the first song, "As I Am." This eight-minute piece is all about outstanding guitar work. The riffs are somewhat bland but fit the song perfectly and the solo is a relentless display of speed and shred at its finest. The outro leads right into the next song, This Dying Soul. Honestly, I must say that this song seems to drag on. Filled with unnecessary soloing and filler, this is my least favorite off the album. Though the opening music up until the vocals come in is nice, it doesn't fit very well.

Endless Sacrifice is also one of the weaker songs off this album in my opinion. The riffing is decent and the acoustic parts are nice, but the instrumental passage is pointless and completely stands out from the rest of the song. Lyrically, Endless Sacrifice is about average.

The fourth song, titled Honor Thy Father, is widely considered to be one of the worst songs in Dream Theater's entire catalogue, mostly due to a "rap verse" put into place. Looking past that, the drumming is top-notch, the riffs are heavy, and the soloing fits better in this than most other songs on Train of Thought. I'd place this high on a best heavy Dream Theater song chart.

Vacant is a short, melodic song and a nice contrast to Honor Thy Father. The main riff of this song is a slowed down version of the next song's driving force and sets it up perfectly. Stream of Consciousness is, as far as I'm concerned, Dream Theater's finest instrumental moment and the best song off of this album - although it is slightly repetitive. Stream of Consciousness has it all - mellow, relaxing clean guitar work mixed with crunchy distorted riffs and a spectacular guitar solo that blows anything Hendrix ever did right out of the water. Following this onslaught of notes is a nicely done piano solo by Mr. Jordan Rudess.

And so we arrive at the final track of Train of Thought, a fourteen minute closer called In The Name of God. There's some good riffs to be found here and the bass work really shines in some parts. The outro is an energetic, emotional conclusion to an overall very good progressive heavy metal album.

All in all, Train of Thought isn't Dream Theater's most intricate album. It does have solid instrumental work, which is countered by excess indulgence in itself, thereby detracting from the songs' overall quality. If you're looking for unsurpassed heavy musicianship, this is the album for you. If not, look into something slightly less straightforward.

Overall Album Rating: 7.8/10.

This Review's Quality Rating: 1.2/10.