A retrospective on Chuck
Schuldiner (Death & Control Denied) has been long
overdue. Unfortunately Chuck will not be around to
read these words. Chuck was 34 when he passed away
on Thursday, December 13, 2001, after a long bout
with brain stem cancer. It was a sad day for
metal. I'd been researching and writing this piece
for months when the news came. Chuck's suffering
is over, but his memory remains bright. In '96 I
penned a Death article for my zine Yawning Vortex
to spread the word about Chuck's new project,
Control Denied. My services seemed imperative
again when Chuck was diagnosed with cancer in '99.
I'd intended this to be a retrospective, not a
memorial.
Reconstructing history without Chuck's
participation is something I was forced into.
Chuck had been ill for over two years when I first
started this article. He and I last spoke on a
tour bus in December '98. The love Chuck had for
his fans is mutual. The fans' support proves some
metal heads are indeed sensitive individuals.
Sorrow for the loss of our hero is overwhelming.
We wish he could have pulled through, but find
solace in the 8 albums of uncompromising metal
Chuck forged. Chuck's lyrics to "Suicide Machine"
tell us "How easy it is to deny the pain of
someone else's suffering," but we cannot overlook
Chuck's musical contributions or his endurance in
fighting his illness.
The Birth of Death
The energetic metal axeman and gravel-throated
vocalist didn't always have 8 studio albums under
his belt. He was born Charles Schuldiner on May
13, 1967 in Long Island, New York, the son of Mal
and Jane Schuldiner. Chuck's began a long way from
the famous Whisky in Hollywood or the Dutch Dynamo
Open Air Festival. In the quiet Orlando, Florida
suburb of Altamonte Springs Chuck spent most of
his life. It was late 1983, according to metal
journalist Borivoj Krgin, when Chuck was joined by
guitarist Rick Rozz (a.k.a. Frederick DeLillo) and
drummer/vocalist Barney "Kam" Lee to form the
Mantas, the precursor to Death. The primitive
metal birth pangs for Chuck & Co. were filled with
an urge to shock audiences, fueled by bravado and
clashing personalities. Par for the course for
teenage kids forming a band, much less one of the
heaviest metal acts on Earth!
Chuck enjoyed recalling simpler times. He told
Guitar School, "When I first started the band, I'd
only been playing guitar for six or seven months-I
couldn't even play a lead. My main goal was to
bash out the most brutal riffs ever with the most
brutal guitar sound ever, but I always had an urge
to become a better guitarist. Though things were
very crude back then, I still had a vision of
becoming a very musical death metal band. I knew
it would take time to get to that point, and I
worked hard to get there." Complexity must evolve
from something. Chuck pointed out to Ill
Literature that it was "Rick, Kam and myself-we
didn't even have a bass player. Reflecting on his
youth, Chuck told RIP's Jon Sutherland, "If you
listen to my early demos, you can hear the Venom
influence." In a chat with Metal Mania video show,
Chuck cited Kiss, Anvil, Mercyful Fate, Exciter,
Raven, Slayer, Hellhammer, Celtic Frost as "early
stuff I feel lucky to have been a part of." Voices
from the Darkside recently interviewed Kam Lee
online. "It was during high school," said Kam. "I
was starting to get into darker metal like Venom,
Hellhammer, and Mercyful Fate. I'd bring the
albums to show classmates and watch them get
spooked 'cause the stuff was so dark ...This
caught the attention of Rick [Rozz]...Then Rick
asked me if I would try out as a drummer...Later
that week Rick contacted Chuck, and everything
from that point is history!"
"History" leaves much to fill in. Borivoj Krgin
pointed out "they had a bassist for one very rough
recording (pre-Death by Metal), but it was
certainly no one that was in the band long enough
to qualify as a 'member.'" Mantas' first official
demo Death by Metal (Summer '84) had a homegrown
cover with a picture of Chuck, Kam, and Rick in
front of a sign bearing the words "Danger, High
Voltage." DBM's original track list was "Legion of
Doom," "Mantas," "Power of Darkness," "Evil Dead,"
and "Death by Metal." Kam told Voices from the
Darkside, "It was recorded in Chuck's parent's
garage...and 'Power of Darkness' was always on
it...Chuck did the vocals on that one..."
