For some reason Evergrey has consistently had production and mastering problems... "Torn" is over-compressed and lacking in dynamic range... "Monday Morning Apocalypse" isn't as bad but has annoying "super-loud" production suited for radio metal like Nickelback... and "Recreation Day" was just an embarrassing mess (a shame for such a great collection of songs). I think their best sound was on "The Inner Circle"... which was warm and dynamic. The sound on "Torn" just grates on the ears and really detracts from the songs. I also wish they'd drop the 7 strings... it just suffocates the music.