SYSTEMATIC CHAOS

Dream Theater were my introduction to prog, and to metal, and I thought they were the best band ever. It's sad to see the only prog I categorize them with nowadays is that they're getting progressively worse. I can't put a finger on when it started, but DT have slowly but surely succumbed to pointless solos, uninspired ballads and generally emotionless and meaningless music. Sure, they still occasionally have their moments, but I think their problem is they're trying too hard to make their music sound "cool" (more accessible to the mainstream?) than actually producing some excellent music that they were somewhat once known for. Systematic Chaos has a lot of these "cool" moments, to name a few there's Constant Motion, The Dark Eternal Night, and the cluster of fans hoo-haring in Prophets of War. All of these songs sound good on first listen, but they just lack anything special to keep my interest any more. Many of the solos found on this album sound very familiar to past work, rehashed. It's truly sad, because the album starts off well with In The Presence Of Enemies Pt. 1, and for this song alone I'm not going to give this album one star. Unless you're a die hard fan, stay away.