Mantas' first gig supposedly occurred on August 1,
1984, but trouble was brewing. Borivoj's liner
notes to the Death reissue CDs explains that "lack
of local support for the band's music was at least
partly to blame for the constant internal turmoil
within the group and Mantas' eventual break-up in
late 1984...Within weeks, however, Chuck
reconciled with Rozz and Lee..." Chuck told Metal
Mania, "I wanted to reform a new band with a new
lineup called Death. I unfortunately had to resort
to my old members..." The bass-less Death by Metal
was then "reissued" with a black cover adorned
with skulls and an inverted cross. Listening to
early Mantas & Death tapes, one notices Kam and
Chuck vying for vocals. Chuck screams "Power of
Darkness"-and on "Beyond the Unholy Grave" both
duel on grunts and screeches. "He'd get tired
after a while, so I picked up the vocal duties.
First I tried to sing in a normal voice, but that
didn't work, so I went for the more brutal
approach," Chuck reminisced to Guitar School.
Death concentrated mostly on rehearsal tapes to
make the rounds in the underground.
The Chuck/Rick/Kam lineup only played a few
shows-as Kam put it, "covered in blood and
gore...black makeup around the eyes and stuff!"
Hirax singer Katon DePena contacted Chuck in the
early days of the metal underground: "He was young
at the time but already showed signs of becoming
one of the elite in the underground. He was very
into Hirax. He had all our demos. Chuck sent us
the rehearsals because he wanted to see what we
thought about his band. We thought they were great
and encouraged him to keep making tapes...I have
some favorite demos and that's in there with all
of them. Fuckin' great...just complete raw metal."
Borivoj recalls first hearing about Mantas "at the
Metallica/Anthrax/Raven gig at the Roseland in New
York City back in August 1984. I happened to see a
flyer of theirs...put up by two guys, Mark
[Conrad] and John [Gross], who used to do a
fanzine called Guillotine in Florida...it
contained a phrase along the lines of 'heaviest'
or 'sickest', which caught my attention. So I
wrote to the address on the flyer...included cash
for the cassette, and got a letter backfrom Chuck
a few days later along with a copy of the Death by
Metal demo."
Death's second official demo was October 1984's
Reign of Terror, which Borivoj divulges "was never
actually mixed-and cost a whopping $80 to record!"
Death gigged at Ruby's Pub in Brandon, Florida, on
November 9th and December 30th. The latter show
was taped by John and Mark from Guillotine and
sold as the only official live recording. Rick was
out of the band soon after. The 3-song Infernal
Death demo appeared in March of '85. Several more
rehearsal tunes were committed to tape by Chuck
and Kam when Scott Carlson (bass) and Matt Olivo
(guitar) of Flint, Michigan's Genocide relocated
to Florida in May to join Death.
Terry Butler, Bill Andrews, Chuck, James Murphy
Scott was the first to contact Chuck: "I mailed
him a copy of our demo...I read about them, and
they sounded so close in spirit to what we were
doing...I sent Chuck a tape after reading about
him in Guillotine. Matt and I were a musical
concept without a drummer or a second guitarist.
And Chuck and Kam were without a bassist or second
guitarist. It sort of made sense to merge. We
packed all of our stuff into one Chevy Malibu and
drove straight down there. 24 hours straight till
we knocked on Chuck's front door." Practices took
place in the Schuldiner's garage. Matt recalls,
"It was probably an average of a 110 degrees in
there, but we loved it. It was intense and so much
fun. Because we already knew the songs. There were
never any lulls in rehearsals." Scott remembers
the only sour point: "At first it was bliss. We
found a kindred spirit in Chuck and John and Mark
from Guillotine. But Kam was going through
personal problems, and he wasn't really able to
fully able to commit to the band. We were so young
and naive that we just saw it as him being a wimp
or a poser...It was just at the time that we were
mad at Kam, but in the big picture I understand
his position. I don't have anything bad to say
about him. I've hung out with him since and had
fun. The death metal world ended up a being a
better place because of it. You got Massacre,
Death, and Repulsion out of it." Matt focused on
memorable times: "We had so much fun and talked
for so long about playing death metal. We would
sneak into this drive-in theater and watch the
same movie every night just to get out. It was
just the time-of-your-life type of thing. It was
contrasted by the situation with Kam. That was the
only thing stopping us from going to the moon."
