Slayer has become synonymous with the thrash genre thanks to their now classic albums like
Seasons in the Abyss,
South of Heaven and the milestone
Reign in Blood. This band has been giving the metal masses some prime examples of extreme metal for well over twenty years now and it doesn't seem like they're going to stop any time soon. Sure, these guys have laid down some bad albums in their time, but so has just about every classic metal band. Metallica had
St. Anger. Iron Maiden had
The X Factor. Megadeth had
Risk. So likewise Slayer would do the same. Albums like
Diabolus in Musica and
God Hates Us All were incredibly sub-par and often dissapointing to many fans of the band. All hope seemed lost for Slayer, except for their now famous live shows. But just when we thought they would never recover, the band did a complete turn on the metal world and released this, their best album since
Seasons in the Abyss. Enter...
Christ Illusion
"I'm a total Slayer fan and I'm tired of this newer material they've been putting out over the past few years. Are they ever going back to their older styles?"
I'm glad you asked that, fellow Slayer fan. And the answer to your question is most certainly yes. The band has gone back to the great old thrash that they're so well known for making in the 80's. This album is chock full of speed, vocal agression, violent lyrics, rapid-fire riffing, lightning fast drumming, the works. Everything that was present on
Reign in Blood is here and never really goes away for very long if the band decides to slow things down. Guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hannemann are at the top of their game and are sounding just like they used to, but in a good way. Their solos still make no sense at all which is a bit of a downer, but their riffs are as heavy and swift as ever which I know puts a smile on just about every Slayer fan's face. Drummer Dave Lombardo still does a great job on this album with his signature double bass drum insanity and blast beats, which is certainly commendable. His work isn't very creative on the album, but it doesn't need to be. It's just there to keep the incredibly fast pulse of the song. Vocalist and bassist Tom Araya sounds just the same as he always has: incredibly angry. His signature shouts can always be found here, and his bass is just as silent as it always has been. I wished they would have brought it out more, but that's just not how the band does things, I guess.
"Wow, this album sounds good for all types of Slayer fans. Did the band just stick to the same old sound, or did they try anything new?"
The band, while staying true to their original thrash roots, did combine a few things from different genres that made
Christ Illusion not the exact same thing they've been doing. Within a minute of listening to this album you'll notice that Slayer unleashes a breakdown in
"Flesh Storm" similar to that of many metalcore bands out there. This may put some fans off because it's not what the band has been doing before, but I found them to be fitting for the songs and incredibly heavy. Christ Illusion also has guitars that have been down tuned way further than their normal style, which made the chugging guitars seem that more crushing. It almost sounds like death metal ins songs like
"Catatonic". The changes they made are interesting, but I enjoyed them.
"So...what are the best songs on the album?"
There are quite a few on here that I enjoyed, actually. The album starts of strongly with
"Flesh Storm" which brings you back to the days of
Reign in Blood with very fast riffing and Tom's fight-inducing vocals. The breakdown in this song is also great to bang your head along to, as it includes my favorite riff off of the album. This is simply a great opener to the album and shows that Slayer isn't going to give you the same crap they released in recent years.
"Skeleton Christ" is another strong suggestion for all of you fans of extreme metal out there. The constant chugging of King and Hannemann's sub-sonic will leave your neck sore by the end. This song might remind the fans of something off of
South of Heaven because of the track's slower tempo, but it's certainly one of the most intense Slayer tracks I've come across in a long time.
"Catatonic" is another great track which contains familiar elements of the album. It's very similar to
"Skeleton Christ" because of the slow guitar riffs throughout, but Tom's vocal performance on this song is just great. It would get just about anyone pumped up. The guitar solos on here are actually pretty cool too, despite them being just noise. They fit the song quite well. And finally, the last track on the album is also one, if not the best.
"Supremist" gives the fans more thrash and less death metal than the last two highlights than I mentioned. Lombardo's double bass drumming and blast beats are great along with the speedy guitar riffs. When the song hits around 1:35 the band starts to take another heavy approach and actually features a good guitar solo! Who would have thought of it? This song is heavy as balls and certainly ends the album on a good note.
In conclusion: If you're a fan of thrash or even death metal you should pick this up. It's filled to the brim with hatred and some of Slayer's best songs of all time. It's well worth your money.
Thor gives this album a 4/5, which is strongly recommended.
"Must maintain control of the weak"
(no offense Mr. Heaven)
