Review Summary: Slayer make their return in 2009 with their follow up to Christ Illusion. Following the same trend as their previous works, World Painted Blood certainly shouldn’t disappoint the devoted Slayer fan, but we all know they could do much better than this.
Few metal bands have met the same level of notoriety as Slayer. Since the early 80’s, they have been one of the most iconic metal bands in history and have left a mark on music that has affected and inspired countless bands over the years. Incorporating breakneck speed, shouted vocals, crazed guitar solos, and disgusting and disturbing lyrics into their music; they have scared away religions of all sorts and remain as one of the most evil bands in existence to the public eye. There is no doubt that Reign in Blood, South of Heaven, and Seasons in the Abyss are 3 of the greatest thrash metal albums of all time and everything Slayer does will be compared to one or more of those records. 2006 saw the release of Christ Illusion with Dave Lombardo finally returning behind the kit and it was a successful album. The songs on there were well written and performed and saw Slayer “returning to form”. Now, it is 2009, and they are back with their latest effort, entitled World Painted Blood.
One thing that you should be aware of upon listening to this album is that it is very much like Christ Illusion, but it doesn’t have the same level of consistency or originality as the previous record did. It is very much like anything else they’ve done. The title track opens the album with everything you could expect in a Slayer song. The lyrics shouted by Tom tell a vision of the apocalypse in 2012 and are as gory and hateful as you would expect. The riff halfway into the song is interesting, and the solos have that Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman feel to them. ‘Unit 731’ is one of the highlights of the album and has some of the best lyrics on the album as well as that breakneck speed that Slayer are known for. ‘Public Display of Dismemberment’ is quite possibly the closest they get to really calling back their older style from the 80’s. It’s got great riffs and solos, a good vocal performance by Tom, and Lombardo’s fierce drumming style all in their best on the record. It is definitely pure thrash. ‘Psychopathy Red’ really gets your head banging and never slows down for its 2 minute duration, and the bass is also prominent in it as well.
As far as experimenting goes, the band doesn’t do too much from what they’ve done before, although there is some surprisingly melodic work on this album. ‘Beauty Through Order’ features a melodic but heavy feel to it, and ‘Americon’ is one of the worst songs they’ve ever recorded and has horrible lyrics; it barely redeems itself with the guitar and drum work. ‘Playing With Dolls’ is another album highlight, and although some people don’t like it, I think it’s a great way for Tom to show off the melodic side of his vocals and the band backs him up well with a good all around performance from everyone. The album finishes with ‘Not of this God’, a rant on religion that is all too fitting to close an album with in Slayer’s case.
In the end, World painted Blood proves to be a fun album. It is nowhere near the classics of the 80’s that made Slayer so famous, but it is a nice continuation from Christ Illusion and has some songs that will be great live and some that will be added to the list of classic Slayer songs. It is pure thrash metal as you would expect from them, but it is not as consistent as their previous work. Decide for yourself where this album is ranked among their long list of records, but one thing is for certain – it doesn’t look like Slayer are leaving anytime soon. The question is, can they ever make an album again that won’t be a rehash of something they’ve already done?
