Hard Rock and Metal Music

i still love this album 32 years after it,s release in 1977.the lights out line up was the best they ever had no disrespect to paul chapman,i liked the chapman era albums no place to run,wild willing and the innocent,..and some of mechanix.lights out is an enjoyable diverse collection of songs.my favorites are too hot to handle,electric phase,lights out,gettin ready and love to love!this line up of ufo created 2 more great albums,obsession and the excellent live strangers in the night!!i wish this line up had continued longer than it did.this album is a must for michael schenker fans and ufo fans!!!

I'm a sheltered music lover who had no idea about UFO. Of course I've heard Lights Out, but had no idea who UFO actually was. On the recommendation of a couple "band friends" I picked up some of their albums. Being a huge Maiden fan, they said I would dig UFO. Although no other band is Maiden, UFO is rock and roll at it's best. No neeed to listen to these new rock and roll bands, because they just wear make up, nail polish, and high fashion clothes, then put out bummer music.
Also seeing the influence from bass player Pete Best to Steve Harris was really amazing. It made me realize that influences are very important, but creating your own style is equally important.
Now when I go to Maiden concerts and they prime the crowd with "Doctor, Doctor" I'll know who the hell the band is.

The remaster rocks!! The bonus stuff rolls!! It's like listening to this stuff for the first time again only better because you know something great is waiting for you.

After announcing their debut album Phenomenon with sprints of heavy and light guitar metal, putting it all together for one seminal album with Force It and then slightly running dry with No Heavy Petting which was still a good record anyway, UFO, in 1977, say goodbye to keyboardist Danny Peyronel and entered both keyboardist/guitarist Paul Raymond to the mix. Teaming up with producer Ron Nevison most famous for his works with commercial rock, they created UFO's in studio album classic - Lights Out. Opening up with boogie anthem Too Hot To Handle which is one of te only songs along with (on occasion) the title track here, Doctor Doctor and Rock Bottom you're able to hear on radio the song is what UFO is all about and what made them great. A fericious piece of party metal it is probably one of their best songs. UFO were always known for restraint and slight hints of diversity here and there but on no other occasion do they so than on this album. Just Another Suicide with it's orchestral and acoustic layering makes for another star song shows a huge leap of growht in writing. Try Me is an interesting ballad one that doenst quite sit alongside Out In The Street, Crystal Light, Belladona and the undiscovered gem Time On My Hands but it's still not a weak track. Lights Out returns the album to top notch form, spewing out another high voltage piece of amplified rock. Schenker dishes out truely one of his most accomplished solos in this song and the live version appearing on Strangers further extends it in parts making it awe inspiring indeed. Getting Ready is a great more laid back track that doesnt take any momentum away as does Electric Phase another rarely mentioned nugget in the catalogue. One of the most interesting point of notes about this release is their cover of seminal yet also underlooked late 60's outfit Love's masterpiece Alone Again Or which opened their highly acclaimed yet undersold timeless album Forever Changes. It's an odd cover to say the least but in the end it's great knowing someone was listening to the very underrated Frisco band. The record closes with one UFO's first real dives into epic balladry: Love To Love. Where UFO's ballads were cool, mellow chunks of 70's breath catchers, they were melodic and punctuated by Schenker's mindblowing guitar harmonies, yet this song is one of the few UFO songs where you really notice how incredibly beneficial the keyboards is. They add a total depth to this track that makes it an astounding performance with flourshing lyrics from Phil Moog. The song, like all former UFO tracks done on the 1979 live Strangers In The Night, takes on a life of it's own. So while the previous 3 outings offer plenty of great and rare 70's metal and ballads the prodction while...raw...is never a bad thing...Nevison finds a way to make this album sound brilliant without commercial. Though UFO's ultimate place in rock is their live album this is a close second.

I was so impressed with the recent Remaster of Obsession that I decided to replace the old Lights Out CD with this release. The sound quality is improved, but the extra tracks and extensive liner notes are what make this an absolute steal for the price. There are but a handful of times I felt justified in "making the upgrade" but in this case I wholeheartedly recommend doing so.

What have some referred to Europe as, the Swedish reply to Bon Jovi? I can see why, only Bon Jovi are better song writers. This CD reissue adds on three live bonus tracks, which gives fans more incentive to purchase it. Always thought these '80's rockers received entirely too much praise for what they did. Some of the tunes here are decent to listen to, when you have some time to kill like the title track "Final Countdown" (good keyboard work, but it gets old after the first 500 times you hear it), sort of liked "Rock The Night", the ballad "Carrie" is okay, the melodic "Time Has Come" and "On The Loose" are so-so as well. Until now, I never realized this was their third album. A true '80's hair band.

