LEPROSY

It seems logical, when writing this review, to compare this album to the debut - Scream Bloody Gore. First of all, the line-up has changed. Instead of the grand total of two musicians that participated in the recording of the debut record, which was essentially a compilation of earlier Death's demo's, there is an actual group here - with each member handling the right instruments. I suppose that meant they could play the material live as well, but don't ask me - I was just born at the time of this release! Chuck Schuldiner, the brainchild behind Death's music, has matured in terms of technical skill, songwriting and writing lyrics. Although the lyrics are still strongly concentrated on the gore stuff here, the Scream Bloody Gore's apocalyptic feel is gone and the lyrics are more philosophical, which can be especially felt on the classic track Pull The Plug - a sign of greater things to come sooner.

The music is hardly a dramatic change from the predecessor, however, it is an undeniable fact that it has evolved into a more conscious, mature and technical shape. After listening to the album, you can't really predict that this group would later release albums starting from Human and change their style so much, although some progressive moments appear a few times(I'll be couragous enough to admit I find a few parts of SBG to be quite progressive for its time as well), specifically on the above-mentioned Pull The Plug, as well as Born Dead, if my memory serves me correctly. You can finally feel the joy of better production, being able to hear the bass well and the twin guitar work of Chuck Schuldiner and Rick Rozz. The drumming is rather simple and repetitive, which is a general trait speaking about the Death Metal genre in general. Riffs are present throughout the record non-stop and are technical and catchy. Still, Chuck's best riffs are still to come.

What's left to conclude is that this particular album contains little elements that could serve any interest to the average Prog fan. However, in its year of release - 1988 - there were not too many musicians as credible as Death. Its hisorical importance and progression is undeniable, which means that any person interested in the roots of Death Metal should give this work a listen. Leprosy can be easily used as a representative of this type of music. It also needs to be added that whoever enjoyed SBG should not ignore this one either. Moreover, people who know Death Metal in forms when it is mixed with other elements, and thus altered, must give an album like Leprosy a chance to see what Death Metal was meant to sound like. Most proggers here tend to think that Blackwater Park is the pinaccle of DM, which is deceptive to say the least. The usual progger, on the other hand, will not be interested in this grotesque, energetic and aggressive music.

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