The Fragile Art of Existence

The Fragile Art of Existence is the only studio album by Control Denied, a progressive metal band founded by Chuck Schuldiner. It was released worldwide on Nuclear Blast America on November 30, 1999. Metal Mind Productions reissued the album on April 15, 2008 (February 11, 2008 in Europe). The release was digitally remastered and limited to 2,000 copies. The album was again re-released in 2010 by Relapse Records, available in two-disc and three-disc editions. The three-disc edition was limited to 1,000 copies.

The Fragile Art of Existence
Studio album by Control Denied
Released	November 30, 1999
Recorded	March 1999-April 1999 circa April-June 1999 (bass rerecording)[1]
Studio	Morrisound Recording[1]
Genre	Progressive metal power metal
Length	50:46
Label	Nuclear Blast Relapse Records (2010 reissue)
Producer	Jim Morris, Chuck Schuldiner
Control Denied chronology
1999 demo (1999) The Fragile Art of Existence (1999)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
About.com	[2]
AllMusic	[3]
Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles	9/10[4]
Chronicles of Chaos	8/10[5]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal	7/10[6]

This was also Chuck Schuldiner's final studio album before he died of brain cancer on December 13, 2001.

Composition and music

The album's musical style retains the "progressive musical prowess" of Death's later output. Tim Aymar's vocals have been likened to those of Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden and Rob Halford of Judas Priest. The album's overall style has been categorized as hybrid of power metal and progressive metal, and has been characterized as "[tearing] down the conventional walls" of the former. The album's guitar solos have been described as "free jazz meets metal guitar God."^[7]

Production

The lineup that recorded Death's album The Sound of Perseverance (along with singer Tim Aymar) was originally intended to release the Control Denied album (and had completed the recording process), though bassist Scott Clendenin was let go in April 1999.^[1] Schuldiner contacted frequent Death collaborator and bass player Steve DiGiorgio and requested that he record new basslines to replace the ones recorded by Clendenin. In some instances, DiGiorgio kept the bass lines recorded by Clendenin; he viewed it as a way to "return the favor", as Clendenin kept some of the bass lines that DiGiorgio played on the demos for TSOP.^[8] Schuldiner remarked in a January 2000 Metal Maniacs interview that Clendenin "just didn't seem into it, I don't know if it was the material or what, but he didn't seem happy with what was going on, so we had to just let him go."^[9]

Reception and legacy

Jason Hundley of AllMusic called the album "powerful, brilliant, and subversively catchy" and said that it was Steve Digiorgio's "finest hour behind the bass."^[7]

Track listing

All songs written by Chuck Schuldiner.

Original release

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Consumed"	7:24
2.	"Breaking the Broken"	5:41
3.	"Expect the Unexpected"	7:17
4.	"What If...?"	4:29
5.	"When the Link Becomes Missing"	5:17
6.	"Believe"	6:10
7.	"Cut Down"	4:50
8.	"The Fragile Art of Existence"	9:38
Total length:		50:46

2010 Relapse reissue (disc 2)

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Consumed (1999 Demo)"	6:40
2.	"When the Link Becomes Missing (1999 Demo)"	5:20
3.	"The Fragile Art of Existence (1999 Demo)"	9:30
4.	"Breaking the Broken (1999 Demo)"	5:44
5.	"Breaking the Broken (1999 Demo) w/ Chuck Schuldiner on Vocals"	5:45
6.	"Believe (1997 Demo)"	6:16
7.	"What If...? (1997 Demo)"	4:27
8.	"Cut Down (1997 Demo)"	5:01
9.	"Tune of Evil (Comedy Demo)"	3:15
Total length:		51:58

2010 Relapse reissue (disc 3)

No.	Title	Length
1.	"What If...? (1996 Demo)"	4:25
2.	"Cut Down (1996 Demo)"	4:54
3.	"Expect the Unexpected (1996 Demo)"	6:37
4.	"Believe (1996 Demo)"	6:08
5.	"The Fragile Art of Existence (1996 Demo)"	8:25
6.	"What If...? (1996 Demo)"	4:23
7.	"Expect the Unexpected (1996 Demo) w/ Chuck Schuldiner on Vocals"	6:51
8.	"What If...? (1996 Demo) w/ Chuck Schuldiner on Vocals"	4:25
9.	"Cut Down (1996 Demo) w/ Chuck Schuldiner on Vocals"	4:53
Total length:		50:58

Credits

• Tim Aymar – vocals
• Chuck Schuldiner – guitar
• Shannon Hamm – guitar
• Steve DiGiorgio – bass
• Richard Christy – drums

Additional musicians

• Scott Clendenin – bass on 1996 and 1997 demos
• Chris Williams – drums on 1996 and 1997 demos
• Chuck Schuldiner – vocals on 1996 and 1999 demos

Production

• Produced by Jim Morris & Chuck Schuldiner
• Engineered, mixed & mastered by Jim Morris

External links

• Lyrics