fatdan_138's Full Review: Reign in Blood [PA] by Slayer
Before I write anything about this, let me note how strange it is that this album has 22 reviews, whereas the earlier Slayer albums each had fewer than 10. Folks, we all know that Reign In Blood is Slayer's most famous, but you've got to broaden your horizons just a little bit. Check out their earlier stuff, too: you won't be disappointed. And if you ARE disappointed, write a review about it. I'd rather read a review of Hell Awaits than another one about this album.
Okay, on with the music. Chances are that you're not very familiar with Slayer's music, especially if you consider yourself to be a religious person (as I am). Well, you're in for a treat: this is one of the most satanic groups of all time. Don't let your kids listen to this stuff, please. This is certainly "mature" music.. I don't want to see a bunch of kids running around, singing songs about disembowling people and stuff like that.
If you've been following my series of Slayer reviews, which I doubt any of you have (people tend to have better things to do than that), I'm going to warn you that this album is faster than anything else that these guys have released prior to this. Heck, this album is faster than any other speed metal album. In fact, I will go as far as to say that this is the fastest half hour of music anywhere. Argue as you may, but I've heard everything from Tschaikovsky and Wagner up through all the fast bebop jazz, quick early rock and roll, hardcore punk, industrial music.. you name it, I've heard it, and none of it is even close to as fast as this album. At times, you will be absolutely amazed by the precision and the amazing syncopation that these musicians display. It's quite remarkable.
Allright, you've been reading this and you've read some of the other reviews, and you're thinking to yourself, "Man, I don't know... can I really trust this guy? Is this album really worth the hype? Or is this just one of those albums that people give good reviews for in fear of being flamed?" Well, I will try my hardest to prove this to you shortly. As is common among all of my other reviews, I'm going to take this baby one track at a time, building up the case for this album. Sit back and enjoy.
Track by Track Review
Note: The version that I'm doing is the earlier, non-remastered version. There is a copy of this album with two bonus tracks that is selling as brand new right now, so you're going to get two tracks that I haven't reviewed. Don't hate me for it, please.
1) Angel of Death -- Quite simply, the most famous speed metal song of all time, and easily the most popular Slayer song ever. Most people don't realize this, but the riff is almost exactly the same as the one from Hell Awaits.. still, this is an incredible song. Since it's last album, Slayer has certainly grown up musically, throwing all sorts of crazy fills in among the quick single-note drones. And check out the drumming. After Hell Awaits, Slayer switched producers, calling upon the talents of Rick Rubin. The difference is remarkable. The guitar tracks have edge to them, nothing is muddled, the bass is actually audible, you can understand the lyrics.. and the drum track is to die for. Wow. So how about the lyrics? Well, as you may or may not know, this song actually prevented this album from being released on a major label.. I won't rehash the story here, since it's pretty much irrelevent, but this is as graphic and gory as any song I've ever heard. Check out this chilling description of the holocaust:
Pumped with fluid, inside your brain
Pressure in your skull begins pushing through your eyes
Burning flesh, drips away
Test of heart burns your skin, your mind starts to boil
Frigid cold, cracks your limbs
How long can you last in this frozen water burial?
Sewn together, joining heads
Just a matter of time 'til you rip yourselves apart
We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto. Combining those graphic lyrics with the incredibly fast and heavy music produces a nightmarish effect. So how about the solos? Well, unlike the absolutely insane solos from Hell Awaits, these solos make a little bit more sense.. there's still a lot of that great moaning and atonality, but you can actually hear what's being played, which is a welcome change. There's even a drum solo, and it sounds a LOT better than the awful drum solo from At Dawn They Sleep... it makes sense this time. Overall, this is just an incredible track with no flaws. But fasten your seatbelts: we've just begun.
2) Piece by Piece -- What is this? Is this a triplet riff? Yep, you've got it. I told you that these guys know what they're doing. And, only 30 seconds into the song, we get a riff change.. wow. This song will certainly keep you on the edge of your seat... nothing slow, nothing boring, nothing overplayed. Just fast, raw thrash music.
3) Necrophobic -- Complexity abounds in this guitar riff.. wow. This is faster than the previous two tracks, for sure. I am not sure how Tom Araya played this song live.. it must be hard to quickly shout out lyrics like
Strangulation, mutilation, cancer of the brain
Limb dissection, amputation, from a mind derange
Asphyxiation, suffocation, gasping for air
Explain to me the feeling after sitting in the chair?
as quickly as he's doing, while playing at the same time.. wow. Don't try to sing along: you can't keep up. This track is what speed metal was all about, and it's over before you can catch your breath: only 1 and a half minutes long. Wow.
