Reign in Blood

by

Slayer

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To imagine the metal scene today if "Reign In Blood" had never been released, is impossible for me. This album is beyond any of my compliments. Every credible metal band today has cited this epic album as a major influence; and if they said otherwise, they'd just be lying. To be a metalhead and NOT own this album is a sin in itself. This album not only demolished and rebuilt new metal standards, "Reign in Blood" combined those Metallica-esque chugging riffs and completely off the wall, unorthodox guitar solos, and exposed them to a huge crowd that didn't know what to think at first (they obviously caught on in no time). Althought Kerry King's and Jeff Hanneman's guitar solos aren't the most musical and intelligible ones in the world, they are ALL about aggression, which is certainly what classic Slayer is all about. Even with so many excellent guitar players surfacing in modern metal, King and Hanneman's unmatched rhythm chops on this album continue to turn heads today. And although Tom Araya does no real "singing" on the CD, his screaming fits the music perfectly. From that legendary first scream of the infamous "Angel of Death", to the last growls of the epic, "Raining Blood", Tom's vocals are one of the most aggressive things about this album. But of course, what would Slayer be without that madman behind the drum set? Even today, in a world of black metal and death metal perfectionist drummers, Dave Lombardo is a thrash drumming god. Throughout the entire album, the drums are fast and pounding, never giving your ears a chance to "take a break" or "rest"; there's no such thing. Slayer never tries to mix it up with a soft breakdown or interlude either. The consistent brutality of this album is what makes it so epic, even today. If you're a relatively old Slayer fan, you probably shouldn't be reading this, because chances are, you already own it, and have owned for a long time. But if you're new to Slayer, starting with this album is a must. This is not one of those albums that is just a "good for it's era" recording. This epic blaze of an album would thrash just as much if it was released today.

The first time i heard this album, i felt like i'd been run over by a semi truck, and back then i felt that was a bad thing. But back then i was into "melodic metal" ala Maiden, Priest, and Metallica. After the first listen i promptly hid this album away swearing to never listen to it again.

But recently, after getting into the heavier side of metal with bands like Opeth, In Flames, and most recently Meshuggah i decided to re-visit Reign in Blood. One thing i'll give it credit for is it NEVER loses it's power and punch. I felt just as flattened the last time i heard it as the first time. And that's saying something considering how old this album is and how far metal music has advanced since.

First, what i like about it:

1) The two slow(er) tracks, Angel of Death and Raining Blood are terrific slabs of grade A metal. Awesome riffs throughout. And the two songs combined must have spawned 1000 imitators alone.

2) The unified vision of the albums is astounding. I wouldn't call it a concept album, because that would implicate that RiB is more intelligent than it actually is. But what it is, and what it was meant to be is 29 mins. of the most blistering extreme music every created that would mesmerize teens and scare the bejesus out of parents. And it did it's job incredibly well.

3) Every now and then, when i'm in the mood for the fastest, most aggresive metal possible, no album fits the bill better than Reign in Blood and i seriously doubt any ever will. The only one that comes close is Meshuggah's Destroy Erase Improve.

Now, what i dislike about it:

1) Tracks 2-9 have just as much in common with punk as with metal. Sure, they all sport metal riffs, but the sheer intensity and, for the most part, completely un-melodic-ness of them completely turns me off. Quite often King and Hanneman are just playing the open E string with downstroke/upstroke as fast as possible. And a little more variation would have helped alot. Especially considering that none of tracks 2-9 stand out at all.

2) King and Hanneman can't solo to save their lives. I'm a guitarist myself and most of their solos are nothing more than notes played at complete random and as fast as possible.

3) Araya can't sing either. His screachy voice is more irritating that scary or aggressive. And the way the vocals are arranged it's almost as if he's rapping the lyrics. But even rapping would give it a sense of groove and melodicism, but the vocals have neither and it detracts from the enjoyment alot.

4) The lyrics are so horrible they're laughable. But, to Slayer's credit, not many lyrics would work with this kind of music. But the whole satanic/evil imagery thing may scare parents, uptight Christians, and the weak at heart. But anyone with half a brain realizes how contrived the whole image is. To their credit they are a little more convincing than most of the so called "satanic" metal bands, but not much.

Finally this: As where other metal bands that were kind of in Slayer's ilk come off as cheesy and unoriginal Slayer has always been the real deal. They had one speed, one mindset, one vision, and like AC/DC they stuck to it reguardless of trends. I personally can't listen to Slayer, or RiB very often. I just need more melody in my music, metal or not. But that being said, Slayer are the best at what they do, even if what they do doesn't appeal to 99% of the population.