Matt and Scott paint a picture of Chuck, plugging
away at a fast food job to accumulate equipment.
"Here was Chuck from Death," Matt explained, "the
coolest up and coming metal band, and he's wearing
a Del Taco uniform with his hair pulled up." He
may have worked his ass off, but, as Matt noted,
"Chuck always had great support from his parents.
He was never out in the cold with his metal." Jane
and Mal Schuldiner were supportive of their son
and his band. Scott relishes their time living at
the Schuldiner house: "Chuck's mom was too sweet
to deny us. She made dinner for us every night.
She was an angel. Chuck's dad was always cool.
They never gave him grief about anything...except
like taking out the trash... when it came to
Chuck's future they never stepped in and made
decisions for him." "We had talked to someone at
Combat that said 'make a demo and you've got a
deal,'" said Scott. "Matt and I went down the mall
where Kam hung out to talk him into coming back to
the band. He was totally against it. That's when
we knew...we weren't gonna get anywhere. We
decided to go back home and regroup. And Chuck
went and started his adventure. "We were all
young.... When we left we didn't really know how
to talk to Chuck about it. We knew it was gonna
bum him out. Instead we talked to his mom, and she
talked to him about it first." San Francisco was
on Chuck's horizon Chuck and Repulsion awaited
Matt and Scott. "He just wished us all the luck in
the world and we did the same for him," Scott
said.
By September, Chuck's relocation to San Francisco
was in motion. He teaming up with ex-D.R.I.
drummer Eric Brecht and a bassist also named Eric.
This lineup recorded the lightning fast rehearsal
demo dubbed Back from the Dead by fans. It was
also during this first jaunt to San Francisco that
Chuck, now handling all the vocals, stepped foot
on stage again. Borivoj Krgin maintains "they had
this idea to make Death the fastest and heaviest
band in the world, which Chuck quickly grew tired
of-unsurprisingly. Eventually, he went back to
doing what he did best-playing super-heavy riffs
at varying speeds, always concentrating first and
foremost on crushing brutality rather than speed."
This lack of dynamics eventually led to Chuck's
return to Florida by December of '85. A quote from
the German zine Deathfu&k unravels Chuck's brief
trip to Toronto, Canada, in January '86 to join
death/thrash band Slaughter. "It's
unbelievable...Evil Chuck, who just joined
Slaughter in early January, left 'em again in the
same month! Official news from Slaughter
headquarters tell that Chuckie baby had to leave
'em coz of a total lack of band dedication..." It
was Slaughter bassist Terry Sadler who, years
later, explained perhaps the biggest reason for
Chuck's hasty departure to Snakepit's Laurent
Ramadier in 2001: "He lived in my parents'
basement with me for a while and my parents had no
idea. They found out and the shit hit the fan.
They wanted him and me out! I think Chuck
overheard our fighting and took off...We had no
bad feelings towards Chuck...but rumors started
flowing...We now wish Chuck the best of luck with
his health, and we're not kids anymore slagging
each other!"
Chuck wasted no time in heading out west again
after his return to Florida. Chuck hooked up with
drummer Chris Reifert on his second San Francisco
jaunt. Chris revealed that he met Chuck before any
big formal advertising could be done for
musicians. "Early in the year. I heard he was
looking for members out here. I already knew about
the group...I was pretty excited...I got the gig.
He was going to put an ad on the radio on a local
station. A friend of mine told me about it before
it even got aired. I got the phone number." Chris
furiously pounded the skins behind Chuck's
whirlwind guitars and acidic vocals as early as a
two song rehearsal tape from late March '86.
Chuck's bond with Chris Reifert was the defining
point for improvement in Death's seedling sound.
