It wasn’t until Death’s "Spiritual Healing"
that the band came into fruition. "Scream Bloody Gore"
was heading the band in the right direction, but with simplistic
riffing. By the time this album came around, Schuldiner was no
stranger to guitar. The band started driving themselves into what
ultimately would become a progressive and melodic metal.
While changes have been made
in the Death line-up, particularly the replacing of guitarist
Rick Rozz with guitarist James Murphy, this didn’t change
the direction and ideals of Death greatly. This is probably because
Chuck was the heart and soul of the band. His singing ability
has improved quite a bit, seeing as to it that people can distinguish
what he is actually saying. I’m particularly glad Rick Rozz
is out of the band. He just wasn’t on the same level musically
as the other members. Overall, the line-up is much tighter this
way than before.
The music is highly melodic,
with complex and memorable riffs, good musicianship, and well-structured
songs. "Spiritual Healing" just comes off as though
the band knew exactly what they were doing. They knew what they
were doing, and where they were going, so they took that and the
outcome was a record that comes off as confident.
For
anyone who was interested in any Death, new or old, "Spiritual
Healing" is worth your money, even if it isn’t as good
as other releases. For those new to the genre, Death should be
your first stop and this is a great place to start.
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