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Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos

 

 

	RELEASED: June 5th, 2007 PRODUCER:John Petrucci & Mike Portnoy LABEL:Roadrunner Records BAND: James LaBrie Jordan Rudess John Myung John Petrucci Mike Portnoy
+ Stellar musicianship (as always), stylistic diversity - Some blatant influential nods, debatable songwriting choices	TRACKS: 1. In the Presence of Enemies, pt. 1 2. Forsaken 3. Constant Motion 4. The Dark Eternal Night 5.Repentance 6. Prophets of War 7. The Ministry of Lost Souls 8. In The Presence of Enemies, pt. 2

OVERVIEW

Dream Theater’s got a predicament that they share with quite a few veteran rock bands out there – like Hammerfall, Rush, Def Leppard, and Metallica, just to name a few.  What is this problem, you might ask?  Well, all of these bands are undeniably huge players in their respective fields…but the general consensus that none of these bands will ever eclipse the greatness of their first few records is pretty much set in stone.  DT has yet even come close to topping the brilliant balance of songwriting and technicality they achieved on “Images and Words”, or, for that matter, the depth of songwriting they displayed on “Metropolis, Pt. II”.

            So, now that we’ve gotten that out of the way and I’ve pissed off the fanboys, how does this latest album measure up?  Well, despite a switch to Roadrunner Records (a label known primarily for nu-metal, thrash, groove metal, and other such delights), DT is still very much DT and marching right along with their unique blend of prog-metal.  The one thing that truly sets this album apart from the rest of their catalog, in my opinion, is a few blatant nods to bands DT either respects enough to imitate their songwriting or have rubbed off on Petrucci & Co in the past few years.  Another interesting aspect is that the lyrics (which I’ll admit, I haven’t really analyzed) seem to be telling a cryptic sort of story, sort of like Metropolis Pt. II.  Interesting, but at the end of the day, we’re here for songs, so let’s see what DT brings to the table this time around.

SONGS

In what might seem like a blatant display of musical cockiness, Systematic Chaos begins with the 9-minute “In the Presence of Enemies, Part I.”, which doesn’t even include vocals until around the 5-minute mark.  It’s almost like they know that if people don’t get them now, they never will.  Anyways, “Forsaken” is a bit of a mellower track that wouldn’t have been too out of place on 2004’s “Octavarium” with it’s haunting piano and chilling minor-key melodies, but up next we have the absolutely fantastic “Constant Motion” which is a prime cut of vintage Metallica and Megadeth-style prog-thrash with Jordan Rudess ripping through a keyboard solo that sounds like he’s channeling the spirit of legendary shredder Kirk Hammett before he let Bob Rock de-claw his playing.  This song alone is almost worth the album price.  “The Dark Eternal Night” honestly reminded me of Sevendust at first, with it’s chunky detuned riffage and pounding double bass, until the off-time lead runs and grand chorus remind you that we’re still in prog-metal land.  “Repentance” honestly reminds me of older Tool, and parts of it are straight-up creepy.  “Prophets of War” makes me wonder if DT has been listening to Muse lately (especially the “Absolution” album), but it’s still a good tune, and that leaves us with two songs that, put together, make up over 30 minutes of this record’s gigantic 80-minute running time – “The Ministry of Lost Souls” has plenty of time to grow over it’s 15-minute span, and “In the Presence of Enemies, Pt. II” is, as it’s name would suggest, a direct continuation of the first track.  Cool idea, but why not just make one 20-something-minute song?  I mean, they did it on Octavarium, and it would’ve made much more sense to do it here, since by the time I get to the last track, I’ve completely forgotten what happened in the first one.

CONCLUSION

The last sentence pretty much spells out what prevents me from scoring this record higher than I have; there are a few great cuts on here, especially “Constant Motion” and “Prophets of War”, and the band’s musicianship is, as always, borderline untouchable.  Maybe it’s just me, but aside from a few of the aforementioned tracks, “Systematic Chaos” is a bit long on technical indulgence and short on memorable moments.  I love the musicianship, I love the technicality, and I especially love the way the band just extends a big middle finger to corporate rock & roll, but I gotta have some more memorable songwriting before I score this album higher.

Review by Matt Rewinski

 

 

 

 

 

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