Chieko Redmer, then a young metal fan, met Chuck
at Ruthie's Inn in '86: "I could barely even walk
straight. I remember that he was standing against
the wall inside, and I ploughed right into
him-almost knocking him down! I didn't know who he
was, but he helped me up and saw that I was very
sick! I remember telling him I was about to puke.
He was so nice that he escorted me outside so I
could throw up in the planter! This was a pretty
nice thing to do for a total stranger, not to
mention it being embarrassing for me! He was a
total gentleman. He presented me with a business
card with the slogan 'Corpse Grinding Metal' on
it! Very suave! We started hanging out after that,
and I met Chris. They would practice at Chris'
house in Concord. I'd go over there to watch...I
never forgot how funny Chuck is! His wacky
personality and silly sense of humor... He would
say these goofy things back then like 'understand
rubberband?' and 'know what I mean, jellybean?'
Those days were great times...No responsibilities.
It was a bummer when Chuck went back to Florida,
but...Chuck never seemed to lose his humbleness
even though he got famous."
In April, Chuck and Chris quickly followed up
Combat's request for a pro demo with Mutilation,
the most polished of the early Death recordings.
According to Bernard Doe of Metal Forces,
Mutilation was made with "Chuck also playing
bass." Doe conceded Mutilation was "the band's
best recording to date; both in terms of material
and production." The underground and Combat
Records were in agreement about Mutilation.
Despite the fact that the band was still only a
duo, Combat signed them up to a five-album deal.
Land Of No Return: The Professional
Chuck's career as a professional metal guitarist
was just beginning, and before anything else could
be done a first album would have to be recorded.
In summer of '86, Chuck flew back to Florida with
Chris with big pipe-dreams about their first album
ever, far from the recording capitol of the world.
It was in Florida where Chris notes Death
"recorded a version of the album and it got
scrapped. Then we started over again in L.A...It
sounded really good at the Music Grinder."
While back in S.F. Chris and Chuck befriended
neighboring thrash band Sadus, whose bassist,
Steve DiGiorgio, would later record on Death's
Human and Individual Thought Patterns and Control
Denied's The Fragile Art of Existence. Says Steve:
"They got a hold of Sadus' first demo. The phone
rang one day, and the dude on the other end says,
'Hey, we're in a band called Death from Concord.
We dig your demo. Do you guys wanna hang out?' So
we got directions and drove out to Chris' house.
We met Chuck there. We were just fresh out of high
school, so we had a lot of time to kill during the
day. We asked him where his band was, and he said,
'They'll be out of school in a couple of hours.'
And we're like, 'School? These guys are young.' He
played the Mutilation demo. His 'band' got there a
little later...just Chris. 'How the hell do you
guys sound like that?' So, we went in Chris'
room...and they ran through songs. We figured we
didn't know many bands in the area. We were always
on our own, and here's a couple of guys our age
doing our type of thing." Steve continues, "Back
then we were young, and no one had money. Jon
Allen had a drum kit that was barely hanging in
there. But Chris had a nice, huge Tama set, and
Jon was just blown away. Chris was like, 'But we
can't practice in my house very often. And Sadus
had a killer practice space. So, this deal got
worked out where we loaned them our practice space
if Chris would leave his drums set up so Jon could
play it. That eventually led to me filling in on
bass with them. Sadus would set up and go through
our set. And they'd get up there...All the Sadus
guys would pull up a pillow and watch us. 'Time
for a break.' We'd all go jump in the pool at
Darren's [Darren Travis, guitarist/vocalist of
Sadus] house or something. It went like that for a
few months...one band in a way. I was the common
denominator. They were looking for a bass player
the whole time, but no one was around."