I'll start off the review by admitting that this is the only Europe album I have actually heard, I will not compare it to other efforts of the band.

This album is perfect in almost every way. The production is top-notch, the melodies are powerful, the rhythm section is neither overpowering nor lost in the background, the choruses are catchy with vocal harmonies all over the place, add some of the most amazing guitar solos you'll ever have the pleasure of hearing and a healthy dose of cheesy keyboard and synth effects, and you have the making of the perfect melodic rock/metal album.

Truth be told, the band doesn't do anything that hasn't been done before. But they do it so well that you just don't care if you've heard the same damn formula thousands of times before. There are no fillers here, just track after track of exceptionally well written hard-rock (and I do stress on this point, the band doesn't do anything new yet blow your mind every time the song hits its climax) with a ton of hooks, all the while without overwhelming the listener. That's not to say that the band doesn't go "out there" every now and then. There's even a little jazz/blues keyboard/guitar jam somewhere in there.

John Norum's guitar solos are unbelievably well done, having the right mix of face-melting shred and heart wrenching melodies. You'd think that statement could be true to most bands of the 80's, but the solos on this album will change your mind.

My only notable complaint with the album is the lack of any real riffs (the band was heading into a new direction), surprisingly for an album of this type, it doesn't suffer much of that drawback. However, if you're a listener who demands some headbanging in his/her music, you won't find much of it here.

There's no denying there's a strong "commercial" vibe throughout the album, but that's typical of albums from the late 80's scene. And in my personal opinion, it only serves to make the album even better. However, if you're a listener who loathes any sort of poppiness or commercialness in his/her music, might want to start looking elsewhere.

To sum up, this album is a definite classic and a must-have for (almost) anyone who's into melodic rock or metal. This album simply never gets old.

If you're tired of nowadays numetal and all those craps, this excellent polished 1986 album is highly recommended for you. That's why the first song is still being played over and over at many sport events and commercials nowadays

I love this album, I remember Jammin out to this album back in the 80's.
Then the 90's came around and you didn't hear much about them, even now you don't hear much from them.
I thought they were a good simple rock & roll group, well I guess there's always VAN HALEN.
I think this album had good guitar work on it, and keyboards.
I also like the leader singer he's a good singer.
I rate this CD a 9 from 1to10!!

The band Europe is one of the greatest bands of all time. They mixed pop like vocals which made the songs catchy and the amazing guitar riffs in the back. John Norum the groups guitar player is the greatest guitar player ive ever heard, especially in the two solos of the song ninja and every other solo on the record two. This record is worth the money! Dont pass it up!

Certainly, one of the best Deep Purple CDs ever. I never get tired of listening to Speed King - plus, this disc contains the original version of Child in Time - what a great ( really great ) song !! Everyone in the band played superb on this recording. Too bad it wasn't a double album. Hard to believe it came out in 1970 - it could have been yesterday. I would have rated it 5 stars if the disc had more minutes of music on it.

For those of you who are unaware this was the second incarnation of Deep Purple, the most notable change being the vocalist Ian Gillan with his screaming, howling and soulful vocal chords. Faint of heart beware, this could have been the founding point of heavy metal (Speed King). They went in an instant from being an art rock band to being a hard rock band. The three pronged attack of organ, vocal and guitar make this album see-saw between brooding and frantic. However, nothing can be taken away from the very tight rhythm section of Ian Paice and Roger Glover. This is really the best of Mark II, and in the later albums of this grouping most of the songs are done better on live versions (especially Machine head - Smoke on the Water is pretty lame as the studio version).

Really a killer album from Deep Purple. It's all good stuff on this one!

Superb rock album, one of the first, nearly heavy metal !
Every song is good, Child in Time worth the price of this cd.
Flight the rat is pretty good rock song also, Living Wreck rocks !
Bloodsucker has a good mood also. My only complaint is the sound, a bit poor but the music is really great. I think we can say that this cd is the base on which many heavy metal band founds their inspiration.

The MONSTER guitar riff that opens up the album on "Speed King" reveals a band that was creating something new and radically different back in the early 70's, becoming the first ever SERIOUS heavy metal band.

The album is loaded with solid guitar riffs and EXTREMELY heavy rock music, though unfortunately it's not all roses and cupcakes. The vocals on "Flight of the Rat" are pretty average, and the guitar playing on that song isn't anything to brag about either.

