SilentScream213 And Death’s nearly flawless discography comes to a close. The band had been advancing in progressive technicality with each album, and it culminates in their most complicated and impressive album yet.

The Sound of Perseverance, like the album cover portrays, was a monumental mountain of insane musicianship and songwriting. The guitar leads are neoclassical at times, weaving up and down scales of melodies, while the rhythm guitar is more rhythmic than before, opting for a more progressive chug. The rhythm section itself is slightly less aggressive, focusing on complicated polyrhythms even more than before. And of course, Chuck changes his vocal approach to a more high-pitched shriek, switching distinctly from a type 2 to a type 3 metal scream. It’s definitely the most difference in sound found on a new Death album.

For the most part, the album is the same incredible quality, and again, the musicianship here is just mind-bendingly good. However, this is the first Death album where I feel the band falls a bit into the “too-progressive metal” style. Songs still feature incredible, memorable riffing, but I do feel a little is lost by focusing on technicality a bit too much. Still, Death is less guilty of this than most Tech Death acts, and the album remains a fantastic swansong for the band.

UMUR The "Leprosy Demos" is a demo recording by US, Florida based death metal act Death. The demo was released in December 1987. It was recorded during a rehearsal on December 5th, 1987. I´m not sure that it´s true, but most sources say that Chuck Schuldiner plays all instruments (including the drums) and performs all vocals on the demo. Schuldiner opted to return to his native Florida after having relocated to California in 1986 and teaming up with drummer Chris Reifert for the recording of the band´s debut full-length studio album "Scream Bloody Gore" (May 1987, Combat Records). He subsequently wanted Reifert to move to Florida with him, but Reifert couldn´t see himself living in the humid heat in Florida, and opted to stay in California and soon after formed his own death metal act Autopsy. So the tracks featured on this demo were recorded while Schuldiner was looking for new musicians to record the sophomore Death album.

All five tracks on the 22:35 minutes long demo would be re-recorded and included on "Leprosy" (November 1988, Combat Records). It´s interesting how well developed classic tracks like "Open Casket" and "Pull the Plug" already were at this point. The technical progress from the more simple songwriting found on "Scream Bloody Gore" is astonishing. If it is indeed Schuldiner who plays the drums he´s quite the capable drummer (his drumming is faster and more technically challenging than what Bill Andrews brought to the table on the final versions). The guitars are sharp sounding too, the guitar solos well played, and the vocals are snarling and aggressive. It´s all a little bit more chaotic, unhinged, and raw than the studio versions on "Leprosy", but no less rewarding. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Scream Bloody Gore Aborted Sessions" is a demo release by US death metal act Death. It was recorded in July 1986 and was originally meant to be the recording sessions for the band´s debut full-length studio album "Scream Bloody Gore" (May 1987, Combat Records). At this point Death were living in California, but they opted to return to Chuck Schuldiner´s native Florida to record their debut album. After recording the basic rhythm tracks (guitar and drums), the duo of Schuldiner (vocals, guitars, bass) and Chris Reifert (drums) however weren´t satisfied with the results, and they ended up travelling back to California, to start over and record the album at The Music Grinder, L.A., CA. with producer Randy Burns. This demo features the aborted Florida sessions.

The demo features seven tracks and a total playing time of 27:10 minutes. It´s interesting to see that only four out of the seven tracks would be re-recorded and included on "Scream Bloody Gore" ("Sacrificial Cunt" was re-titled "Sacrificial"). So Death obviously imagined the album quite differently to begin with. All tracks on the demo are instrumentals featuring solely rhythm guitar and drums. So no vocals on this one and no bass or guitar solos.

The execution is sharp and professional, but the sound production is more in the treble high end and would probably be better suited for thrash metal, and Death wisely decided that it was not the right sound for their music. It´s still quite the interesting historical document though, and a 2.5 star (50%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Mutilation" is the last demo released by Death before they were signed to Combat Records and started recording the material for their debut full-length studio album "Scream Bloody Gore" (May 1987, Combat Records). At this point Death consisted of Chuck Schuldiner (lead vocals, guitars, bass) and Chris Reifert (drums). The demo was independently released in April 1986.

The "Mutilation" demo features three tracks and a total playing time of 10:24 minutes, and it´s on this demo that Death finally found their sound. "Land of No Return" didn´t make the cut to be included on "Scream Bloody Gore", but both "Zombie Ritual" and "Mutilation" were re-recorded and included on the debut album. The demo features a raw, but still detailed and powerful sounding production. It´s sharp, brutal, and aggressive. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Back from the Dead" is the first demo released by Death, after Chuck Schuldiner moved from Florida to California and assembled a new lineup for his project. Enter drummer Eric Brecht (formerly of D.R.I.) and bassist Erik Meade.

"Back from the Dead" features 8 tracks (one is a short intro) and a total playing time of 21:09 minutes. Some tracks had appeared on earlier demo releases, but were re-recorded with the new lineup. Only "Baptized in Blood" and "Mutilation" would be re-recorded and included on Death´s debut full-length studio album "Scream Bloody Gore" (May 1987, Combat Records). The sound quality is a bit murky and lo-fi, but it´s still audible that the band are well playing (Brecht is a skilled and fast playing drummer). Schuldiner has a raw growling vocal style, but also performs high pitched hysterical screaming. The latter sounds a little immature and doesn´t really fit the music that well.

I´m not sure if this is a rehearsal demo or if it was recorded on a 4-track recorder, but my guess would be the former, as this sounds really rough and unpolished. Some of the earlier Death demos have a superior sound quality to this one. A 2.5 star (50%) rating is warranted.