Chuck expressed his approval of Scream Bloody Gore
to Metal Forces, "Randy Burns gave us a
super-heavy production...The only thing I kind of
regret now is not hanging around for the final
mixes. I think the rhythm guitar could have been a
bit louder in the mix." Not too shabby for the 5
days Chris claims it took to track SBG. "Right
after we did the LP as a two-piece," Chuck told
Metal Forces, "we ran into this guitarist, John
Hand, whom we really liked at the time, so we got
him into the band. He played with us long enough
to have his photo appear on the back of the album,
but he just couldn't play our newer material, so
he had to go. "Steve DiGiorgio remembers the lack
of Death gigs from that period, "We decided to do
some shows, and just figured we'd double session
it. Chris double sessioned for Desecration. We
were gonna do a Desecration, Sadus, and Death show
where me and Chris both double setted. But that
never happened because Chuck went back to Florida
and never came back." Something was making Chuck
homesick. He told Metal Forces, "When I first
moved to California back in late '85, the scene
was just starting to flourish. There were lots of
places to play, and the fan support was just
overwhelming. Unfortunately, as time went by, most
of the clubs closed down and the scene just sort
of died out. I knew there was no way I was gonna
be able to get a band together there, so I decided
to go back to Florida. I told Chris he could move
back down with me, but he said he didn't want to."
Chuck and Chris were metal brothers, though, and
Chuck wished him "good luck in the future" in his
thanks list on his second album.
Scream Bloody Gore was released in May 1987. Chuck
was far from taking a rock star attitude after
getting signed and seeing his first album issued,
telling Metal Forces that "the reaction from the
fans has been just amazing...I really have to
thank everybody for their great support, because
it wasn't for them, we wouldn't be here right
now." SBG was an extension of the over-the-top,
pile-driving riffs and gory lyrics from Death's
demos. The gore Chuck would outgrow, but the riffs
would only become more memorable as time passed.
Chuck splattered listeners with corpse-riddled
tunes that had much in common with flicks like
George Romero's Dead trilogy or the Italian
"giallos" of Dario Argento, Lucio Fulci, and
Umberto Lenzi. Horror is different from the
jokingly satanic lyrics of Venom and Hellhammer.
When asked about satanism in metal, Chuck told
Metal Forces, "I'm not into it."
Perseverance And Moments Of Clarity
It was Florida where Chuck based himself for the
rest of his career. 1988's Leprosy saw Chuck
leaning toward polished productions and an inner
conflict between the horror fan and the emerging
philosophical, down-to-earth Chuck. Leprosy
reunited Chuck briefly with Rick Rozz, who brought
with him Massacre bandmates Terry Butler (bass)
and Bill Andrews (drums). "Pull the Plug," in
particular, became the song fans went absolutely
nuts for whether in their bedrooms or a crowded
club. In his own words, Chuck told us that "Pull
the Plug" is about "being on a life support system
and having the right to die." Chuck explained to
Metal Hammer, "the lyrics are more serious and on
the next album they will get even more realistic."
Leprosy saw Chuck's foray into touring, on a
double bill with Dark Angel. The road was-like
life in general-filled with ups and downs. Ex-Dark
Angel guitarist Jim Durkin informed me, despite
rumors that have been spread that he "got along
really well with Chuck and everyone before I left
the tour and didn't look back. Chuck and I had a
lot of fun hanging out and jamming. It had nothing
to do with us two."
Leprosy was the appetizer for Chuck's new
direction, but Spiritual Healing (1990) was a
cerebral feast-paving the way for every Death
album to follow. "Living Monstrosity," in Chuck's
own words, is about cocaine abuse among pregnant
women, while "Altering the Future" tackles
abortion. At 22, Chuck's guitar playing,
songwriting skills, were reaching new heights. On
Spiritual, Chuck's razor-sharp lead guitar
abilities took flight-and his solos were bolstered
by another young shredder, James Murphy. [Murphy
too has battled cancer recently, and we wish him
the best!] Chuck told Guitar Magazine, "I started
practicing more and came up with the idea that,
for this band to move forward musically, we'd need
a cleaner approach, something real dry and
in-your-face...Our rhythms also became a lot more
complex..." The lineup mutiny Chuck endured when
the rest of his band went off to Europe without
him tested his strength, but Chuck was far from
quitting. Ex-manager Eric Grief, notes: "Chuck's
contention was that he did not feel the Spiritual
Healing tour of Europe was adequately organized.
