Band:	Death
Album:	The Sound Of Perseverance
Style:	Progressive thrash metal
Release date:	August 31, 1998
Guest review by:	Yanko

Disc I
01. Scavenger Of Human Sorrow
02. Bite The Pain
03. Spirit Crusher
04. Story To Tell
05. Flesh And The Power It Holds
06. Voice Of The Soul
07. To Forgive Is To Suffer
08. A Moment Of Clarity
09. Painkiller [Judas Priest cover]

Disc II [Remastered version - CD 1] [2011 reissue bonus]
01. Spirit Crusher [No bass] ['98 demos]
02. Flesh And The Power It Holds [No bass] ['98 demos]
03. Voice Of The Soul [No bass] ['98 demos]
04. Bite The Pain ['98 demos]
05. A Moment Of Clarity ['98 demos]
06. Story To Tell ['98 demos]
07. Scavenger Of Human Sorrow ['98 demos]
08. Bite The Pain ['97 demos]
09. Story To Tell ['97 demos]
10. A Moment Of Clarity ['97 demos]

Disc III [Remastered version - CD 2] [2011 reissue bonus]
01. Bite The Pain ['96 demos]
02. Story To Tell ['96 demos]
03. A Moment Of Clarity ['96 demos]
04. Bite The Pain [Paul Payne vocals version] ['96 demos]
05. A Moment Of Clarity [Paul Payne vocals version] ['96 demos]
06. A Moment Of Clarity [Chuck vocals version] ['96 demos]
07. Story To Tell [Chuck vocals version] ['96 demos]
08. Bite The Pain [Shannon Hamm vocals version] ['96 demos]
09. A Moment Of Clarity [Instrumental] ['96 demos]
10. Bite The Pain [Instrumental] ['96 demos]
11. Story To Tell [Instrumental] ['96 demos]
12. Voice Of The Soul [Instrumental] ['96 demos]
13. A Moment Of Clarity [Instrumental] ['96 demos]

This is it. Finally, after more than 10 years of waiting, we have got It. The one, the only the true thrash metal album. Death have had six releases, have made some drastic changes in their style and have achieved it finally.

Despite being labeled as the fathers of death metal, only their first album is truly death metal, mainly due to vocal abilities of main-man Chuck Schuldiner, who was never really a death vocal. His singing has steadily and gradually evolved into more and more shrieking, until now on this album we hear him really screaming. Not many people came to terms with it and have accepted, but it is what thrash metal is all about. Its most distinct feature are the vocals and Chuck has shown what thrash vocals should sound like. Screaming, aggressive, full of feeling, coming right from the heart. True thrash metal that is.

Not only vocals, but the rhythm section is another display of the perfect sound of thrash. The drums can't be quite distinctly heard, they are no separate instrument, they are together with music, a living part of. There is no "bang-bang", I'll rip your head off, there is steady drumming, supplying the guitarists with superb feeling of rhythm. The bassist puts up a very good effort, playing his part with a lot of technique and precision. His trade-mark bass-sound will be left through the years for generations and generations and every bassist will learn from it how to get heard and not be boring or interfering in the overall guitar sound.

And, of course, Chuck's contribution to the album is not done with singing his thrash vocals. He has had six albums already and on every one of them has played his genius solos, never getting the listener tired of them or repeating him, sheer genius. And the last album in Death's existence goes to show that six albums weren't enough to give everything from him away. His genius has never really been doubted, but it has also never ended. On "The Sound?" we don't get the separate solos, we are used to when listening any band, we have solos and rhythmic guitar-work united in one whole. This is why I really love saying that Death have gather pieces of their music together and have done the most remembering thrash album with the most coherent and full sound. Pure 100 per cent genius.

This an album coming in time when thrash's glorious days have long gone in the past and death's heyday has also passed. And however it shows how young thrash metal is and how easy it got forgotten. This is also the display of the best developing of a bands sound - the early albums, not so convincing and the last ones the best ones.

This is the most mature, true pure and-by-the-book thrash metal album, uniting technique and speed in one in a fabulous manner, producing the best creation of the dying beast of thrash metal. It is a masterpiece and that is not exaggerated.