Review of the Album "Individual Thought Patterns" Featuring the Guitar Brilliance of Chuck Schuldiner's Band Death

Individual Thought Patterns is the brilliant 1993 album by Florida based death metal band called Death. It once again features the brilliant guitar work and artistry by the late Chuck Schuldiner. The album has ten songs for a little over 40 minutes of musical enjoyment for the avid death metal fan. This CD was one of my favorite ones when I was a teenager and I think that this band may be the best American death metal band ever. The lineup for the album has famous drummer Gene Hoglan, bassist Steve Digiorgio (Sadus) and Andy Larocque as the other guitar player. The album is also significant because it will help you to understand the flaws of human nature through the lyrics. The objective is not to just provide a review of the album but to help people understand that human beings have flaws by nature but that they can work on becoming better citizens in a largely complex world. Maybe we can become better citizens through the power of music? That’s one thing I turn to when I need to raise my energetic vibration and feel better.

I will try and interpret the album’s title as we go along. At the most simple, basic level, we can say that each of us has certain thought patterns that we have been used to throughout our lives. Every time we have a thought, we fire brain cells and remember: thoughts create your reality.

The opener in the album called "Overactive Imagination" is heavy, melodic, and hard hitting. The song is a classic that really stands out. It is about what happens when we use our minds to try to influence others and deceive them. As time passes, the person is addicted to making sure that others suffer because of them. The song also makes reference to a world where trustworthy people are short in number. Note: this song is the strongest song in the album even in 2018 as the album was released 25 years ago.

Mental illness is a topic that has been covered by other bands such as Annihilator. Individual Thought Patterns also has Iron Maiden style guitar play especially in the song "Nothing is Everything." The end of the song has one of the best guitar parts that you will ever hear! This is similar to the song "Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner" which is filled with lots of creative melody. Many bands have been influenced by Iron Maiden and this one is no exception.

The song "Mentally Blind" is another song with melodic guitar play. It is about a person who has opinions of others that are very destructive. The person’s ideas have no sense. The type of future for this kind of person will not be a very good one at all. Chuck brings up the various flaws of human nature in the songs and that makes you aware of what has to be done for us to have a kinder, gentler world. The song Jealousy is pretty self-explanatory. It is about a person that is jealous and will do anything to get what they want. The song "Destiny" features a soft acoustic part before getting heavy. We all seek our destiny in this life here on Earth. Some of us find what that destiny is and through this, we set goals for our future. Some others seem to struggle to find their destiny and seem to just go through the motions of life. "Out of Touch" features excellent mid-tempo heavy riffing, a style that the band Death was famous for in their career. Those that use brute force to accomplish their goals will be eventually brought down by those that oppose them. The song called "Trapped in a Corner" is one of those that this writer forgot to mention. It has excellent, melodic riffs. The song is about someone that lives a life of deception yet they do not realize it.

Overall, Individual Thought Patterns is an excellent release and one of the very finest works in the genre of death metal. Even years after its release, you realize that it is also an album that can make you aware of what is going on in the world and may inspire you to be a better person. This writer gives Individual Thought Patterns a solid 95 out of 100 points.

As we revisit Individual Thought Patterns, it is noticeable that the bass lines in the song called “In Human Form” are very much present and give the song an exotic kind of feel. Even the song Jealousy has the sort of riffing and melody that would make even the average guitar player be totally in awe of the musical brilliance that is present on this album. Chuck Schuldiner may be the greatest American death metal guitarist that this country has ever had and that’s a big, bold statement but the more I listen to the band Death, I hear Chuck’s guitar brilliance every time.

The bass guitar play by Steve Digiorgio is also worthy of praise and discussion as it is very underrated. Individual Thought Patterns is one of the very best metal albums of 1993 for any sub-genre.