Considering Death's previous negative European
experience with the Belgian agency Metalysee (that
tour being one of the worst experiences Chuck had
encountered as a musician thus far), he did not
want a repeat of that. He kept exclaiming that he
wanted his 'next European tour to rage for the
fans'. Chuck also had mounting personal issues at
the time, and no manager to fall back on. Bill and
Terry countered by claiming that Chuck waited
until the very last minute to pull out, and they
felt his apprehension was not warranted. They
argued that Chuck had missed several opportunities
to bring Death back to Europe and that they were
sick of waiting...so they went anyway...That bold
move was the end of Bill and Terry."
For Human (1991), Chuck recruited Florida-based
Cynic members Paul Masvidal (guitar) and Sean
Reinert (drums), and Sadus' Steve DiGiorgio
(bass), which led to an injection of the technical
edge Chuck had been striving for. Chuck, Paul, and
Sean dug progressive metallers Watchtower, but
Human still retained the signature Death sound.
Chuck explained the genesis of "Suicide Machine"
to Rock Hard, "In America, there's a doctor who
invented a machine that can deliver sick and
suffering people to death. I think it's a great
invention. When somebody really is incurably
ill...and it's his wish to die, then we must allow
him that choice before an endless suffering takes
place."
On Individual Thought Patterns (1993) Chuck
furthered his sonic experimentation. Chuck hired
ex-Dark Angel skinsman Gene Hoglan, King Diamond
lead guitarist Andy LaRocque, and Steve DiGiorgio
Speaking of his new comrades, Chuck told Metal
Hammer, "One by one very gifted musicians but
perfectly fitting in the musical concept of
Death." Chuck told Watt, "I hope ITP lifts metal
as an art form to a higher level...I don't set
myself any boundaries." Chuck first voiced his
intentions to evolve by finding a melodic vocalist
in '93 to Guitar School: "In the future I plan to
do a more melodic, straightforward metal side
project with a singer in the Rob Halford style."
Symbolic (1995) was the album on which Chuck's
assailed massive heights. Heavy, moody, emotional,
and full of technical twists and turns. Gene
Hoglan returned for Symbolic, but Steve DiGiorgio
was unavailable. The second guitar spot was filled
by Bobby Koelble. Symbolic was one that Chuck
would continue to build on with his next two
albums. "Do you remember when things seemed so
eternal? / Heroes were so real... / Their magic
frozen in time." The words Chuck wrote for
"Symbolic" send a shiver up my spine, because I
know that not only was Chuck my hero, but I know
he was such a huge role model for thousands of
young musicians worldwide.
Steve DiGiorgio, Gene Hoglan, Chuck, Ralph
Santolla
Shannon Hamm, Richard Christy, Chuck, Scott
Clendinin
After coming off the road in '95, Chuck hooked up
with drummer Chris Williams (Talonzfury) and began
working on his new project, dubbed Control Denied.
Guitarist Shannon Hamm met Chuck through Chris
Williams. "We became really good friends," Shannon
said. "Then Chris invited Scott [Clendenin, bass]
who was also in his band. So we all came from the
same place here. We did a couple of demo tapes."
Among Chuck's prospects for Control Denied singers
was Warrel Dane, from Symbolic tour openers
Nevermore. Commitments to Nevermore prevented
that, but Chuck didn't give up, though Control
Denied had to be put on hold. He was only too
aware that Death fans were still hungry for more.
Chuck told Metal Maniacs, "I do things when I feel
they're right. There was label interest in Control
Denied, but I felt that the time was right to
bring Death back." Another slight lineup change
occurred here. Shannon explained , "That's when we
started working on the Perseverance stuff...and
got Richard [Christy] in on drums."
The Sound of Perseverance (1998) bludgeoned
listeners with infectious heaviness from Chuck's
introductory lead burst. Unaware of his fading
mortality, Chuck had written "A Moment of
Clarity", which tells us: "Life is like a mystery
/ With many clues, but with few answers / To tell
us what it is that we can do / To look for
messages that keep us from the truth." At the
Ventura, California, Perseverance gig I hung out
with Chuck for the first (and last) time. He
signed my LPs and CDs, and I apologized for being
such a fan-boy. But he understood. "I'm the same
way," he said, "like with KISS." I spent the
afternoon inside the venue, with no one around but
Chuck's friend Maria Abril. It was unreal watching
Chuck jam unaccompanied before everyone showed up
for soundcheck. He didn't kick me out or wonder
what I was doing there. As a matter of fact, he
was one of the kindest musicians I've ever met!
