Here' my take on the new CD. First of all I like it ALOT. Right away I really liked Touch of Blessing, Ambassador, More than Ever, and When the Walls Come Down. "Walls come down" is definitely one of those you either really like or hate. I like the songs that take a while to build up and then kick your ass at the end and that one defintitely fits that type. Let's see, I'm not a big fan of Waking up Blind or the other real soft song. Maybe they will grow on me. The two songs that have grown on me and that I like a lot now but not when I first heard them were Essence of Conviction and Harmless Wishes. Wake of the Weary is a great song. For me personally my favorites by far are Ambassador, More than Ever and Touch of Blessing...
As for comparisons to prior CD's I always have trouble stating which CD I like the most b/c they are all different. I like the heaviness of Recreation Day the most (I like the heavy guitar riffs (not solos but just the pounding guitars) in Blinded, Visions, End of Days, and Great Deceiver. I think the vocals on Inner Circle are better. Guitars in RD were better in my opinion but the album is still growing on me.
However, I think ISOT was the best blend that they did. The guitars are there, the emotion is there. Probably their most complete sounding CD. I don't know, that's my take.