Death - Individual Thought Patterns (Reissue)
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It’s hard to believe that in one year–1993– Individual Thought Patterns, along with Heartwork, Odium, Focus, Sound of White Noise, Chaos A.D., Unquestionable Presence, and Covenant were all released, encapsulating what is arguably metal’s most prolific period. Many of those works were preceded by less progressive, although still defining, releases: Arise preceded Chaos AD, Necroticism – Descanting the Insalubrious preceded Heartwork, Blessed are the Sick before Covenant, and so on.
ITP was preceded by Human, a crushing album that shot Death to the forefront of the progressive death metal movement. Given the high caliber of albums after Human‘s release, Death needed to follow up with something equally as provocative. ITP continues to stand as one of the genre’s most forward-thinking pieces. With ITP, Death shifted from the unbridled heaviness of Human to something more progressive and sophisticated. “The Philosopher”, which shockingly garnered MTV airplay, fades out with interchanging solos between leader Chuck Schuldiner and bassist Steve DiGiorgio that could pass for a heavy Weather Report. It’s the album that brought drummer Gene Hoglan and DiGiorgio larger metal fame and “most desired studio musician” status. Andy LaRocque, of King Diamond notoriety, contributes legendary solos, particularly on “In Human Form”, while Schuldiner is, as always, the ringleader.
Its original production suffered from over-compression, crunched to the center with little high- and low-end, a symptomatic issue found on many early metal recordings. Hoglan’s kick in particular punched through with an entirely synthetic sound.
Now, everything is less-compressed and more explosive but not always for the better. A beefed-up mid-range thickens the guitars, yet the music is less-crisp, burying solos and vocals at times. Hoglan’s snare explodes where it was once static, creating a more organic sound, yet the kick sounds even more triggered against this shift, cutting through occasionally with its obnoxious clicks.
On the positive side, many bass runs have become more audible, especially the solos at the end of “The Philosopher”, and several drums sections are more present. Perhaps the most-welcomed correction was the abrupt ending of “Individual Thought Patterns”, which originally sounded like an engineering mistake. Small details, granted, but on a huge album. The reissue comes with a second-disc, a live show from Germany two-months before ITP was released. While it’s great to hear some of the older songs played by a better line-up, its inclusion is not perfect. By the second-half of the set, Schuldiner and LaRocque are out-of-tune, ruining some clean sections, most notably during “Lack of Comprehension”, and the performances are a bit sloppy at times. One of the highlights is hearing Hoglan covering ex-Death/Cynic drummer Sean Reinert’s beats from Human, especially on “Flattening of Emotions”. Favorite moment? “This one is about cocaine abuse among pregnant women,” says a dead-pan Schuldiner before launching into “Living Monstrosity” from Spiritual Healing.
The verdict on the reissue ends up divided. Certain changes improve the work, while others detract. Despite ITP‘s initially flawed production, it’s how the songs were imprinted; the production becomes a part of the music. Perhaps the perfect mix resides in the delicate territory between the original and the reissue. Regardless, it’s an amazing album that deserves to be revisited in any presentation.
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HEAR INDIVIDUAL THOUGHT PATTERNS
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BUY INDIVIDUAL THOUGHT PATTERNS (REISSUE)
iTunes (Digital download)
Relapse Records (2CD or 3CD Deluxe Reissue)
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