SYSTEMATIC CHAOS

Before I get started, I should mention that Dream Theater are a band very near and dear to me, as they were the first progressive metal band I discovered, and through them I learned of many of my current favourites. Indeed, Awake, Images and Words, and When Dream and Day Unite still get regular spins in my stereo, and I consider all three of them to be masterpieces. This is precisely what has made watching their continued descent into mediocrity so very difficult. Declining lyrical quality, meaningless solo trading, and all too obvious plagiarism of their 'influences' have all plagued the band over their last few releases. With Systematic Chaos, I had hoped they would be able to buck this disturbing slide, but unfortunately, things have only gotten worse.

The album begins in promising fashion with an interesting, off-kilter riff that seems to herald greater things to come, but less than halfway through the first track, the band shifts into a refrain that is far too reminiscent of the style of British rock band Muse. After facing such heavy criticism for their blatant copying of the same band on their last album, I was shocked they would pull the same trick again, but this is only the tip of the iceberg - the clear Opeth influence on "Repentance," the obvious Metallica stylings of "Constant Motion" and the second instance of Muse copying on the album, "Prophets of War," all attest to the notion that the band must be rather pressed for new material. Even the lyrics show signs of plagiarism - "In the Presence of Enemies" is based almost verbatim off a Korean graphic novel, but there are no signs of homage to this - it took the fans' constant mentioning of the topic for lyricist John Petrucci to even acknowledge the influence of said novel. Combine this with ever-weakening song structures that are more intent on showcasing the technical abilities of the band members than on any cohesive musical themes, and you have all the makings of a very poor effort. 1.5 stars, rounded down because this is a band capable of so much more.