Chaos in Motion [2 DVD] Reviews

• You get a little bad with the good in this 2 disc set

  
  By A1TW9ZGRDQQZ2Y on 2008-09-26
  I bought Dream Theater's Chaos in Motion off another website and for some reason they shipped it early and I got it today. Here is what I think about it.
  
  I have every Dream Theater DVD to date, but this one lacks the quality of Live at Budokan or Score. I didn't know that this was going to be raw footage until I read the back of the case. The video quality looks decent, but if your expecting the look or nice camera angles of the past concert DVDs, you might be disappointed.
  
  There are plenty of extra features on disk two that run well over two hours. There is a 90 minute documentary about the band's 35 country tour, some music videos and Mike Portnoy takes us on and behind stage in two short, but enjoyable segments. I really loved the documentary. You get to know the band, the crew and what life on the road is like.
  
  The main thing Dream Theater does well with these DVDs (and they put one out about every two years) is the fact that they all feature different songs. The songs on here won't be found on the previous releases, which is nice for the fans.
  
  The concert footage is good, could be better, but with a whole disc of extras, this is a must for anyone who likes Dream Theater.
  
  Disc one
  Intro/Also sprach Zarathustra
  Constant Motion
  Panic Attack
  Blind Faith
  Surrounded
  The Dark Eternal Night
  Keyboard Solo
  Lines in the Sand
  Scarred
  Forsaken
  The Ministry of Lost Souls
  Take the Time
  In the Presence of Enemies
  Medley:
  I. Trial of Tears
  II. Finally Free
  III. Learning to Live
  IV. In the Name of God
  V. Octavarium
  
  Disc two
  "Behind The Chaos On The Road" 90 minute Documentary
  
  Promo Videos: Constant Motion, Forsaken, Forsaken (In Studio), The Dark Eternal Night (In Studio)
  
  Live Screen Projection Films:
  The Dark Eternal Night (N.A.D.S)
  The Ministry Of Lost Souls
  In The Presence Of Enemies Pt. 2
  
  "Mike Portnoy Stage Tour"
  "Mike Portnoy Backstage Tour"
  
  Photo Gallery
  
  
  

• Chaos in Motion is the Perfect Title

  
  By A3N4IM1ZSYD81H on 2008-10-02
  After seeing somewhat of a mix of reviews for this new title so far, I wasn't real sure what to expect when I put Disc 1 in the DVD player. In the end, this is one Dream Theater fan that is well pleased with the release. An important note out of the gate though, as a couple of reviewers have pointed out, this is -not- another Score or Budokan. The production of this is run and gun, raw video footage both onstage and backstage.
  
  But... that is the best part. This is closer to "5 Years in a Livetime" or one of the official bootlegs, in that it is a collection of footage that captures the essence of the band. Yes, you see that even prog-rock demigods are human. Small mistakes, personalities worn from the road, vocals off from a bad monitor mix or fatigue. If you want polished and perfect then buy Score. But to this former sound engineer, perfect isn't reality and sometimes I like the "uncut" version as is presented here.
  
  The great part about this too is that it shows how hard working and talented these guys are. It is one thing to see the killer performances of a big show like the Score DVD captures. It is another too see the unrelenting energy these guys bring to show after show on the road across North American and Europe. I've not yet been able to make it to a live DT show, but given what I see on DVD you can count me in on the next tour.
  
  As another review also points out, these guys are -great- at releasing live material with little overlap to prior DVD/CD releases. Each subsequent Rush show on DVD is getting more and more redundant, but each DT video is another piece of the big puzzle of their live career.
  
  Now... throw in the second DVD with documentary and supporting material, and it makes this whole package a no-brainer for any real DT fan. For those of you that are fair-weather friends, well, buy it anyway. It will bring you closer to complete understanding and acceptance .
  
  As for the one reviewer that says maybe this isn't so great for hard-core DT fans, well, he's not speaking for this one. Again, another thread in the incredible tapestry of Dream Theater!
  
  

• The beauty is what you believe it is.