4) Altar of Sacrifice -- This album's not going to let up yet. Don't let the relatively slower introduction fool you: this track is just as fast as the last. When Tom shouts out "Enter to the realm of Satan!", we finally get a chance to catch our breath, but just a little bit. In comes the bridge, full of very well done syncopation and neat little guitar moans that act as fills... And Tom screams out the unforgettable verse,
Blood turning black, the change has begun
Feeling the hatred of all damned in hell
Flesh starts to burn, twist and deform
Eyes dripping blood, realization of death
Transforming of five toes to two
Learn the sacred words of praise
Hail Satan
The track disentigrates into a jam and segues into..
5) Jesus Saves -- The slow introduction gets you ready, and it turns into a well syncopated guitar duet of sorts.. little by little this track is speeding up, and as the intensity grows, you know that something is going to come along.. and then the main riff hits you. As I've said before, this album just keeps getting faster and faster.. I have no idea how Tom can sing that quickly. Wow. I like to play these two tracks (Altar of Sacrifice / Jesus Saves) to wake myself up.. it works very well.
6) Criminally Insane -- The drum opening leads into a relatively slow jam (if this were on any other album, this would be among the fastest parts).. listen closely for the laughter hidden within the mix. Anyway, you know that they're going to get faster than this, and they do, a mere 40 seconds into the track. By this time, the phrase "speed metal" has become almost meaningless... we're only 3/5 done with this album, and it's already put all other thrasher albums to rest. Every time I listen to this, the incredible dual guitar riffs just blow me away. Wow. Incredibly impressive.
7) Reborn -- Get ready for some FAST singing. This track keeps the speed alive.. don't be lead astray by the opening riff (which is fast enough as it is): the tempo increases dramatically after 10 seconds. This song is so fast that it's difficult to hear exactly what notes the guitarists are playing in the main riff.. this isn't something that you can just pick up and play without practice. As has been the case on every track previous, the solos seem to fit perfectly, but it's even more obvious on this track.. wow. No flaws here, folks. Incredible.
8) Epidemic -- Okay, any song with lyrics like these HAS to be good:
Breeding fast in poverty
Infectious driving dormant seed
Inside your carcass start to mate
Left in charge to dominate
Waiting to unfold
Raging uncontrolled
Adapt a potency
Death machine, infest my corpse to be
But wait, there's more. Don't think for a second that the speed has let up any: we're still going along at 100 miles an hour, same as ever. I hope I don't say this too much in this review, but this is what heavy metal is all about. Absolutely amazing, incredibly fast. Wow.
9) Postmortem -- The opening riff to this song is my favorite guitar riff of all time. Great songwriting.. this sounds like it was lifted straight out of a Wagner opera. The 4/4 triplet pattern is back, by the way, with one of those hemiolas (duplet pattern on top of triplet pattern, for those of you who haven't taken Music Theory yet) thrown in for good measure. These guys are just amazing.. what a heavy song. This is a little bit slower than the rest of the album, but a LOT darker and a LOT deeper. Don't worry, of course: it speeds up quite a bit, to a pace that is faster than anything previously heard on this album, as Tom sings these beautiful words:
My sinful glare at nothing holds thoughts of death behind it
Skeletons in my mind commence, tearing at my sanity
Vessels in my brain carry death until my birth
Come and die with me forever, share insanity
Do you want to die?
The waves of blood are rushing near, pounding at the walls of lies
Turning off my sanity, reaching back into my mind
Non-rising body from the grave showing new reality
What I am, what I want, I'm only after death!
Wow. And then it breaks down with a clap of thunder, as the drums mark the segue into...
10) Raining Blood -- What a way to end it. I'm not even going to try to describe the syncopated guitar part.. it's insane. Just your average little "triplet-one" pattern, with a crazy guitar fill following.. and then it takes off. Geez. Lyrically, well, you be the judge:
Trapped in purgatory
A lifeless object, alive
Awaiting reprisal
Death will be their acquisition
Have you noticed a thematic pattern between each of these songs? Anyway, this song slows down slightly, his a climax ("Now I Shall Reign in BLOOD!!!!"), and then takes off.. only to be disentigrated by another clap of thunder, and the album ends. Wow.
This album is not too short, people. It's right under a half hour long, but there's so many complex and intricate things going on here that it's more than enough. Any more would detract from the intensity.
I can't say enough about this album. This is easily the fastest and most intense half hour of music ever. You will finish the album and start over again, trying to pick up on what you missed. This is one of those albums that gets better with age, and clearly ranks among the greatest rock and roll albums ever. Extremely highly recommended.
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