The rest of the album is pretty brilliant by hard rock standards though. Whether it's the shorter energetic style of a song like "Bloodsucker" or the epic masterpiece of "Child in Time" or the guitar complexity of "Hard Lovin' Man" (that totally sounds like classic 70's metal) it's all here.

By the way, there's absolutely NOTHING out there like "Child in Time". The slow build-up, the window-rattling guitar solo, the extra-powerful vocals of Ian Gillan, and just the highly unusual atmosphere of the song... it's unique in every single way.

Made in Japan is the best Deep Purple album, and the Come Taste the Band album is severely underrated as well, but you NEED to own In Rock.

being a big fan of live music, i love this album!!!

the songs are taken from a-smith's first five records with a few great cover versions thrown in. this was a band that really knew how to jam and improvise in a live setting!

to this day, i still think they're one of the best live bands out there but they're certainly not the same group that recorded "get your wings" or "rocks"!

these recordings serve as a great example of what it was like to see a live concert in the 70's, be it a club, or a 20,000 seat arena.

there's a lot of energy here!

warning: if you're not a fan of raunchy, live, heavy rock, then this probably isn't for you.

Aerosmith Live Bootleg is a pretty good album. While some people probably will point at this album as an obvious example of what happens when band members experiment with too many drugs, I don't really think that's a problem. The way the album was recorded is very muddy and old-sounding, but that's the appeal, and some of the songs are faster and more exciting compared to their studio versions. That's enough to recommend a purchase.

In the 1970s, Aerosmith was one of top acts to be taped by bootleggers, which paralleled their popularity as a huge draw on the wordwide arena/festival circuits.

In a mock salute of the illegal taping, this October 1978 release gives the appearance of the oftentimes poor production of bootleg albums, including an incorrect track listing. But the way the selections were pulled is that of a typical supergroup during the era when double-live sets were all the rage.

Recorded from nine venues, the majority of the 16 tracks are from the 1977 and 1978 Aerosmith Express Tour, with the two most intriguing pulled from a 1973 simulcast on WBCN-FM.

While the tracks capture the band at their blues-drenched rawness, it also marked a swift decline - after the 1978 Live! Bootleg Tour - due to any number of demons. But this set highlights the group before they spent many nights in the ruts - which lasted nearly a decade - and as five members piloted the private jet of incredible international stardom.

If you are ever asked to explain what rock music is all about, simply hand them this album. There is nothing more to day.

Live albums of the 1970's (and even today) usually serve one of three purposes;

A) Preserving a legendary performance or tour (Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison, The Rolling Stones Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out, The Allman Brothers Band at Fillmore East, 4 Way Street-CSN&Y, One More From the Road-Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Last Waltz)

B) Unearthing a previously undiscovered gem (How the West was Won-Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan's Bootleg Series, The Grateful Dead's Dick's Picks sets, Neil Young at Massey Hall)

C) As a stopgap between albums that aren't ready yet

Live Bootleg falls into category C. Aerosmith's follow up to Draw the Line was delayed indefinitely and they were committed to a summer tour that included numerous makeup dates for postponed shows. Rather than do a "Frampton Comes Alive"-esque album, Aerosmith instead released a gritty, no nonsense recording that often sounds like its title. Live Bootleg is a hit and miss affair musically. Compiled from various shows dating back to 1973, it's clearly not intended to be a definitive representation of a single show. Steven Tyler's voice is raggedy and he ad-libs lyrics throughout, and Joe Perry's guitar seems set on perpetual growl. The material is a cross section from their first 5 albums along with a few covers thrown in, plus a live version of the rare "Chip Away the Stone". And just as on the original vinyl, "Draw the Line" is still not listed even though it is there.

It's ironic that the oldest tracks here are the best. The version of the Yardbirds "I Ain't Got You" and James Brown's "Mother Popcorn" comes from a 1973 Boston club date recorded by WBCN radio. Having heard this entire show in bootleg form I can attest this was a smokin', well recorded (for 1973) performance when the band was young and hungry. One warning though, this is not the complete version of the song, a few minutes have been trimmed off, probably due to vinyl time constraints (it would've been nice if for the CD those few minutes were restored).

Aerosmith is one of those band that's never been served well by live recordings from their "prime era" (1975-77). Fans got a small taste of this back when the "Pandora's Box" set was released and it included 2 songs from their legendary Cincinnati radio concert from 1971. And a version of "Write Me" recorded at the old Boston Garden in 1976. If they really wanted to put out a great live album I'd look for the full WBCN show. I suppose the best way to look at this is the way Jimmy Page viewed "Song Remains the Same"; `it's not a great album, but it shows where we were at a certain time and place'. Also remember that just like Zeppelin, there's bound to be a better Aerosmith show somewhere in their archives "How the East Was Won" perhaps?

