Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos (W/Dvd) (Spec)
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Free Music Notes for Systematic Chaos (W/Dvd) (Spec)
Free Music Review: Dream Theater are back!
Hit: 5 Stars
I am almost heaving a sigh of relief as I write this review about Dream Theater's latest offering, Systematic Chaos. I picked it up the day it hit stores (June 5th). I was half praying that it wouldnt be the subdued experimentation that I'd seen with Octavarium (which by the way is the one DT album I rarely listen to). And I was NOT disappointed at all. Systematic Chaos comes packed with all the chops, time changes, apocalyptic riffs, sweeping melodies and all the ingredients that true DT fans love about this band. "In the Presence of Enemies Part 1" the first of their two part epic song of this album has a 5 minute intro showcasing DT at it's finest. The time changes are fast and furious (quite like Images and Words) and Labrie doesn't jump in until almost half the song. (Personally I've never been too much of a fan of Labrie's vocals but he's done well this time). Forsaken (one of my two favorite songs in the album) brings the power ballad back to DT's repertoire!! Labrie is brilliant and the orchestration of the song is absolutely superb. I love the arrangement on this song. Constant Motion (which was released as a single) is a heavy song.. again as classic DT written all over it - though it isnt my favorite DT song , I really think it is up there in terms of the instrumentation - with Petrucci and Rudess trading solos in what has become quite their trademark. And then is "The Dark Eternal Night". This is my second favorite song of this album. I have never heard such detuned bass play from Myung and if you love monster riffs, you're going to straight up love this song. It has some of the heaviest riffs I have heard and some tremendous shredding by Petrucci..an amazing song. "Repentance" is the 8th and 9th step in the "12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous" series that started with the Glass Prison in 6DOIT..it is my least favorite of the songs in this album..kind of mellow and subdued, not in keeping with the strong sounds of the rest of the album. "Prophets of War" kicks things back up, almost has a techno feel to it in the beginning..but is a great song nevertheless. It features the fan chant (where 50 lucky DT fans got immortalized in prog history). After that is "Ministry of Lost Souls" - which again is in classic DT epic.. and at the end is Part 2 of "In the Presence of Enemies" - which caps off the album in signature DT flourish. All in all, the album has all the essential components of a great DT record and will not disappoint at all.Free Music Review: Inspired and Awesome!
Hit: 5 Stars
I think this is one of Dream Theater's best albums. It pulses with the same hard-edged energy that has permeated their albums ever since "Train of Thought". But it also has memorable melodies such as those in "Forsaken", "Prophets of War", and "The Ministry of Lost Souls". The last is especially beautiful and haunting. Overall, the album strikes a good balance between intense metal, rich melody, and interesting story-telling.
While some reviewers have characterized some of the lyrics as juvenile, I happen to like science fiction and fantasy and appreciate that DT is telling some stories in those genres. These stories are actually more sophisticated then you might think at first hearing and have interesting sources including a Turgenev short story and Korean and Japanese manga (comic books); check out the Wikipedia entries and related links for details.
I strongly encourage you get the special edition, not so much for the documentary video, but for the outstanding 5.1 surround sound mix. It's only an extra $7. The engineers did a wonderful job with this alternate mastering, fully exploiting the possibilities of the extra channels. There are several points including the opening of "In the Presence of Enemies - Part 1" where the sound actually moves around between the speakers. While this is not a realistic sound concept, it is very cool to hear. Fortunately, the engineers did not overdo these tricks; the sound is more stable most of the time, while delivering excellent separation and depth. In contrast, several live concert DVDs that I've purchased recently (Deep Purple, Rainbow, and Heaven and Hell) disappointed me with their use of 5.1 surround sound, failing to offer any benefit beyond the stereo soundtracks except for some extra depth. (In fairness, the Deep Purple and Rainbow albums were recorded in the 1970s and might even have been recorded in mono sound which would prevent any separation between instruments and singer.)
Regarding the two part "In the Presence of Enemies", a friend of mine thought that Dream Theater was going Satanic and advocating some kind of devil worship. But if you study the lyrics (or the Korean manga "Priest" that inspired them), you'll see that this is not the case. Instead, you'll see that the main character ultimately resists the lure of the "dark master", regaining possession of his soul.
Free Music Review: Return of the Kings of Prog Metal
Hit: 5 Stars
June was a fantastic month for progressive metal. Symphony X, Kamelot, and Dream Theater all released new albums - in fact the same day for Dream Theater and Kamelot. (Competition?) All three releases are very strong, but Systematic Chaos by Dream Theater shows that they are still the kings of progressive metal. As I have stated before, I only write 5-star reviews, since I can't be bothered to write reviews for anything less. With this philosophy, I didn't write a review for Octavarium, which was good but not great. There was nothing on Octavarium that struck me - plenty of prog maybe, but not enough metal.
