Mike Portnoy likes this - A review of Dream Theater's Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Train of Thought - Instrumental Demos (2003)

The third release in Dream Theater's new archives series is Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Train of Thought - Instrumental Demos (2003). Initially released twelve years ago, this record is only interesting for the most adamant collectors, faithful fans and musicians who appreciate Dream Theater for their instrumental skills but have issues with James LaBrie's vocals. From the latter perspective, Mike Portnoy fan boys might consider this record a dream come true.

However, James LaBrie's melodic vocals breathe life into the band's technically appealing musicianship. Without him, many performances sound like a mixture of jam sessions and endless instrumental wankery. This is why things are quickly getting boring here. The opening ''In the Name of God'' might be almost two minutes shorter than the official version but it feels much longer due to the lack of diversity, emotions and power brought by the vocals. The focused, poignant and sinister single ''As I Am'' also works only half as well without its charismatic chorus.

There are a few positive exceptions when the demo versions sound as great as the regular songs. The shorter rendition of ballad ''Vacant'' sounds refreshing as it clocks in just under three minutes and should have been kept as concise for the final version in my opinion. Instrumental tune ''Stream of Consciousness'' is slightly longer than the official version but ends on some dynamic studio banter.

At the end of the day, Dream Theater's Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Train of Thought - Instrumental Demos (2003) is only interesting for a limited number of fans. This might be a welcome release if you are either a musician eager to learn how to play these songs or if you don't like vocalist James LaBrie. Occasional and even regular fans can skip these demos without any regrets and focus on the other more interesting archives releases so far such as the energetic live rendition Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Master of Puppets - Live in Barcelona, 2002.

Final rating: 55%