This is one of the most overlooked,underrated albums.the song 'crazy nights' really stands out,the guitar work is amazing,the solo reminds me of something the 'scorpions' would have done,but in my opinion it is actually better than the 'scorpions' guitar playing by far.other highlights are 'the lines are down' and the awesome ballad 'never change your mind!.A must own for any metal head

I remember picking this album up when it was first released. Being a huge hair-metal fan I was curious to see what this Japanese band would bring to the table.

The Good news: it's a pretty solid hair metal disk, with screaming guitars and vocals.
The Bad news: it's a pretty solid hair metal disk, with screaming guitars and vocals.

If you are looking for something different from Loudness, you are going to be disappointed. There really isn't anything that makes the band stand apart from the hundreds of hair metal bands that populated the late 80's. Some of the tunes are pretty solid:
"Crazy Nights" - Great hair metal anthem singing the praises of rockin' out to hair metal. Great way to open the disk.
"Run for Your Life" - Excellent guitar work.
"Never Change Your Mind" - The obligatory "power ballad" offered here isn't as sappy as most similar "power ballads".
But there really isn't anything here that would distinguish the band from the flood of similar bands putting out material at the same time.

I almost wish the band had placed a song or two on this disk sung in their native language. It would have been a cool marketing gimmick, and maybe would have made this album stand out above the crowd.

Before Thunder In The East, Loudness was an obscure Japanese metal band from the other side of the world. Underground popularity rising, the boyz from Japan decided it was time to hook into the main-stream metal scene in the States and make some serious money. What we have here is the first English-spoken attempt by the band. With such other classics as Disillusion and The Law Of Devil's Land and Akira Takasaki's solo effort Tusk Of Jaguar already released in the east, Loudness was banking on taking America by storm. These boys could play and their songs were rocking, so what was the problem. Let's look at the track listing:

Crazy Nights - A grooving, pounding, rocking anthem if there ever was one. Probably Loudness' most popular song ever. A favorite. The MTV video helped immensely.

Like Hell - Akira definitely jams out loud. Great riffs and solid execution. Minorou Niihara's voice is an acquired taste, but it shines. This is what American metal was as seen through the eyes of the Japanese. Full of angst and rebellion. Good tune.

Heavy Chains - These guys should emulate the best of the metal acts that had been touring Japan for years and years. This starts off like a Scorpions' tune then turns into a straight-ahead rocker. Excellent.

Get Away - The musical prowess is there but the songs are starting to get jumbled together because they sound pretty much the same. Rocking, but not very memorable.

We Could Be Together - Is this a power ballad? Not exactly. Niihara's lyrics are a bit juvenile, probably because he's not used to writing them in English. Still, there is good effort going on here. Inspired, but sort of silly. I crazy for you....

Run For Your Life - Infectious opening riff. Very well-orchestrated. Excellent song.

Clockwork Toy - All out rocker. Standout tune buried deep in the album. On of my favorites. Very angry.

No Way Out - These guys knew how to write solid metal tunes. The only thing missing is a definitive hook. Solid.

The Lines Are Down - Another solid tune but the distinction between songs is no longer visible. The riffs are sounding the same, the beat, the groove, the lyrics. Losing clarity.

Never Change Your Mind - Moody intro, excellent start. Bringing it down a little for the album ender. Good song. Not great.

Overall, Thunder In The East took what was great about Disillusion and their other previous albums, gave it English lyrics, and headed forward. Cohessive to the point where the songs are hard to distinguish from one another, Akira Takasaki and company could definitely rock with the best of them. The reached mild popularity in the mid-to-late 80s. I saw them live twice, once opening for Motley Crue on the Theater Of Pain Tour and once as the headlining act at a smaller San Diego venue. The were awesome live. Truly gifted and dedicated musicians. They just never reached superstardom. It could have been because their songs started to blend, it could have been their lead singer's accent, it could have been a lot of reasons. But they rocked, and they rocked hard! The effort was always there. You could do a lot worse than buying Thunder In The East. It's a great piece of metal from back in the day.

Dig it!

