Disturbed: David Draiman (vocals); Dan Donegan (guitar); Fuzz (bass); Mike Wengren (drums, programming).

Additional personnel: Frank De Lamora, Enrique Santiago (programming).

Recorded at Groovemaster Studios, Chicago, Illinois.

Disturbed's debut found the band crawling through the mire of contemporary metal staples for a cohesive direction. The staccato primal scream that became the band's trademark helped break the single, "Down With The Sickness," in tandem with the song's Tool-meets-Pantera rhythmic complexities. From the rap metal grooves of "Voices" and "Stupify" to the neo-reggae vibe of "Violence Fetish," THE SICKNESS was a musical forecast of things to come for Disturbed. "Numb" found the band making a foray into more melodic and progressive territory, an approach they would further develop with 2002's BELIEVE.

What the critics say...

Rolling Stone (9/28/00, pp.53-4) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Follows the same trajectory of their 1st album [going from] tranquil emotional tenderness into fuzzed-out, white-knuckle anger....with banging beats..."
Alternative Press (5/00, pp.84-5) - 4 out of 5 - "...A resuscitating jolt of unwholesome tweaked soundage....This satisfying slab is just anthem after anthem of maximum decibels that -miraculously - never gets samey..."
CMJ (1/08/01, p.26) - Included in CMJ's "Best Loud Rock Albums" of 2000.
CMJ (3/27/00, p.28) - "...catchy, addictive, and ultimately forward-thinking...leaving a permanent impression..."
Melody Maker (7/4/00, p.65) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Rather entertaining in a turn-off-brain cheap-thrills kinda way....Absolute unreasoning misanthropy of a frankly adolescent nature."