Systematic Chaos isn't quite as heavy as Train of Thought (is anything?), but it certainly is heavy. The only song not loaded with crunch is "Repentance", which has a great Pink Floyd feel and is probably the best of the 12 step songs. "Repentance" has some beautiful backing guitar and a super solo by John Petrucci. The album is overall rather dark. While not a concept album, a number of the songs have lyrics reminiscent of 1950s horror flicks. "Constant Motion" is well titled with nothing but pure energy and makes great use of distorted vocals. Heavy riffs fill "The Dark Eternal Night" from front to back. The ending, in particular, is exceptionally mean with Petrucci crunching away at the bottom and Rudess going absolutely nuts on top with the continuum - prog metal heaven! For me, Jordan Rudess does help set DT apart. Most keyboard players add atmosphere or the lighter touches. Rudess can do this as well, but he can rip it up as nastily as Petrucci, which is as nasty as it gets. (They remind me of Jon Lord and Ritchie Blackmore dueling it out at solo time.) "Forsaken" and "Prophets of War" are short, heavy, and very catchy. "Prophets of War" has some Queen-like backing vocals and calls for a change in administration of the US presidency, which I certainly support. "The Ministry of Lost Souls" is the lyrical standout with a poignant story of successful rescue for the victim while the hero loses his life. "In The Presence of Enemies" is the epic piece, beginning and ending the album in grandiose but dark style.
Just when I was concerned that Dream Theater was possibly losing their edge, they come back with a bolt of lightning. I can't wait to see them on tour. VIP ticket for Cleveland!
Free Music Review: Progressive Theater at it's best
Hit: 5 Stars
This new effort from Dream Theater is easily their most balanced album since A Change Of Seasons. I noticed most of the reviewers here are being a little too picky on some of the songs or absolutely have no clue what the story is about. This is just one fan's take, but this is one hell of an album.
1. In The Presence Of Enemies (Part 1) is a 9 minute epic. The lead-in to the song is killer and it's the perfect teaser for the even more epic second part.
2. Forsaken has a nice intro from Ruddess, my only mini complaint is that James LaBrie sings the song a tad too slow. Still, a very sold track.
3. Constant Motion has a really cool vibe with Portnoy's double bass runs in sync with Petrucci's strong riffing. Yes, Portnoy's vocal abilities is a little rough but it compliments this song so well with LaBrie's highs.
4. The Dark Eternal Night reminds me of 'Honor Thy Father' from Train Of Thought. It's just really cool, fast, and strong aggressive vocals. Jordan has a little fun during the mini breaks of this song too.
5. Repentance is the most cerebral song this band has ever done. To those who dont understand the concept, listen to 'The Glass Prison' from Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence, then 'This Dying Soul' from TOT, and 'The Root Of All Evil' from Octavarium. To the one that said there were vocal samples, it's all spoken word from the likes of Steve Vai, Satch, Chris Jericho, Jon Anderson, and Neal Morse to name a few. A beautiful and emotional song from beginning to end.
6. Prophets Of War gets right to the point with a very good sounding vocal from LaBrie telling his story of war's greed and senseless killing of innocent people. Listen close and you'll hear 100 people in chorus making this song even more personal on some levels.
7. Ministry Of Lost Souls is a Dream Theater classic. It has the speed playing, the slower balladry (especially in the beginning) and the tight vocals. A sweet piece of music nearly 15 minutes in length.
8. In The Presence Of Enemies (Part 2) closes out this epic album with a very dark story of the Dark Master. This 16 and a half minute journey takes the listener to his/her deepest darkest past selling their soul to the Dark Master only to ask for it back. What a way to close out an album.
Free Music Review: dream theater never ceases to disappoint... me anyway
Hit: 5 Stars
I purchased this album the day it came out because they're my favorite band and I'm one of those abstract fanatics. I wanted to wait to write a review so I can fully digest it and I'm glad I did because I absolutely now see how awesome this album really is. For me, and I'm sure many other hardcore DT fans, we already know how awesome they are and we don't know what to expect from them next therefore we become critical. This album really does deliver all around with diversity and song writing. The epic "In the Presence of Enemies" is an amazing composition that is played as one live but was divided into two for the album because they didn't want to repeat what they did for Octavarium. The melodies thrown into the mix on this song and the absolutely keen build ups of intensity are absolutely phenomenal! This song gives me such an awesome feeling inside whenever I listen to it. "The Ministry of Lost Souls" is the second longest song that is also quite epic and once again I'm glad I allowed this song to grow on me because I despised it at first. I thought it was slow moving and didn't go anywhere until I let my blindfold of ignorance be taken off and realize they have to calm down once in a while and the slow verses and choruses are merely a very nice tranquil melody that does a great job of building up into some superb instrumental work. "Repentance" is the only song I don't really care for. I would love the song if it was made properly, it could've easily ended at 5 or 6 minutes but making it drag out to as long as nearly 11 minutes really makes me feel like it's nothing more than unnecessary filler. You don't have to make an 80 minute CD every time, it wouldn't kill them to end it at 70. "The Dark Eternal Night" is definitely a favorite of mine. These guys are now in their 40s and they can still write a song that is so very rapid, fast, and very impressive! Love this song, energetic as all hell. All-in-all this is up there with one of my favorite DT CDs, they remain my absolute favorite band of all time and I eternally long for what they will come out with next. (Yes, it's true, I'm one of the guys that says DT can do NO wrong, deal with it!)