I don't remember if I've reviewed this CD before but I have to say that Mr. Akira Takasaki is one of my favorite rock/metal guitarists, period! Akira is able to come up with classic riff after classic riff and his guitar playing is amazingly energetic and relentless. Folks, this guy can play! For me rock music doesn't get much better then what these guys throw down. They've had a few lineup changes but on this CD is the classic lineup that fans like me love.

And I want to take a moment to mention their great and criminally overlooked drummer, Munetaka Higuchi, who passed away a few months ago.
As a drummer myelf I have always loved his energetic and tasty playing and how he really complimented Akira's playing. If someone proclaims Loudness the greatest Japanese metal band ever they will get no argument from me. God Bless 'Em!
www.electriceyes.us

This is one of the best guitar albums from the 80's must have for any guitar player or people aspirering to be.

Takes me back to the eighties. The sound is still incredible while the message does not compromise any of the work Jesus provided. An excellent CD for parents to get for their young people to spark an interest, and an excellent CD for adults who just like fun. Strong gospel message for those who believe rock and roll and preaching the gospel can't be mixed.

Another great cd by stryper. What else coud I say. The cd is as great as the cassette. A must for anyone collecting christian metal music. Just like I remember when they first came out. They know how to get the message accross. They really rock.

"To Hell With the Devil" and "Soldiers Under Command" are both classic Christian rock album but which one is better? At least from "To Hell With the Devil" Stryper often plays more songs than "Soldiers...". The Devil's 'nightmare song' "To Hell With the Devil", "Calling on You", "Free", "The Way", and their greatest hit, the ballad, "Honestly" are played probably in every gig they have had in 00's. Also "More Than a Man" and "Sing-Along Song" are very often in the set lists. This album reprents everything that Stryper has to offer: heaviness, tenderness, a great message, and great songs with great playing and singing. Michael Sweet, Robert Sweet, Timothy Gaines, and Oz Fox are truly God's soldiers. However, there's more great songs that just those seven I mentioned at first; "All of Me" is a great beautiful ballad, "Rocking the World" really rocks, and "Holding on" is also a good song, although quite basic stuff for Stryper. "More than a Man" could be called "To Heaven With Jesus" also because if you sing it and mean what you sing, you're soul will be saved. Great album, I recommend this together with the album "Soldiers Under Commandment" because they both are Christian metal classics.
Stars: Honestly, To Hell With the Devil, The Way, More Than a Man

I had heard of Stryper in the 80s, then in the 90s they were about as 80s as totally 80s gets. Then they made a comeback this decade. This is their best aklbum, featuring the huge hit Honestly with a woman on vocals. The rest of the album is more straight forward metal, not really Christian lyrics all the time but condemning Satan. I picked up the Roxx Regime which contains Yellow and Black Attack and Honestly, and the only track better than hOnestly on there is From Wrong to Right. Abyss the opener gets things going, a joke their not. With this album they have gotten rid of most of the 50s influences into a much more EMO Poison meets Slayer tongue in cheek Christian metal band with a "we're the Christian metal kings" humor. Don't miss it!

Come on, admit it.... you remember the old days when MTV actually played music, watching the Stryper videos playing and rocking out to the music.

I got the urge to hear some of their classic hits again, so I picked up the first four CDs via Amazon. I fully expected to listen to them now and think, "Huh, I remember them being so much better than this...."

I was wrong. Their original songs still rock as hard today as any other band out there in their sound genre. They didn't go for half the gimicky sound that some of the bands had, they just stuck to a standard rock & roll formula that worked, and it sounds just as great today as it did back then.

Well worth the meager price paid for the CDs. ;-)

Coming from a metal fan who has THOROUGHLY worked his way through the MetalCore genre, In This Moment's Beautiful Tragedy shows no promise as an exception. The vocals, even with her unique female screaming, are tiring and at time whiny and shaky, and the lyrics seem something out of a 7th grade poetry class. The guitars were unoriginal metalcore riffs, and each track presented a little less than the one before it.

