I'm not sure as to why, but from day one, it seems as though the majority voice has given Mr. Schuldiner a bum deal. Every interview I read has Chuck defending himself and his music. Enter 1998, and here we have Chuck again stating that this record is a personal vendetta against those who would do him in. Opting for more of a spiritual approach (Human was "revenge") on this release, "Evil" Chuck again proves that he is without a doubt one of the finest explorers of the realm of metal. Hiring three "unknowns", Death may now be a complete band, and if so, we may be luckier than ever. Richard Christy certainly had some big shoes to fill, following two super shredders (Hoglan and Reinert), but nails the critical vote within the first ten seconds of track one. The whole band shreds, and what's nice is that the songs aren't written for this task, instead, they flow, and each band member senses enough to pull back when it's time. No more cross-shredding nightmare tracks (see Gorguts) where you have no idea what's going on. Tracks run a bit longer here as well, allowing the song to unfold, cleansing any riffitis which may have occured. But the biggest change has to be the vocals! Gone are the trademark rasps which were pretty much invented on Scream Bloody Gore. Instead, it's a smoother, more athletic growl which fits so much better with the technical approach. Nuclear Blast was wise to pick this seminal band up, for it seems as though we finally get to hear what Chuck wanted us to for all these years. Unfortunately, the album closes with (to my ears) a truly miserable version of Painkiller that I can hardly listen to. Evidently it was included due to popular demand, so be safe in knowing that I'm in the minority on that opinion! Regardless, we owe thanks to "Evil" Chuck for about 15 years of quality music, all of which is incorporated here.