The Disturbed Triumphantly Awakens The Sound of Silence

The definition of a quality remake so far as I'm concerned is that you forget the artist or artists singing it weren't the originals. For instance, call me highly uncultured but it was years before I knew Cat Stevens rather than Maxi Priest was the guy who sang "Wild World". Maxi's version put a smart reggae spin on what was already a very spiritual track. No Doubt jolted Talk Talk's "It's My Life" with some 21st century flash. Two examples, neither one disrespecting the original's work. I proudly add The Disturbed to that list of second time around game changers. Remember Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence". Politically and spiritually keyed up. You never left the turntable of the '60s thinking of this as anything other than a civil unrest age basic acoustic guitar and drum number. Enter The Disturbed, the band responsible for "Down With The Sickness" and "Liberate" It gave Simon & Garfunkel's tune a gravitas overhaul. Instead of a wounded guitar we get symphonic convergence piano. David Draiman says mouthfuls without overwhelming our ears with metal bombast. Drummer Mike Wengren soon follows and man does he get the tribal weightiness down pat. The ultimate selling point comes when David's voice and his bandmates heightened use of drama elevate. All you'd need to know to learn what artistic vision is for the remake comes from glancing at the video. Little by little pieces of this giant puzzle fall into place. Frankly, my jaw has dropped to the floor upon realizing that The Disturbed actually comes programmed with a setting that's not blatantly in your face. That was a good strategy for "Liberate" but would have been disastrous for "The Sound of Silence". Dave and pals give this classic the respect it deserves. Not one overloaded guitar solo to speak of. In a sense I walk away from the experience wondering where bassist John Moyer and guitarist Dan Donegan disappeared to. Their presence is light like cat's feet. As holds true with an Oreo cookie it's the creamy ever expanding middle of The Disturbed's remake that heightens its own awesomeness quotient as the seconds build into minutes. Take a good long look whenever Dave's face appears in the video. He's not usually the model of restraint as an artist but for this outing that's his ace in the hole. When the crescendo hits blissful exhaustion settles in. The arrangements build steadily so you can at least steel your breath for the theatrical sparks that fly. I have to wonder what Simon & Garfunkel would have to say right about now. Pink doesn't see imitation as the highest form of flattery but I don't see or hear why those two would be put off by what The Disturbed has done to their of its era contribution. In this case "Silence" is indeed golden. Not only that it shows some contemporary rockers know how to respect their elders.