By Carl Zielinski
Gargoyle staff reporter
Posted Monday, Nov. 20, 2006, The OG, arts

AT A GLANCE

— CD: Slayer, “Christ Illusion”
— Released: Aug. 8
— Slayer's Web site
— Slayer's MySpace page (listen to sample tracks there)

SLAYER'S RISE TO the top of the metal community has been long and hard. However, their influence upon early death metal and thrash has been monumental; newer metal acts like Mastodon, Nevermore, and Lamb of God owe most of their stylistic efforts to Slayer's hyper-speed tempos and lack of lyrical restraint. Following their recent support of Slayer during the summer's “Preaching to the Perverted” tour, Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds described Slayer as “the perfect band.” Whether or not this is entirely true, Slayer's new work is among the best of any old-school metal acts still playing.

As in the past, Slayer's lyrics and album art have gathered a lot of criticism. Their typical anti-religious rhetoric shows up at all times and places, and their newest release, “Christ Illusion,” is no different. The cover depicts a drugged-looking Jesus with amputated arms standing in a pool of blood and severed heads. So much for subtlety.

In fact, the Catholic Secular Forum filed an official complaint to the police commissioner in Mumbai, India, about the offensive content contained in Slayer's newest release. As such, the album was taken off the shelves throughout that country in mid-October. It is also interesting to note that the CSF campaigned loudly against the film “The Da Vinci Code,” and as such the film was shown in India only after a disclaimer was added stating that the film is a work of fiction.

In response to the outcry over “Christ Illusion,” music services such as iTunes now offer a “clean cover” version that is identical musically, just featuring the name of the band on the cover covering up most of the artwork. However, the use of shock tactics actually seems to serve a purpose rather than just grabbing the attention of potential buyers. The album functions as a treatise of sorts on the destruction that unbridled faith unleashes upon mankind in the form of warfare, extremism, hate, and terrorist actions.

As their first album with original drummer Dave Lombardo since 1990's “Seasons in the Abyss,” all the elements that made the original Slayer so great are back. This batch of 10 songs shows the renewed unity of the band, and assaults your ears for slightly more than 40 minutes, assuming you can endure the aural attack without a break.

While they are far from being the best musicians on the planet, guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman each have a distinctive playing style, and they often solo more like they are disemboweling their unfortunate instruments than playing them, while Lombardo pounds his drum kit like King Kong rampaging through New York. The bass playing is never audible for any length of time, but this effectively hides the fact that Tom Araya has never taken the time to learn how to play his instrument very well.

The songs are all played at or around the same pace, which happens to be unbelievably fast. Although this has become their trademark, it also creates problems for vocalist Araya, who can never seem to keep up with the music.

Regardless, most of the lyrics are well-written. “Eyes of the Insane” is a suitably paranoid look at a soldier suffering from increasing dementia (accompanied by a similarly disturbing music video), while “Jihad” takes a look at terrorist attacks from the view of the terrorists. “Cult” and “Skeleton Christ,” on the other hand, are each blasphemous to the point of hilarity. Araya's screaming of “666!” and “Hail Satan!” are completely laughable, and negate any point the band could have been trying to make.

As such, it is the music that carries this album away from self-parody. King and Hanneman have become brutally efficient in their use of rapid-fire guitar rhythms, while Lombardo's chaotic drum-fills destroy any empty spaces as the band rips through their concise, devastating material. Araya has long abandoned the castrato screams associated with '80s metal, and as such has had time to develop his own harsh, barking vocal style that perfectly delivers tales of horror, disgust, and hate.

These elements helped make Slayer the foremost kings of early thrash metal, and continue to carry the band well into the new millennium. While certainly not up to par with early classics like “Hell Awaits,” “Christ Illusion” is a chaotic, offensive, obscene, and yet strangely thoughtful return to form for one of metal's most influential outfits, and is thus worth the few instances of filler.