A GLORIOUS DISTURBANCE

I am in a unique position to review this CD/DVD set because I had the pleasure of attending both of the featured concerts. As a person who was there in person I can say that the DVD and the CD both do a great job of capturing the events, and they bring back some very good memories for me.

This live album is worth getting even if you already have the band's three studio releases (Cosmos & Chaos, The Allegory of Light, and Realms of Eternity) because there are a few pieces that can technically be considered "new" as they are previously unreleased versions officially seeing the light of day for the first time. "Mount Ethereal", "Strange Loop 2", and "The Coronation" were all instrumental pieces on Cosmos & Chaos and Allegory of Light but the live renditions have lyrics and vocals (and very good lyrics and vocal, I might add) that only appear on A Glorious Disturbance.

As for the DVD, the picture and the sound are both impeccable and thankfully there aren't any ridiculous kaleidoscope visuals that have ruined other prog concert DVDs for me. The camera work is also very good, and I especially like the shot at about 12:35 of the 2009 show when Carl is soloing and he is juxtaposed with an image of himself on the screen in the background.

Bottom line: This CD/DVD set is a must buy for Syzygy fans, and for the uninitiated it is the absolute perfect place to start because it contains a cross section of some of their best material from their first three studio releases in addition to some new twists unavailable anywhere else. An excellent package overall.

-David Wimer