  
  By A1FELYY4UPE78M on 2008-10-01
  I'm a collector of DT. This tour saw DT at the best of their Careers so far. So here's what I think of the picks on this collection as compared to other versions on the tour.
  
  Constant Motion
  Great take. Totally cool choice. Play it loud. I liked Calgary better.
  
  Panic Attack
  This was taken from my least favorite show on the tour that I've heard.
  I don't really like it here any more than I did in Buenos Ares. Blah. It's okay, but DT played so many better takes of this song I don't know why they chose this one. It might have something to do with a line following on the DVD by a band member 'It becomes kind of routine. You reflect and you say, you know we're the same guys that we started this when we were really young goin to college for the first time. ... You kinda look at each other and go I can't believe we're still doin this.' I find it curious that things were so crazy and chaotic among the band the day of the Toronto show, which was one of the best on the Tour.
  
  Blind Faith
  James might piss you off here. And it's true he can sing this better, but he's also singing it with character. He's strongly weak. He needs to sing this song softer to bring it out beautifully. lol. The band is on. I heard this in Toronto and will say I thought it was the weak song of the set. Scarred was incredible that night. Either way, the song is strong and it's worth having. The band is rockin it. I'll keep coming back to it on my stereo. Plus, we need this song on an official Live release.
  
  Surrounded
  This song was beautiful so many times on the tour. I've heard a better take than this one from the tour. Calgary and Japan come to mind but I don't feel let down by this. James is awake. I love it. You'll probably love it. This is a good example of how awesome the band was on this tour.
  The Toronto show was incredible.
  
  The Dark Eternal Night
  Another song that from this tour, has shaken my walls, house and car. I just don't like this take. As a writer I know that hundredths of seconds can mean the difference between alight and serious head banging awesomeness. That's the case here. It just seems off by a very slight margin as compared to some other versions I love so much. When I heard the solo I got it. They're playing the song a little faster than normal, and that bit of speed is rushing them into a beat that's just not as strong as usual. Unfortunate.
  
  Jordan Rudess Keyboard Solo
  If you dig the solo from this tour, you'll dig this.
  This rocks.
  
  Lines in the Sand
  DT plays this album so well. I'm also a fan of Derek Sherinian. This song was no letdown on the tour. This is not a bad take. I sort of enjoyed it. The trouble is, again, there are better takes out there. More fluid takes. The band doesn't sound cohesive here. The timing is a little off. The energy is not on par with the awesomeness of this tour. James belts out a couple of cool notes. If you know him badly, you'll be impressed. If you know him strong, you'll know he's been better all across this tour.
  
  Scarred
  One of my favorite songs by DT. My favorite take was Italy 2002. I believe this one may take that throne. Oh dear sweet lord of all. Buy the set for this song. :) I was hoping, expecting the whole thing to be as incredible as this based on the strength of their tour. Regardless, this live album tells a story. This is an important part of that story.
  
  Enter Progressive Nation.
  If you've heard any of it... you know.
  The repentance clip is very... very... interesting.
  DT is holding the song for their next tour. >,>
  
  Forsaken
  I love this song. I was always a little disappointed with James' singing of it over the tour. James is asking why on some songs. Maybe we'll find out why. It's just a bad display of vocals. Add the short fall offs from some of the notes. The truth is, I don't know a better take. So rock it if you're not embarrassed to blast the song when James adds W's to his words. I won't play this take again.
  
  The Ministry of Lost Souls
  Yes please. The album version was lacking, but live this is a masterpiece on the level of Metropolis. As beautiful as this take is, it's lacking compared to what I've heard from the tour. Don't misread, the song is beautiful here. You can play this loud. I'll go to another take though.
  
  Okay, a really hillarious thing about a comment saying Detroit can get stale on the 25th time. I was at that show. I think it's the best show DT has ever played. A fun fact. No known recording exists. James also changed the lyrics to voices. The word Voices was replaced by Life.
  
