And then there was a day when Death came to an untimely end. Of course, Death will always live on through fans of the music and be remembered as leaders of a scene. Nonetheless, "The Sound of Perseverance" is an excellent closing of a career for a band that has accomplished so much.

Once again, another line-up change has occurred. The amazing Gene Hoglan has been replaced by the worthy Richard Christy. Christy is an interesting listen. He has a nice style that compliments the music. Also being sadly replaced is bassist Steve Digiorgio. I’m glad that replacement Scott Clendenin proves to make good and interesting use of his instrument at times.

"The Sound of Perseverance" is Death at their peak of their musical vision. This has the best musicianship ever shown of Chuck, who has been the only member to stay since the beginning. It’s not really possible to see the growth of the other musicians through this band, unfortunately. The album is altogether the most progressive of anything the band has ever written, which seems to be a style of death metal that the band had been working towards since the beginning. It’s melodic like all other Death albums, but manages to keep a raw sound. It’s not melodic like the overcrowded Gothenburg scene. It’s great to see that the songs can have so many different parts in them, yet come together as one and not just a jumble of riffs. The songs are different, they do speak for themselves, and there are so many amazing and stand out parts here that it proves to be an album that can be heard over and over.

It’s a strong album from start to finish. Death has always been put out quality albums while keeping their original musical vision, but not becoming a parody of themselves. They’ve grown over the years from album to album, and that has definitely been a good thing.

A great ending for a great band. Deserves a listen by all fans of progressive metal.