A shocking press release was issued by Chuck in
spring 1999, just after tracking for the Control
Denied album, The Fragile Art of Existence, was
completed. "Toward the end of our time in the
studio, I started experiencing some pain in my
upper neck which I initially thought was a pinched
nerve or strained muscle. Having completed the
recording I consulted with a chiropractor followed
by a massage therapist and acupuncturist who
recommended I go for an MRI...Well, I was right
about the pinched nerve but unfortunately it was
being caused by a brain stem tumor. "I am in my
fourth week of radiation therapy with some of the
most sought-after physicians in the field. I am
also blessed with the immense love and support
from my family and friends which is such a big
part of getting through something like this. To
try to put this into simple terms is obviously
difficult but let me say this: it is a mind, body
and soul expanding experience. The treatment has
been going well and with this type of aggressive
radiation the prognosis is very good. Patience is
something I have learned to embrace in my fourteen
years of living music and now it is time to
further master the art of patience on my road to
recovery. "I've always felt a personal connection
between the music and the fans/friends who support
it. It is that support, that goes beyond the music
itself, which I appreciate with all my heart and
soul."
The words sent Death fans reeling with sympathy
for their ill metal comrade. Months of radiation
followed, during which time The Fragile Art of
Existence was released. A medical fund was
organized for Chuck. He lacked insurance that
would cover the enormous expenses such a volatile
disease as cancer brings. Chuck's family's assets
were being poured into the best care he could
possibly receive. The Schuldiners encountered much
friction from hospitals that were reluctant to
treat Chuck without being paid up-front. "Every
single dime has been for him, but Chuck would do
it for me 1,000 times over, " Chuck's sister Beth
told MTV News.
The Fragile Art of Existence is what Chuck had
wanted the public to hear since '93. Clear
production, a solid lineup, and songs loaded with
themes both personal and relevant to all people.
The epic direction was made more accessible by the
powerful voice of Tim Aymar (Psycho Scream). The
title track closes out the disc with the prophetic
lines: "No time for self-pity / No time for
dwelling on what should have been / But is yet to
be." In "Believe" there are further messages laced
with experience from Chuck's life. Chuck tells us:
"If I was paid for disappointment, I would be a
wealthy man / The magic lives in sincerity, in
truth, behind the thoughts I choose to stand... /
Awaiting discovery". Chuck told Metal Maniacs,
"These are words and things I need to
re-embrace-not for music, not for that outlet-I
need to re-embrace key words for a new
survival...Life is fragile."
Just before Chuck underwent surgery, MTV News
covered his story online on the web. Family,
friends, and fans braced themselves as Chuck
entered the hospital. Chuck made another statement
to the metal community following his successful
surgery: "I am alive and letting the metal flow! I
just finished writing the last song for the new
Control Denied album...100% trend free. The
responses to The Fragile Art of Existence have
been really awesome. Thank you for embracing it! I
also want to thank everyone around the world for
the incredible support you have shown me. I read
the emails and the letters and appreciate your
kind words and honesty...I'm settling down here in
Florida, feeling good and looking forward to
getting busy again with the new record and tour to
thank all my metal brothers and sisters in person
with some new metal...Shazaamm!"
Recovery went awry, even though we had hoped with
all our metal hearts that Chuck would defeat
cancer and continue to astound us with new slabs
of raging metal. It was spring 2001 when Chuck
fell more gravely ill. Maria Abril, who worked for
nearly every label Death & Control Denied have
been on was Chuck's friend from her days at
Relativity Records. She spearheaded online
auctions on Chuck's behalf. The donations and love
flowed from the metal community, but all the money
in the world can't erase the horrible side effects
of experimental chemotherapy drugs and the
gruesome killer known as cancer.
By November 2001 Chuck's condition seemed to have
improved somewhat. He even emailed Emptywords.org,
the official Death & Control Denied website,
something he rarely did. Only weeks later Chuck
was hospitalized again with pneumonia-his mother
constantly at his side. Those who knew feared each
day that we would lose Chuck. The news we all
dreaded came, when Yvonne Kluitman from Emptywords
tearfully informed us that Chuck had passed away
on the afternoon of Thursday, December 13, about
an hour after returning home from the hospital.
