Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 06/05/2007
Run Time: 78:41
Few bands in the history of
rock have warranted the "either you love them or hate them" tag as much as
Dream Theater, as fanatics consider them musical geniuses, while detractors sneer at their bombast. Either way, there's no arguing that the group has built a large and loyal following over the years by doing things their way, and with little to no help from radio or
MTV. And on their tenth full-length overall (and first for their new label,
Roadrunner), 2007's
Systematic Chaos, the quintet sticks to the
prog metal game plan that they've followed since their inception. In true
Dream Theater fashion, the gentlemen are not ashamed to show off their chops -- as evidenced by the album opener,
"In the Presence of Enemies, Pt. 1," in which
James LaBrie's vocals do not kick in until after the five-minute mark. Elsewhere,
"Forsaken" proves wrong those who say that
Dream Theater is all about
instrumental gymnastics and not songwriting, at least momentarily, while
"The Dark Eternal Light" features some nifty
Pantera-esque riffing from
John Petrucci. Additionally,
"Repentance" is one of the album's four ten-minute-plus, mid-paced epics, and features a prerequisite of countless extended prog suites and
spoken word passages. Unlike other veteran
rock acts that attempted to update their sound with the times (and failed miserably),
Dream Theater has admirably stuck to its guns through thick and thin -- much to the delight of their legion of admirers -- and they continue to do so on
Systematic Chaos. And for that, we salute you with a flurry of flawlessly sweep-picked arpeggios. [The 2007 CD/DVD edition features the entire album remixed for 5.1 Surround on an included bonus DVD.]
~Greg Prato, Rovi
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