The additional info states that ‘Dream system is probably the best embodiment of Foreshadow’s [the label’s] slogan: dark, bleak, emotional.’ I would say this isn’t completely true. The music is definitely dark, but when I think of bleak and emotional music I think of acts such as Raison d’Etre, Land, Cold Meat acts for example and slow doom or slow post-rock.
When music is very rhythmic and even danceable, all the bleakness and emotion is gone. When very heavy guitar-riffs and industrialised spoken word vocals come in to play, well, bleakness and emotion is the last I think of. Listen to the track ‘Metropolis’ and you know what I mean. Fierce and energetic it is. It even reminds me of Sielwolf, Bile and early Ministry.
Some tracks are an exception, and are more trip-hop influenced, like the openingstrack ‘3:35 am’, while ‘/…/’ could be written by nu-metal act Linkin Park (including the dramatic, boyish vocals). And track ‘Street’, dark and bleak? No, this is almost a light and happy track. Nice beats, a repetitive feelgood melody and a slightly echoing guitar solo.
No, this record is definitely not my piece of cake. Too much tight guitar-riffs, too much ordinary beat patterns and too little atmosphere and emotion. Technically this album is all right. The production is good, the beats and guitars are thick and oppressive, and I guess Dream System does what it does well and with conviction, but I can’t help feeling deceived.
