Death | Artist

Death was an American death metal band formed 1983 in Altamonte Springs, Florida, by Chuck Schuldiner (guitar, vocal), Kam Lee (drums, vocals) and Rick Rozz (guitar). The band underwent many personnel changes, with the only constant member being Schuldiner, up until his untimely demise in 2001 aged only 34. Death is considered to be among the most influential bands in heavy metal and a pioneering force in the extreme metal subgenre of death metal, with their debut album Scream Bloody Gore (1987) being widely regarded as the first death metal album. The band released seven studio albums, all of which are highly regarded by critics and the metal fraternity. Standouts include Scream Bloody Gore (1987), Leprosy (1988), Human (1991), Individual Thought Patterns (1993), Symbolic (1995) and The Sound of Perseverance (1998). Schuldiner was also briefly in the Canadian band Slaughter, and his own side-project band Control Denial, which released one strong album The Fragile Art of Existence (1999). Death produced several note-worthy spin-off bands including Cynic and Repulsion. After his passing from a brain tumor, Chuck Schuldiner received accolades from every quarter. Not only was he a guitar virtuoso but also a first rate composer, lyricist and frontman. He proved that extreme metal could be brutal, down-to-earth yet cerebral at the same time. As a sign of the band's break-through into teen culture, the video for Death's track "The Philosopher" even made it on to an episode of Beavis & Butt-head in 1994. Beavis also parodies Schuldiner's vocals in a mock 'drive-thru' order of 'tacos, to go!' in death-metal style.

Artist Website: emptywords.org

Featured Albums: Death

Related Artists: Repulsion, Cynic