Customer Reviews

Fragile Art of Existence

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Fragile Art of Existence is renowned Death guitarist/singer Chuck Shuldiner's swan song to his fans before he lost his two-year battle against cancer in the end of 2001. Interestingly, Chuck was in the process of composing/recording his follow-up to this album, but unfortunately nothing has come of it. Control Denied was his side project which he had put together in order to concentrate more on his guitar playing and unique songwriting. Chuck does not do his trademarked death vocals on this one. Enter Tim Aymar (Psycho Scream, Pharaoh) with traditional Heavy Metal-like vocals that are often compared to the likes of Rob Halford, Warrel Dane and Bruce Dickinson. While I don't hear the Dickinson influence, I tend to agree with the Halford/Dane comparisons to an extent, as Tim Aymar belts out some scary high screams like Halford and possesses a similar delivery to Dane. You need to check out his band Pharaoh if you want to hear more of that. This album was originally intended to have Nevermore singer Warrel Dane on vocals, but things didn't work out and Tim Aymar got the gig. I love Warrel Dane's vocals to no end, but Tim Aymar really gives this album its final touch as a killer frontman.

Shannon Hamm shares the guitar duties with Chuck, often playing cutting thrash-based riffs that sharply contrast Chuck's ethereal and textural playing which often spiral into crushing metal riffage during the solos and mid-sections of the tunes. Both guitarists interlock thrashy riffs alongside some curious tremelo picking and even add some plucked acoustic guitars ("When the Link Becomes Missing") which are later embraced by a forceful, melodic metal drive. The solo in this song is possibly my favourite on the album together with Chuck's textural playing in the closing track. It's a solo that builds up very slowly and becomes this intense, passionate expression towards the end -- it simply sends shivers down my spine every time I hear it. Steve DiGiorgio and Richard Christy continue to be an unmatchable duo in thrash/death metal driven music as DiGiorgio plays fat bass figures as well as interesting funky melodies, as in the intro of "What If ...?", and works his bass as an independent instrument throughout the whole album. Richard Christy is a great fit for this type of music, though I feel his snare sound gets a little muffled in some parts because of the mix, but he proves to be the perfect drummer for Control Denied in the way he exhibits powerful synchopated rhythms and technically impossible drum fills.

What makes The Fragile Art of Existence so great, in my opinion, is that it consists of only eight tracks and has a total running time of 50 minutes. There are no fillers here; each song is compositionally-strong, graced by brilliant musicianship and a fitting production (by Chuck and Jim Morris). The progressive side explored on Death's last album, The Sound of Perseverance, is even more boldly carried over to this album, particularly in the multi-textured "Expect the Unexpected", which not only has a great vocal melody, but also features various harmony changes. The centrepieces of the album, "What If ....?" and "When the Link Becomes Missing" are both thrash-rooted progressive songs in the way that allow Chuck to play textural guitars that fiercely contrast the otherwise heavy music, mainly driven by Hamm and DiGiorgio. This is further explored in the almost 10-minute epic, "The Fragile Art of Existence", which is Chuck's testament to stylistic cohesion and passionate songwriting. Three minutes into the song, Aymar coldly utters the words "NO TIME FOR SELF-PITY" and the textured guitar riffs are suddenly replaced by tasty guitar shred before giving way to the initial atmospheric guitar themes.

Chuck's lyrics on this one are perhaps his most introspective and personal lyrics (hence he chose a different project that would separate his musical vision from Death) and Travis Smith comes up with a very fitting artwork. The album is mixed, engineered and mastered by Jim Morris and co-produced by Chuck himself. If you're a metal fan, be it thrash, heavy or prog, and don't own this, then your collection is incomplete.

With this record, Chuck takes Death's sound one step further by extending it to Control Denied. The album is a compelling mix of speed, power, and musical brilliance from Chuck and the rest of the band. The sound reminds me a little of old Fates Warning ('Night on Brocken' or 'The Spectre Within') sound, but better and much more brutal. This album just proves that Chuck Schuldiner is a musical genius who deserves more credit from people other than Death fans.

This CD is great! It is a few members of the band Death along with Chuck on guitar and Tim Aymar doing the vocal duties. It has the guitar work and sound of Death. I didn't know who this band was until I picked it up and it blew my head off! This is a must for any Death fans, you won't be disappointed. Long live "Death"

Existence is purely a state of being. Turning the state of being into an art form is very tricky business. This especially rings true in the musical sense with all the limitations of genre and the expectations of fans and record labels. A very fragile existence it becomes for a musician. After having redefined the genre of thrash and laying the groundwork for death metal with his first legendary band, Death, Chuck Schuldiner returns to a more traditional metal style with his new ensemble Control Denied to prove he is doing ever so more than just existing musically. The music may have overtones of more melodic thrash or progressive metal but the overall tone is unmistakable Schuldiner's. A virtuoso guitarist, accomplished writer and arranger and a skilled producer Schuldiner brings to the table with Control Denied years of experience writing aggressive music. His natural ability to translate angst into complex musical arrangements that explore a multitude of sounds while remaining * The tight musicianship and progressive song writing of Control Denied is a mark of the excellence carried over from previous efforts by Death. Recruiting Tim Aymar for the vocal duties actually presents the biggest difference between the former incarnation of the Death sound and the new direction of Control Denied. The semi-operatic shrieks of Aymar are a far cry from the gut wrenching growls in Death and at times have a very European power metal influence. For Schuldiner, the Fragile Art of Existence represents a welcome musical change for him, allowing him to expand on melodic ideas and concepts that could only be touched on for breif moments in death metal. This musical growth sees an even greater level of musical complexity with blast beats working behind counter melodies and thrash guitar being incorporated into fusion-esque solos. All in all, Schuldiner's Control Denied has reigned in all previous musical expectations, turned them aback and brought forth a new beast armed with aggression and finesse and fully capable of defining a genre much like it's predecessor once had.

