I listened to WDADU recently, and I can't believe it, but that album sounded better than all the Mangini albums. Not too loud, everyone can be heard. JP's tone sucks and the band were young, inexperienced, still working on their songwriting chops, but the sound of the album is fine (for the time period at least)
Every Mangini album has issues (but so did the last couple of albums with MP, and honestly, which DT album doesn't have criticisms of the production?)
but with the Mangini albums, the issues are VERY distracting throughout the entire album.
ADTOE - drums too low, loss of MP means loss of full sound they once had, JP's sounds so weak compared to BC&SL, filtered effects-laden JLB vocals
DT12 - everyone sounds bad
TA - Best sounding production overall, but of course it is.
DoT - Best 'rawk' sound they've had in some time, but man, I can't listen to JLB's singing anymore, and I always liked him in the 2000s. I once did a listen to Awake then put on DoT and had to turn it off after a few songs, it was the vocals. Besides drenched in effects, it is clear time is catching up to JLB's already strained vocal chords. Sad but true.