Disturbed - The Sickness - Amazon.com Music (original) (raw)

This was the start of it all for Disturbed with Draiman's distinct, signature voice being introduced to the world. His vocal dynamic range is incredible and he's the one who really shines here. Whether its the wails at the start of "Down With The Sickness" or throwing in some Hebrew during the bridge in "Stupify," Draiman takes over this album with Donegan and the rhythm section laying down the heavy backdrop for him.

"Stupify" is arguably the best song on the record with its electronically tinged intro and awesome bridge with sitar type guitar and a crazy wah-wah breakdown along with a great outro where Draiman goes nuts screaming "look in my face, stare in my soul." Other gems are "The Game" with cool techno-ish intro, the hard driving "Want," and the incredible cover of Tears For Fears' "Shout." And although "Down With The Sickness" turned out to be the band's biggest hit, the profanity laden bridge is amateurish. Granted, it does have a catchy riff, and I get how it became a rock radio staple especially as "nu metal" was in full swing and at its commercial peak. However, the band has matured and musically improved leaps and bounds since this record.

While this album was Disturbed's most commercially successful album, it is my least favorite of theirs after "Asylum." I felt that the band as a whole really started to show its technical prowess and dynamism starting with "Believe" and more so on "Ten Thousand Fists," incorporating more metal along with their original style to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. That being said, it's still one of the best albums during the "nu metal" period and Disturbed emerged as one of the very few bands of that period that continues to be relevant and have commercial success today, continuing to put out great music.