Chuck was human-and enjoyed simple things like his
dogs and cats ("The Guys"), canoeing, collecting
records, and cooking. Chuck, a humane soul who was
especially fond of his pets, rescued his dog Heidi
when she was a puppy from the horrid fate of being
trapped in a bag and left to die in a dumpster.
Never one to shrink from popularity with metal
fans and the intricacies such fame brought with
it, Chuck told Guitar World, "I'm proud that I've
never had a drug problem or complained that
success sucks and shot myself like Kurt Cobain.
Sorry, but success is something people like me
dream about." When it came to Chuck's concept of
metal, he was uncompromising. Ex-Death guitarist
Matt Olivo told me shortly before Chuck's death,
"He doesn't have one dishonest bone in his body
when it comes to his own music. He has to do his
own thing." Chuck's old manager, Eric Greif
explained how Chuck stared misery in the face, and
slayed it with optimism: "One particular moment
will live on in my brain forever: we were
traveling somewhere in snowy Sweden... the only
guys still awake, having a deep conversation about
our lives, our futures, and the band. I was quite
down at the way things were going. He put his arm
on my shoulder and pointed at the stars that were
shining clearly. He said I had nothing to
fear-that fate would lead the way and that things
would turn out as they were meant to. Chuck was
like that-there were moments of sheer depth,
honesty and conviction...."
As for me, I can only say that I feel fortunate to
have known Chuck Schuldiner, a true heavy metal
hero, even for a brief time. We won't forget you,
Chuck, and perhaps we'll meet again on the tour
bus to infinity...
REST IN PEACE BROTHER
________________________________________________________
Death
Line-Up:
Chuck Schuldiner - vocals & guitar
Shannon Hamm - guitar
Scott Clendenin - bass
Richard Christy - drums
A pioneer leads the way and
establishes new standards. Too often words like
"vision" and "genius" are bandied about and handed
out like trinkets with little thought as to their
true meaning. In the handbook of underground
metal, however, one man clearly shines as the true
originator and visionary of an entire genre.
Singer/songwriter/guitarist Chuck Schuldiner
defines the word "pioneer."
Behind the careful guidance of Schuldiner, Death
became one of the most respected and innovative
bands in the metal scene. Death strove to create
their own sound, and Schuldiner’s passion and
dedication to this single principle resulted in
nothing less than the creation of an entire new
genre of metal. Death metal defined the
underground in the early ‘90s, firmly establishing
Schuldiner’s home state of Florida as the Death
Metal Capital of the World.
1998 marked Death’s first appearance on Nuclear
Blast Records when the band released their seventh
album, The Sound of Perseverance. The album
returned Death to the top of extreme music after a
three-year absence and featured their strongest
line-up yet: Shannon Hamm (guitar) and Scott
Clendenin (bass) from Control Denied and drummer
Richard Christy (now with Iced Earth), who
Schuldiner dubbed "the most amazing drummer to
come along in the last decade." Extensive touring
followed, including a headline run through the
States with HammerFall supporting and appearances
at Europe’s major festivals like Dynamo.
The undeniably bright future of Death, however,
turned into a cloudy forecast of apprehension and
uncertainty when Schuldiner was diagnosed with
brain cancer. With the help of family, friends,
fans and organizations like MusiCare, he was able
to moderately control the cancer with an
operation, but after a short time in remission,
the cancer returned. Schuldiner remains fighting
for his life to this day.
Standing as a last will and testament to the
legacy of Death, Nuclear Blast proudly presents
the first live Death record and last Death
release, Live in L.A. (Death & Raw). Recorded on a
cool December night at the legendary Whisky A Go
Go in Los Angeles, CA, Live in L.A. (Death & Raw)
perfectly captures the distilled purity of live
music. An unquestionable human touch comes through
in the soundboard recording, which retains a
gritty intensity that’s missing on overdubbed live
records. No overdubs, no corrections, no
apologies. Just Death live. For the last time.