  Take the Time
  January 15th show? Truth be told, the song was incredible that night, but the audience, eliminated from these recordings played a big part that night. Why think it's time for a change>? Why makes sense here. The way James follows. Cool take. Is James really trying though>? I know for a fact he's been better. Better in 95.. for this track. I just sung along... nope, he's not putting out. Rock it though, if you want '95 or earlier take the time, I don't think you'll quite find it. At least, I haven't. Good thing we can find a better from '96 on for any other DT track. My point? James can sing. And if you think the end of '94 was his end (there are some of you out there). DT might not be the right band for you. Example, I got a cough, hacking, snotting, and my voice got stronger. James too, has had a similar experience. Christmas '94 I believe. Weird world.
  
  In the presence of Enemies
  There are heavy breaths and a W phrase here. The band also doesn't seem to be rocking quite as well as I know them to on this song. Still, I'm being critical. Take this over the album version for sure. The song turns around. The beginning of pt 2 is incredibly beautiful. I haven't heard it this wonderful on the tour. This is my thesis. Is DT only as good as we believe they are on our stereo? Suddenly the song is incredible. Set your speakers on fire with volume. 5 bucks says I listen to all this again believing they're the best takes and they are. Is this your memory Langden? This is my dream. This sonic beauty I'm hearing right now.
  
  Shmedly Wilcox
  Chill. I've never heard Wilcox sound this beautiful.
  
  There's enough here to be worth having. I'm not throwing it away. There's a story to be told. There's emotion. Heart. Love.
  
  

• Disappointing

  
  By A2FNATFH16ISPB on 2008-10-06
  I am a died hard Dream Theater fan and I love the band and their music, but I must say that this DVD is a huge disappointment. The format is similar to the old "Five Years in a Livetime" video in that it intersperses various concert footage with interviews, backstage footage, etc. I have two serious problems with this. First, I find it highly annoying and distracting when I'm getting into the music and then it cuts away to something else. Music DVDs are best when they show a full concert from start to finish (without cheesy visual effects). Second, the sound and picture quality of the concert footage reminds me of a bad bootleg. I have literally seen bootleg concert videos from the 1970s that have much better sound and picture quality than this 2008 DVD. The bottom line: Dream Theater completists (like myself) don't need to be reading this review, but if you're a casual fan and you're on the fence then I would highly recommend starting with their older, better DVDs such as Score, Live at Budokan, Live Scenes from New York, Images & Words Live in Tokyo, or the official bootleg When Dream & Day Reunite from ytsejamrecords.com. Chaos in Motion is by far the weakest Dream Theater DVD to date, which is a shame because the music itself is great (especially "Surrounded", "Lines in the Sand", and "Scarred").
  
  

• A sad show

  
  By A32GSQAMCRWW47 on 2008-10-10
  Call me old fashioned, but Mike Portnoy's spitting, regular invective (his use of the f-word also shared by James LaBrie on stage) is what one tolerates from a teenager, but is just sad on men in their forties. My friends and I (who I should point out have loved DT's music for years)were not impressed. The backstage clips were in general self-indulgent and boring. And LaBrie's voice; once a fine singer, he's losing the ability to sustain the energy required by this music. I found it uncomfortable to sit through his performance as he struggled to hit and sustain the high notes. DT seems to heading for a more mainstream metal sound with their compositions, and maybe that's inevitable when ideas run dry. Maybe that's where the big money is....
  
  
• Hardcore Fans Most Likely Disappointed
  By A84UG66LK8JD9 on 2008-10-01
  It's hard to come out with consistently good albums. Few bands can come out with more than 2 or 3 without releasing a few band ones along the way. This is especially true with live albums, and the amount of live material Dream Theater has released both officially and unofficially doesn't help this CD at all.
  
  Most people reading this review already know what to expect: the instruments are pretty much dead on, the vocals are way above average and hit stellar, but not without a few nails on the chalkboard moments (hey, no overdubs, so what do you expect?).
  
  I think casual fans will love this DVD, especially those who are just getting into Dream Theater. While it's not as flashy as other DVDs around, it definitely covers a wider range of material than most of score and showcases the various talents of the band's members.
  
