Thrashcast Episode 33: Slayer's "Reign In Blood" from 1986
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Thrashcast is the place to find riveting discussions on classic thrash albums, news and reviews. Your hosts are three thrash loving maniacs who grew up during the golden age of the genre. Kenneth, Billy and Jim will get together weekly to bring you a deep dive on some of your favourite thrash records.
Show Notes:
Episode Thirty-Three: This week on Thrashcast we celebrate Halloween by discussing Slayer's controversial third album Reign In Blood. Without a doubt, Reign In Blood packs a wallop; what with the controversy surrounding the track Angel and Death. The song written by Jeff Hanneman details the horrific acts of Nazi Joseph Mengele; who at the time was fascinated by World War II history books written on the subject. Due to the nature of the song, the album struggled with distribution and Columbia Records refused to release it. Eventually Geffen Records stepped in, but even they had doubts. Regardless, Reign In Blood was released on October 7th, 1986 by Def Jam.
The album clocked in around 28.54 and is arguably one of the shortest thrash albums ever recorded. Produced by Rick Rubin, the album received no radio/airplay, but managed to become the first Slayer record to land on the billboard charts. The music was abrasive and faster than previous releases, but it took thrash into a violent and punky direction. During the recording, drummer Dave Lombardo left the band, so the band brought in Whiplash drummer Tony Scaglione as a replacement; luckily Rubin persuaded Dave to return and gave the disgruntled musician a salary.
Fun Facts: The album artwork was done by political illustrator Larry Caroll who had done work for The Village Voice and The New York Times. The band didn't like the cover at all and it was Kerry King who was quoted as saying the artist was a “warped demented freak”. However, Caroll continued to illustrate covers for the band on South of Heaven, Seasons in the Abyss and Christ Illusion.
Kenneth Gallant, HMS
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