I don't like the new album, and didn't care much for The Joy of Motion. The first two albums are nothing short of brilliant, however, with the first being my favorite. I tried to get into the new album, but it's just boring. For me, I don't think the current approach works on an instrumental level, because there is a lot of riffing in unison, a much more noticeable lack of lead guitar/melody, and as a result it just feels empty. It has an unfinished sort of feel to it. The songs just meander, and don't seem as cohesive as previous efforts. Tosin is a very unique and innovative player, but over the past two albums he has been focusing a lot more on slap guitar and thumping, which is great and all, but it's a bit too much. I don't mind that technique (I do it myself from time to time), but when a riff consists of holding one note and slapping/thumping various rhythmic groupings in odd meters for more than eight bars, it tends to get old. I remember reading an interview where he said he wanted the newer AAL material to focus more on songwriting than on technicality, which is funny, because I find the older technically over-the-top material to be way more musically interesting and memorable.