ReviewsRanked #20 in Spin's "40 Best Albums Of 2005" - "America's most compelling metal band hones a mash-up of Cali-punk absurdism, political outrage, and jump-cut headbanging.", 3.5 out of 5 stars - "...Hell immediately runneth over on Malakian's scoured-staccato guitars and Dolmayan's furious hammering....", 3 stars out of 5 - "System succeed through their skill at wielding complex, progressive heaviness in a pop context.", "...They're flaunting a heretofore underexplored sensitive side, offsetting their trademark stampeding riffology with flashes of delicate lyricism...." - Grade: B+, "The first album's tracks, all around four minutes long, ricochet through a clutch of ideas, compressing what might otherwise be prog-rock suites into jump-cut barrages. That strategy certainly keeps the songs moving..." -- Grade: B