"On the whole, there've been strong songs scattered on every Dream Theater album in the Mangini era-the ballads "Far From Heaven" and "Beneath the Surface" on A Dramatic Turn of Events, or the Rush-esque "The Looking Glass" on Dream Theater to name a few-but the briskness of Distance Over Time means that the good stuff feels more concentrated, with the mediocre material mere blips on the radar. While any other band's 14th studio album might start to reveal fatigue, Dream Theater balances polish, consistency, musical excellence, and excitement on Distance Over Time".