THE FRAGILE ART OF EXISTENCE

Control Denied is the woefully short-lived final project from extreme metal visionary Chuck Schuldiner. He almost single-handedly inventing death metal with his brainchild Death. After the movement got off the ground, output from followers of the band such as Morbid Angel expanded on Chuck's basic formula. Chuck liked what he heard and changed Death's musical direction with 1991's Human, which pioneered both technical death metal and progressive death. From there, the albums became increasingly complex until Death's final album The Sound of Perserverance, a metal classic and his most progressive work to date. He took a break from Death to experiment with a traditional metal vocalist. Thus, he formed Control Denied, a side project intended to show the world that he was a progressive musician. He kept Death guitarist Shannon Hamm and drummer Richard Christy and brought back Death alumnus Steve DiGiorgio. Then he found singer Tim Aymar who possessed the range and power necessary to give Chuck's lyrics a new voice. Chuck's lyrics are his most anguished here, a stark contrast to the fury of Sound of Perserverance.

There is no filler on this disc. The opener Consumed shows that Chuck made a wise decision in vocalists and his own lead guitar is still awe-inspiring. Chuck and Shannon complement each other perfectly; each is terrific at what he does. It's nice that as talented as Chuck was as a guitarist, he still allowed others to play lead. He really cared about the music over his ego. Richard Christy doesn't shine as much a he did on SoP, but he's no slouch on this disc. Steve DiGiorgio always impresses, and this is no exception; just listen to him match Chuck's lead in What If. The title track is a monster, clocking in at over 10 minutes.

This isn't as good as the masterpeice that is Death's final album, but it comes close. It's rather jazzy, and should dispel any doubts about Chuck's prog credentials. Sadly, this amazing side-project, as well as Death itself, would end tragically with Chuck's passing due to cancer in December 2001. I've heard that Chuck's sister will release the second Control Denied album by the end of 2007 despite the protests of Chuck's former label- head. I can't wait for a final offering from one of the top 5 most influential musicians in metal.

Grade: B+