90125

My position towards this album is neutral, although i find myself enjoying it sometimes, I don't really blame them for the changes they made to their sound. One thing is certain, the 80's were a rough period to this kind of bands due to several factors, among them being the punk fever in the late 70's and shortly after, the emergence of MTV. I know that the early albums were much better in almost every perspective but in the old days complexity and differentiation were the main criteria to evaluate a prog album. The Pop Revolution happened and Progressive Music, as it was originally interpreted and apreciated, suddenly plunged into a never ending darkness. Take ELP (my favorite band) for example, they stood firm with their musical style and that's why they never managed to resurface again. One cannot simply judge a band that tried to create radio oriented music while preserving the personality. Besides, i think the mood you're in determines if you feel like listening to this mild pop-prog album that has its moments once in a while.

In conclusion, this metamorphosis was a double-edged sword. They gained more fans than they lost, therefore gained more profit with the shows. In spite of the group survivability being insured, the music quality does not live up to the multi concept band that once was. Either way, it deserves more airtime than the majority of commercial crap (excuse my french) that is made nowadays.

Quoting the great Darwin: "It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change."