In This Moment's 2007 debut album "Beautiful Tragedy" from Century Media is an awesome, solid, hard hitting debut from this Los Angeles, California metal quintet that's brutal yet beautiful at the same time. I bought this album at Best Buy last year, and I really liked it. What I heard was a female fronted metal band that combined the beautiful melodies of Lacuna Coil (one of my favorite female fronted metal bands), and the metallic hardcore aggressions of Killswitch Engage, and ITM combine those in one promising package, I mean one minute this album will brutally pummel you to the ground, and the next minute it'll soothe your mind with it's powerful yet beautiful, melodic side. Frontwoman Maria Brink is a very energetic and beautiful lead singer whose vocals can go from harsh, larynx-shredding screams, to beautifully, angelic, clean singing vocals, while guitarists Chris Howorth and Blake Bunzel shred away with surging, sinewy riffs and some nice, fast, blazing solos especially on "Next Life" and Daddy's Falling Angel". Bassist Jesse Landry rides through the album with strong basslines, while drummer Jeff Fabb hammers fiercely behind the drums with tight, pummeling beats and wicked double bass patterns. As far as the songs go, here's a look at some of the highlights. "Prayers" is a great heavy yet melodic headbanger (and one of the best songs on here) that quickly grabs the listener by the throat with it's opening shredding riff, and the song also features some nice pounding drumwork including some catchy blast beat parts, pummeling guitars, as well as excellent screaming/singing from Maria especially in the chorus. Next, we have the title track which is a nice melodic rocker that features beautifully executed melodic vocals from Maria, while track five "Daddy's Falling Angel" is highlighted by fast, thunderous drumwork, brutal, thrash induced riffs, wicked, energetic screams, and a very tasty, fast solo along with some catchy harmony lines, as well as a pummeling breakdown. Track seven "This Moment" features some nice, uplifting acoustic parts as well as some great, catchy melodic riffing, and splendid singing from Maria. The eight track "Next Life" is my personal favorite song on here mainly because it features wicked, hammering double bass drumming, wicked throat shredding screams, mad thrashing riffs, and there's an awesome blazing solo around the 2:11 mark, which is definately one of the best guitar solos on this album. "Circles" is another one of my favorites which features fast chugging riffage, dreamy melodic lines, punishing blast beat parts, and another stunning solo around the 2:16 mark, as well as a great melodic sung chorus, and of course, we have the peaceful and dreamy album closer "When the Storm Subsides" which features peaceful acoustic guitars, and very dreamy, angelic vocals from Maria to boot. For the entire song list, please read on.
Jeremy's song ratings:
1. Whispers of October (1:06) - N/A
2. Prayers (3:46) - 5/5
3. Beautiful Tragedy (4:00) - 5/5
4. Ashes (3:51) - 5/5
5. Daddy's Falling Angel (4:12) - 5/5
6. The Legacy of Odio (4:07) - 4/5
7. This Moment (3:58) - 5/5
8. Next Life (3:58) - 5/5
9. He Said Eternity (3:51) - 5/5
10. Circles (4:11) - 5/5
11. When the Storm Subsides (4:45) - 5/5

After listening to this album, I found In This Moment's "Beautiful Tragedy" to be a all around solid metal album from a very promising female fronted metal band that's both brutal and beautiful at the same time. Believe me, I know good rock/metal when I hear it, and this is definately some very good stuff. Highly Recommended!!

I'd never heard of them until Ozzfest a couple of years ago. They played early on one of the smaller stages. In my opinon one of the better acts, as evidenced by their move this year to the Main Stage at Ozzfest 2008. Nice mix of screaming and raw but clean vocals from Maria Brink. Music is melodic not the old droning metal that has become popular. I've seen them twice now and look forward to their next come around.

Holy Moley! Can Maria Brink scream? In this moment's debut easily puts them at the top of the metalcore scene. They are also amazing live, where I was first introduced to them in 07. This album has a ton of emotion and passion amplified by Maria's shrieks, and great guitar riffs. This is definitely a band to watch.

This album is nothing short of amazing. It is beyond words how great it is. If you want to buy it, I suggest you don't buy from Amazon, but get it from www.cmdistro.com because it comes in a package with a free shirt and a signed picture from the band.

This is the best "Toys" ever sounded! The surround mix clears up some of the things that were lost in the mix before. Be careful-heavy on the bass!

There's not a lot more to actually say about the CD itself; its a classic in blues/rock that still gets me jumpin'.
The only thing left to do with it is to "refresh" it, by improving the resolution, and debatably, making it a multi-channel format. Well, they succeeded on one front, in that the resolution is as superb as sacd will allow, in other words, outstanding. Mind you, this is before the recording engineers of today RUINED rock and pop recordings by increasing the dynamic range until everything is distorted and un-listenable, so this sounds quite good.