  But hardcore fans aren't going to like it so much. While the setlist is different and there are certainly gems included, we've seen the official DVDs of the last two albums, which are some of the best any band has ever put out. We've seen the official bootlegs, too. So it's pretty safe to say that this, on the whole, is nothing new for us. Being able to listen to songs like "scarred" and "surrounded 07" as well as satisfying the normal curiosity of hearing songs live for the first time is about all this album will do for the diehards.
  
  Dream Theater set the bar too high too often, so it shouldn't be a surprise when sometimes DVD budgets or concert budgets aren't as high as last time around. I give this 4 stars because, though it deserves less by DT standards, giving it anything lower is a sin when you match it up to the bland, overdubbed albums other bands put out maybe once or twice in their careers.
  
  Give it some time, and be thankful that Dream Theater use their budget for this kind of thing. Soon, if you're like me, you'll be glad to add this to the cycle of Dream Theater DVDs available for watching or showing friends. Like with most things Dream Theater do now, reactions may be harsh at first but this too will eventually be considered a classic.
  
  
• What happened to LaBrie's Voice?
  By ACCVEGIJE59T on 2008-10-12
  I have been listening to and tracking the development of the band since When Dream and Day Unite. Although this DVD/CD collection is good, it does not encompass the best performances by the band. Although the melody players--Rudess and Petrucci--hit all of the notes, I'm not sure they still listen to each other anymore. On most of the songs, the band does not sound as tight as they did in past tours. No comments are necessary for Portnoy, who has the biggest ego of any drummer I've seen, or Myung, who as always is the quiet, most skilled anchor of this band. (Lifting Shadows off a Dream, one of the few songs Myung wrote, remains one of their best songs.) Finally, the most disappointing aspect of the performances was LaBrie's voice. With his range seemingly more limited than in the past, he is clearly not able to hit many of the high notes of the studio versions of the songs. LaBrie sounded more like he did on the Awake tour, when he had voice problems due to illness. Instead of feeding his ego with more sonically ambitious songs, Portnoy needs to do a better job of set list selection. The band's sound is only as good as the lead singer. The band needs to do a much better job of gauging LaBrie's current vocal abilities before embarking on huge world tours where he is screeching and screaming rather than singing.
  
  
• mmm i'm not sure...
  By A26BBRI2YGU8DY on 2008-09-22
  hello there DT fans! the title of my review is "i'm not sure" so let me explain. i read on wikipedia that this 2-dvd set is a concert and some extra footage of DT's last tour so i think it'll be awesome, but my doubt comes here: have you guys checked the collectors edition? It contains the regular 2-dvd set plus 3 discs but those discs are the audio version of the concert's DVD. well, the deluxe collector's edition costs almost 15 bugs more (perhaps $5 each CD). still having in mind that it's a DELUXE COLLECTOR'S edition and hopefully the package will be awesome, I DON'T KNOW IF BUYING THE DELUXE EDTION WORTHS IT. i've already pre-oredered it but i still have time till september 30th to change my mind. PLEASE HELP ME!!!
  
  
• A highly recommended purchase
  By AJU7JYYDO5LBJ on 2008-10-03
  I know some people like to write a song by song review of an album/DVD, but I don't really have the patience to do that, so I will just state my likes and dislike of Chaos in Motion.
  
  THE PROS:
  
  1.) The set list in my opinion is very good. Mike Portnoy tries to always give the fans a completely different experience from live album to live album, so it is nice to have tunes such as "Blind Faith" and "Lines in the Sand" on here. If you are a fan of Systematic Chaos (as I am) then you will also enjoy fan favorites such as "Forsaken" and "Constant Motion.
  
  2.) The behind-the-scenes documentary is fantastic. It really gives the viewer an idea of what life on tour is like. Dream Theater are not a bunch of rockstars in the traditional sense. These are semi-normal people who have to make many sacrifices to do what they do for us. Aside from a tour of the stage, bus, and venues, there is a section where all the band members talk about one another from their own perspective which is interesting - for a DT fan at least.
  
  3.) Musicianship is obviously fantastic. Jordan rips it up on the Zen Riffer (Key-tar)!! Labrie's vocals are just as good on this DVD as they have been on the past two live releases. The rest of the guys do their normal thing....normal for them....superhuman for many musicians.
  
