The reason I got this idea to delve into Slayer this month was due to a post this fellow " music journalist" posted on Facebook, where he was comparing Vader to Slayer and declared the match-up a tie. It was one of the stupidest things I had read at least that day, and commented ..."If it was not for Hell Awaits," Vader would not exist. I am sure even Vader agrees with this statement. The opening track of this album is better than Vader's entire musical output. It might be Slayer's best song. Sure, this album finds Slayer slowing down at times to approach songwriting with a more deliberate lens. It would have been pointless to match their previous album in sheer speed and fury, so they went in the right direction here; it feels darker.
"Silent Scream' shows they did not let up on the speed by much, in fact, it reminds me more of their 'Show No Mercy" era, but with Tom using his voice more intentionally. The lyrics on this album also might be their best. On "Live Undead" Tom also comes closer to singing on the verses. "Behind the Crooked Cross" is uptempo, but not fast by Slayer standards until it comes time for a guitar solo, which is a formula that works really well as they actually have groove on the verses, and allow Tom to not just shout out the lyrics. Lombardo is really tearing this one up; it's both tasteful and bombastic. "Ghosts of War" could have been on "Reign in Blood." They just go for the throat, but I think the band knew they still had to deliver what the fans who found them with "Reign in Blood" wanted, and still let themselves experiment a little more with other songs.
You could call "Mandatory Suicide" slowing down, but it's really just serving the song and being dynamic. One of the album's best grooves on an album with a great deal of best grooves. Even the solos are more memorable, and these guys are normally all about the chaos in that regard. Certainly a huge influence on solos in death metal. Speaking of grooves, 'Read Between the Lies' has them; the lyrics are also there, but they helped me get blindsided when Tom came out as a Catholic. I still have a hard time fathoming people singing about things they do not believe in. At first it was hard to swallow that they were not real devil worshippers.
"Cleanse the Soul" finds them picking back up to "Reign in Blood" speeds, but with the vocals more deliberate. It shifts in more of a groove midway through the song. Their cover of Judas Priest's "Dissident Aggressor" takes who they were as kids and matures it. 'Spill the Blood" is almost a power ballad, it's the second darkest song on the album, and Tom is singing. One of the album's most underrated songs. I have to give this album an 11 as well as it might be my favorite Slayer, at least just a good as "Reign in Blood".
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