Where there is debate however is the multi-channel mixing of the sacd. Is it your cup of tea? Its not always mine, simply because I don't like to hear the rhythm guitars in the rear; I like to hear my music (usually) in stereo...centered in the front. Also, the multi-channel mixing is up to the taste of the engineers or the band--they decide WHAT goes WHERE: Do the vocals go in the center channel, or through the main speakers? Where do the guitars, drums, background vocals go? Its all up for interpretation. At its best multi-channel mixing DISAPPEARS and is unobtrusive--everything just blends in and creates a immersive wall of sound. At its worst, its corny, gimmicky, and the instruments don't fit in. This mix lies somewhere in between...its not bad, just not the best I've ever heard. What makes it worth buying is that you can finally hear this classic in sacd detail. And besides, you can always down-mix it to sacd stereo if you want. You decide. Hey, you might LOVE the multi-channel mix anyway.
The other con is that it is ONLY playable on a sacd player...this is NOT a hybrid disc.

This is a very powerful and percussive mix of Aerosmith's 3rd album. The bass is absolutely thunderous and that makes this disk a good one for showing off your system to any head-bangers that happen to drop by. I had to dial my subwoofer back twice during the opening cut, but that's fine.

I was happily impressed with the multichannel mix on this one. Jay Messina did an outstanding job of staying true to the original vibe of the album while taking advantage of current technology to make a classic sound even better.

Five Stars because I can't give it six.

This SACD expands this excellent rockin' albumn out to 5.1 channels. Oh, how I wish more albumns would come out in this multi-channel format. Sounds so good!

This SACD does not blow me away like some others, but it definitely sounds better than other versions and is worth owning - especially before it goes OOP like other SACD's. I was surprised at how musical and engaging this music is, and that includes the songs that were not mega hits.

I put off getting this double dvd when the reviews first came out. I shouldn't have relied so much on the negative ones, as this turned out to be pretty decent. The only negative to this, in my opinion, would be the audio. I watch all my concerts on a portable dvd player with a good set of headphones. Therefore I can just crank higher if I need to. When I put it on the computer, the sound was really low. I put it on through the television and the same problem. This would be the only negative thing with this dvd I can find. The video is well shot. The footage is taken from a few different venues. This makes the concert footage really feel like a "documentary" of the tour. With all the interviews and (much appreciated) information as to what goes into a DT performance, this turned out to be an incredible documentary of the even more incredible SYSTEMATIC CHAOS TOUR.

The members,as always, are in top form. There seemed to be special attention provided to the playing of John Petrucci. WHO COULD ASK FOR MORE? The man is the most underated guitar player in all circles. (Every member of the band is underated as well.) This video documents through the Documentary on disc2 and the live footage on disc1, just what all the hype is about this band that has been pleasing many a fan for over 20 years.

All in all, if you are a fan, or just a casual observer of the band, you will not be dissapointed with this documentary of an unbelievable tour!

A few years ago, I had always heard of Dream Theater from a buddy who was a big fan, he constantly talked about them. At first, I thought "great music, but the vocals ruin it for me." After a while, I got more used to the vocals. Even if you're not used to them, the music is spectacular on every album. I had started off on a couple of albums, Train Of Thought and Systematic Chaos, plus Live At Budokan on dvd because my buddy told me how much he always listened to it. Let me start off by saying be prepared when you intend to watch a dvd like that. A typical DT album averages around 77 minutes. We're talking long songs, well written ones at that. The live stuff on Live At Budokan, and this run in at around 3 hours long. Almost like watching Lord Of The Rings. Good thing there's a "pause" option. If you can keep your attention on the band for that long, it's truly a spectacle to watch as it is to listen to one of their records. I like to try and plan when to watch one of the dvd's if I can when I'm in the mood so that it's easier to view the whole show, and maybe some extras.

Anyway, on to the review. Chaos In Motion is a kind of all-access pass for the DT fan that follows the band on their 2007-2008 world tour with everything from live footage from different shows to backstage footage, interviews, behind the scenes extras, music videos, and even projection videos that they used for a few of their songs. If you've read other reviews, let me tell you that the video quality of the live footage is not as bad as others say it is, but don't expect Live At Budokan. After I read the back cover of the dvd, I knew what I was getting when it mentioned "raw footage." The overall look works well though. Nothing too flashy, their stage show is already flashy as it is. I like that they didn't doctor it up or whatever. Budokan was great, but I think that the band knew it'd be difficult to top. So, why try? People have their own opinions, and if they're so disappointed just because of the video quality, well....then it's their loss. The live audio is great as it was mixed by Kevin Shirley, whose worked with DT on several albums including the Live At Budokan cd and dvd.