Control Denied is really Death with Tim Aymar singing instead of Chuck. Chuck Schuldiner wrote all the songs. This CD features Shannon Hamm (guitar) and Richard Christy (drums); they played on the Sound of Perseverance. Steve DiGiorgio (Individual Thought Patterns) takes care of the bass duties. The music is very melodic, you'd expect nothing less from Chuck. The riffs are less complex when compared to the Death albums because the vocals have to be accomadated. Aymar actually sings, sounds like old Testament. The guitar sound could have been a little thicker on this album. The bass drums, in my opinion, should have been louder. Other than that this album is perfect.

This is the ultimate opus from Chuck Schuldiner before his too early death in 2001 (december 13th). It is also one of his greatest ones. Not the best? How could you answer such a question concerning this authentic genius : all his albums are pure masterpieces, each different from the previous and from the next : here is his last contribution to his experiments in music : he doesn't sing anymore and leaves the vocals to an honest singer (Tim Aymar) who can realize what Chuck couldn't due to his vocal registry : the songs are clear, not any shout : just a VOICE singing! It changes but it is largly positive : the music of Chuck Shuldiner can at last deliver its own beauty (it was actually the case before, but required a serious listening, not an "ambiant" one)thanks to a singer who can show almost immediately the depth and emotion of the notes Chuck Shuldiner created. Worse is consequently his death for he had just begun to tread new paths for a wider audience...

This record came as a complete surprise. Being a fan of Chuck and Death for quite some time (since '91) I knew he was awesome, but Control Denied still swept me off the floor. Some reviewers seem to accept that it is a great effort, but sort of dismiss it as mere technical exercise. Not so! Each and every song on this album is a technical, melodic and SONGWRITING masterpiece of Pure Metal. The playing is brilliant, the structures are brilliant, the riffs and melodies 100% genius, even if some have a tinge of classic metal/thrash to them. Nowadays, no artist in any genre can be said to sound 100% original, without the slightes trace of another artist's influence on the music. I mean, a band like Primus, which to me is as original and unique as it gets, often has elements traceable to bands like Rush, Yes and bassist Stanley Clarke. I say this is one of the top 5 Metal albums EVER. Period.

Control Denied is a side project of Death leader Chuck Schuldiner, and he has assembled a capable cast for this album. It has been called "power metal" because vocalist Tim Aymar sometimes uses the high end of his range, but in my view this fits in more with the technical speed metal movement: following in the footsteps of bands like Voivod, Mekong Delta, Anacrusis, and Tourniquet. Too few bands play that sort of music nowadays, but it is still full of possible new angles and approaches, some of which Control Denied exploit to good effect.

If one is familiar with Death's "Sound of Perseverance" one knows what to expect with the music. Stop-and-start riffs, introspective/psychological lyrics, and squeaky-clean production are the most noticeable attributes. I think "Fragile Art of Existence" ranks slightly below "Sound of Perseverance" in that oh-so-subjective category of songwriting: "Perseverance" just has the riffs. While satisfyingly diverse and complex, "Fragile Art of Existence" doesn't have many immediately identifiable "great moments." Still, this is a worthy, thoughtful piece of music, and anyone interested in technical metal should pick this up and further his education.

Ok, let me get this out of the way: I've never listened to a single Death album so I have no idea where Chuck Schuldiner got his ideas from for this "side project."

Whew, ok, on with the review. I popped this disc in knowing that it was allegedly the natural progression from Chuck's main (and now defunct) band, Death. Only he decided to go further down the progressive/technical road and add a cleaned up power metal vocallist to the mix. Well let me tell you...it worked. This is a STRONG album from start to finish. Never having heard him before, I was blown away by Chuck's guitar goddishness (yes, I just made that word up). And if you're lucky enough to be playing this on a decent stereo where you can bring up and isolate the bass, check out Steve DiGorgio's work. It's nothing short of genius, and often is the sheer driving force behind the music. Tim's vocals were to me, an admitted power metal freak, nothing out of the ordinary. They fit the music, which is the real star of this disc. A few of the songs drag a bit, but my attention was kept for at least 95% of the album.

"Consumed" is a strong choice to open, showing the band's versatility in traveling seamlessly through thrash, power and then doom metal before heading back to progessive thrash. But for me, "Expect the Unexpected" and "When the Link Becomes Missing" are the standout tracks; simply put, they shred. Not to dis a master like Chuck, but there are some clear early Metallica and Testament sounds sprinkled liberally throughout this disc. THAT'S NOT A BAD THING. And the title track closer is a nice wandering 9+ minute opus that shows a bit of everything they've got. Good stuff.

Now that I've gotten this (and liked it lots), I plan on starting with the last Death album and working my way back, so I can see how Chuck got here. As for this album, real good stuff. Get it.

and an amazing CD. Tim's vocals are beutiful, chuck does excellent guitars, and the overall sound is great. A must-have CD for everyone. However, against popular belief, Chuck DID record the guitar parts for the next album! And were it not for a massive legal battle over it, you might have bought it already.