I'm not going to lie, I can pretty much guarantee an overwhelmingly positive review before I even start listening. I'm kicking myself for not having heard about this before now. This album is every bit as good as the original. I've gone through it three times, and there are still so many little moments that give me chills as I listen. System of a Down has never been quite as good live as they have been in their studio recordings, but Serj Tankian really pulls it off well. Right off the bat, Feed Us is absolutely powerful. The symphony makes the song so much more grandiose than the already amazing original. It sounds like part of a major film score. It's twice as long as the original and I didn't even notice. The string section nails it, giving it a haunted feel that I didn't even know I was missing. I like how the crowd noise is controlled, only being heard at the beginning and end, with a few outbursts of applause here and there in between. 'Blue' is fantastic, but not as good as the first track. The string section is beautiful on the chorus, though, and of course, given the source material, the song is good anyway. I decided beforehand to try not to sing along, but that was broken with 'Sky is Over'. The percussion section and pianist just makes this song transcendentally good. The hair stood up on the back of my neck when they queued themselves up. It was beautiful. The backup singers are used very sparingly, so that when they are noticeable, they make a big difference. 'Lie Lie Lie' reminds me of 'The Trial' by Pink Floyd, which is a very good thing. 'Money' doesn't seem as well put together as the rest of the songs. The chorus is a cacophony of each section of the symphony trying to play over one another. The saving grace here is the backup singer, who is amazing. 'Baby' doesn't get good until the break about halfway through, when the violin section gets a chance to really shine. 'Gate 21,' which I had never heard before, is almost a duet between Tankian and the pianist, with absolutely beautiful lyrics. 'The Charade' is another piano heavy song. The string section provides a good background to play off of, especially when the cadence is switched up throughout the verses. Again, makes me think of Pink Floyd, not so much in terms of sound, but style, sort of like Alice in Wonderland, if that makes any sense outside of my own head. If anything, the only criticism here is that it wasn't on 'Elect the Dead,' because it is simply fantastic. 'Honking Antelope' is much more subdued than the guitar-laiden original, which switches the focus to the singer and background singer. 'Saving Us' starts off bass heavy, but lightens up a little once the vocals start. The guitar is subtle, but a nice addition. The big-budget film score feel returns here, especially in the bridge. 'Elect the Dead' is somehow subdued yet more uptempo than the original. It simply takes my breath away. I'm honestly running out of superlatives and hyperbole. 'Falling Stars' makes good use of spoken word over a perfectly executing string section. The violins are sweetly consistent, and overpower the singer, without taking anything away from the song as a whole. 'Beethoven's C**t' doesn't have quite the dynamic sound stage and separation of instruments as the rest of the album seems to. The percussion is more felt than heard, but to me is the defining part of the song. There's a beautiful instrumental solo a little more than halfway through, during the bridge. Everything sort of slams together during the crescendo at the end, creating a confusing jumble of sound, at least to my untrained ears. 'Empty Walls' is the only song with a true live concert feel to it. Serj Tankian implores the audience to sing along, but even before that you can hear them clapping along with the chorus. I hate using the word epic, but there isn't any other way to describe the chorus. The backup singer was a pleasant surprise here. The song, and fittingly, the album, ends in a roar of applause.
Notable songs: 'Feed Us', 'Sky Is Over', 'Elect the Dead'
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