Overall, everything is how it should be. If you're expecting another Score or Live At Budokan, then yes, you're likely gonna be disappointed. Otherwise, buy it. Also, if you're new to the band, it's hard to recommend which albums to get because they're all different and all very good. However, if you're a metal head like me, start off with Train Of Thought (was written with the live show in mind, and features some of the heaviest music ever written by the band), Systematic Chaos (catchy as hell, and is perfect for starters), Scenes From A Memory (if you like concept albums. Very melodic, but has some rockin' numbers), and maybe Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence (if you're willing to spend $25 for a double album = 2 discs. Otherwise, a favorite).

I have seen pieces of the last two DVD's although I do not own them yet. I believe Budokan and Score are probably superior in terms of overall presentation and content. However, I think the extras disc on this one is fantastic. I love when a band takes me through an entire day up to showtime, (reminding us all that they have a pretty amazing job but it's still a JOB, with its own level of discipline and responsibility) and the Make-a-Wish segment was killer. Portnoy clearly was having a blast jamming with this kid and you can see the joy on this kid's face, actually playing Mike's kit alongside his idol.
This wets my appetite for more, so I'm gonna do the right thing and grab Budokan now. Cheers!

As mentioned before in other reviews, the audio and video isn't up to par. It's only because of the mix for the most part and it isn't terrible on every song. BUT...you get to see the band in a new light. They are actually quite humorous and lighthearted in a way I didn't know about, and very down to earth. There were quite a few moments that had me laughing out loud. If you are a DT fan it's a must have but not for your first DT DVD...the fidelity is too low to really rock out on.

I love DT and to see my favorite song Lines in the sand butchered I can't say how much I was looking forward to this DVD and so much disappointment I hate Jordan for ruining every song with his awful garbage licks. Bring back Derek, otherwise don't improvise. Quality of this DVD is awful, worse than VHS, the audio quality is one of the worst on any of the DVD's from DT. Live in Budokan was stunning quality performance 10 stars, I give this video 3 stars. Never again will I buy another album from DT, too many disappointments

This is really good, solid British blues rock! This album and its predecessors brought a lot of good musicians to the table, some well known and others relatively unknown. Coverdale really was a unique and talented songwriter and singer and oh, how I love what Jon Lord brings to any band he is a part of! Although this album is a little more polished than their earlier work, you will still find slide guitar and fun, sexy lyrics instead of the sappy 80's anthems and ballads that Coverdale started dredging out later - what a tragic waste of talent in my opinion!

It would be nice if we could rewrite history just a little so that this would really be the last Whitesnake album. As a young teenager who loved this album and therefore, ran out and bought all of their older albums and learned an entirely new outlook on music, it was heartbreaking to see what they later became. I could no longer even tell anyone they were my favorite band because no one else around me knew about their TRUE music and I didn't want to be misunderstood! Eventually it actually became a stigma to be known as a Whitesnake fan (after all the people who loved the 80's "hair bands" finally turned against them - I never liked that whole scene to begin with!). Thus, what was once a great band never had a chance to be recognized for their past accomplishments, which were truly noteworthy.

If you want to find out what Whitesnake was REALLY all about, listen to Slide It In, Love Hunter, Come An' Get It, etc. They are well worth a listen!

The sound quality of this CD is phenomenal. I always play it loud. It is a classic that never gets old. Straight ahead rock and roll. Brings back lots of memories.

What is not to like about this classic rock albumn? I bought this CD to replace the cassette that has seen better days.

This album forms the transition between the early, bluesy, Bad Co./Paul Rogers sounding Whitesnake that came before, and the flashy-guitar, Led Zeppish hair metal we all heard on the radio in America in the late 80's. The overall effect is a solid, somewhat bluesy mid 80's British hard rock. I've found this CD grew on me over time - it's a little more solid rockin' than the early days (which I now prefer, though) and a little more feeling and bluesy than the flashy later albums.
I have found out recently that there was a different version released in Britain first, with original guitarist Micky Moody and more organ (by the best organist in rock, Jon Lord - who, however, kind of sits back in his days w/ Whitesnake), which might be preferred by the fans of the earlier era of the band.
A note on the lyrics - whereas some bands (e.g. Aerosmith) are known for a bit of sexual-innuendo, Whitesnake really goes over the top, such as song titles like "Slide It In" and "Spit It Out" should indicate. But then, we're talking about a band whose name is a euphemism for "wang", so what should we expect :) That being said, Coverdale has a rich, bluesy voice with a lot of feeling and there is a fair amount of emotion in these songs (as well as horniness), and this is the last we hear of him before he goes for that screaming Robert Plant metal style.

You can listen for the first time John Sykes with whitesnake, but you can hear the first led zeppelin influences of David Coverdale!
This cd is one of my favorite!