  4.) Promo videos and live screen production films are a great addition. This is just another example of how Mike Portnoy gives the fans more for their money. Any other band would just throw 15 or 20 songs together and say here ya go. Dream Theater is a class act though....
  
  THE CON:
  
  1.) The onnnlllyyyyyy thing that I can complain about is the video quality. Being that this DVD is a compilation of songs from different shows all around the world, the production value is sacrificed. It is not as sharp as Live at Budokan or Score. Don't get me wrong, it's not shot with a cellphone, but there is a noticeable difference in quality between this DVD and the aforementioned two live shows. I was disappointed...
  
  
• Video Quality is Horrible
  By AZGWBI34R4B8X on 2008-10-05
  The live portion looks as if someone shot this with a camcorder from 1985. Compared to the Score and Budokan DVD's this is a bootleg. I have the Dark Side of the Moon and and Live in Bucharest bootleg DVD's and the video quality is similar. The audio on the DVD is good, which is why I can't understand why the video quality is so bad.
  
  Buy this for the bonus stuff (videos of the singles off of Systematic Chaos) and the behind the scenes documentary. Not for the live section.
  
  
  
  
• It Is What It Is !
  By A3UY8XAM079IC3 on 2008-10-17
  I almost think that Portnoy wanted it this way, Because if you watch Score that is one of the best DVDs/Cds i have ever heard. Some people think i am nuts, but that DVD/CD is great. Chaos In Motion - Well They obviously couldn't record wih HD Camers , because of the expense and as far as the songs & performances - I think they are average at best Except Surrounded which i think is outstanding work especially Petrucci, and i think he shines on this DVD/CD..........But like i said it is average at Best. I was looking so forward to this and now that i have seen & listened to it ..mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Not so Good!
  
  
• More of the same (good with bad)
  By AKS1CC44Y7HOZ on 2008-10-10
  To the point, like has already been said, I had no idea this would be a raw footage DVD, which will require some adjusting to, especially since Budokan and Score spoiled me so thoroughly.
  
  Also, James Labrie's singing was just...off! I totally loved Blind Faith (Six Degrees was my first DT album), but I found myself wincing every time he hit the high note in the hook. That's my main complaint really, he's great so long as he stays in the mid to low range. I'm really sorry about his throat injury from years past, but it seems like it's still plagues him. I sincerely hope he overcomes this.
  
  Now for the good stuff: The muscianship! These guys are incredible! Right now I've just finished listening to Surrounded and the ad libs and embellishments are brilliant. They have set the bar pretty high and they continue to live up to it. I can't wait to hear the rest.
  
  
• Another DVD?
  By AFEU0DSSXWQ0B on 2008-10-12
  Is this really necessary? I love Live at Budokan. That is an awesome DVD. When I heard Dream Theater were releasing Score I was turned off to hear of another DVD being released so soon. That one also turned out to be awesome. Then DT released Systematic Chaos with the bonus DVD. At this point I had my fill. Now another one (Chaos in Motion)! C'mon. This is a bit too much. Releasing new music every couple of years is fine but you do not have to release so many DVDs in such a short time period. Hold off on another DVD for a while.
  
  
• They've done better
  By A20DSJR00ZEMSS on 2008-10-14
  I've been a diehard fan since 1992. Score was of a lot higher quality than this DVD. James LeBrie's voice did not sound as well as it has in the past. It sounded terrible on Surrounded. Maybe they should just stick to making music, and not DVD's.
  
  
• Great raw DVD
  By A2PYCNVU1L5CKF on 2008-10-21
  I've been waiting for so long for Dream Theater to release another raw "day in the life" DVD like 5 Years In A Lifetime. I love the feel of the whole DVD, with songs varying from city to city, and the filming/sound really makes you feel like your part of the show. The footage in between songs (and hidden in menus) is halarious.
  The documentary on the second disc is very entertaining and shows how nice the guys are. I'm very happy they included both the music videos, and in-studio footage. The projection films are a nice extra treat. The second disc ends with a photo gallery of the final bow from every show of the entire tour from behind the drumkit. Try to find yourself in the crowd!
  
  

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