Music Reviews - D
Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos (2007)
Review added June 5, 2008.
Starting off the fast and furious musicality of the instrumental prelude of "In the Presence of Enemies - Part I," Systematic Chaos provides further demonstration of the technical prowess of prog metal's most influential band.
The virtuosity is not merely obscure, however, as witnessed by the riffs of "Forsaken" (where Petrucci's leads are also at their sweetest and most musical) and elsewhere.
There are the usual Dream Theater objections here, of course. James LaBrie's vocals are not appreciated by everyone. And although I usually like his leads fine (an exception is the semi-growling of "Constant Motion"), at times I would still prefer to hear the sort of sumptious harmonies that other bands in the genre have mastered.
Nonetheless, it's hard to question the fact that Dream Theater's approach works. While technicality frequently descends into unmusicality, that is only rarely the case with this band. As with a number of their other efforts, Systematic Chaos shows off more than instrumental wizardry; it is an album laden with well-developed musical ideas, a good sense of melody and temperament, and a great deal more.
3 1/2 stars.
