Reign In Blood

Classic Thrash metal. Never got into Slayer though. But I was definitely a fan of the others in the "Big 4".

Rain on blood :)

Reign in Blood is the third album by American thrash metal band Slayer. This critically acclaimed and certified gold album brought the band into the mainstream and is regarded as one of the best heavy metal records. The production on this album was so well done that you could hear every note played by each instrument - even though they're played really fast. This caused the mainstream audience to enjoy this thrash metal album. I've listened to "Angel of Death" & "Raining Blood" before and loved them, so to hear the rest of this album was a treat. I'm not a big fan of metal, but this album is too amazing to not like.

Part of the big 4 for a reason. Love the energy, too fast to comprehend on 1 go

It's good. Not really my current mood. But it's a good one.

Pure metal. Heavy guitaring, fast double bass pedal drumming. Standouts are "Angel of Death" and "Raining Blood" opening with it's iconic riff.

Classic. Heavily influential across metal and even some sub-genres of Hardcore.

I was really excited to listen to this again. It's been a loooong time. But you know what? I quickly remembered that I was never a huge Slayer fan and I think I can pinpoint why now. I like Arraya's voice. I like everything Lombardo's doing. But, man, I am torn about these guitars. Yes, the riff in "Angel of Death" rules. "Raining Blood" is a no-brainer, can't argue balls-to-buttholes classic. But listen to the end of "Reborn." And then listen to the beginning of "Epidemic." And just focus on the guitars. My dudes, those two songs sound like they used the exact same riff. They might be the same song just played twice with some different fills. Maybe that's where this band has kept me at a bit of a distance in the past? I don't know. Whatever reason, when it came to the Big 4 of thrash, Slayer was at the bottom of that list for me personally. And, yeah, I know I'd be a lot cooler if that wasn't the case! And they influenced so many bands I love! But still... thank Satan this made the list. I'll take Slayer over trip hop any and every day of the week.

Very loud, fast, and short. Songs about a wide variety of topics, which got them in a bit of bother. The 'big 4' band I knew least well before, but would be happy to see them pop up again

Loud.

All rippers, no skippers

The best way to clear a drum circle. Best Tracks: Angel of Death; Postmortem; Raining Blood

Fuck yeah, Slayer. This album is one of the many examples of everything Rick Rubin touches turning to gold. While he was in the midst of building one of the most successful hip-hop albums, he was producing this album. Slayer is one of those bands that really has done one thing for their entire career, and they do that one thing so well that they don't need to diversify. Slayer makes thrash metal. That's it. Metallica did it better during the 80s in my opinion, but they stopped making thrash towards the end of the decade, while Slayer kept making thrash well into the 2000s. This album is one of their greats. It hits you like a brick to the face, yet manages to be so intricate that it stays fresh over several listens. I've come back to this album over and over throughout the years, and it doesn't disappoint. 4/5. Fuck yeah, Slayer

"Spil noget med Slayer!" Awesome album, though only one song was memorable. 4

Powerful, hard hitting metal, iconic if not slightly showing its age in some places

NICE!

I'm usually not a metal fan but I enjoyed this way more than I thought I would.

As someone who was more into the indie rock scene, this was one of the few metal albums my friends and I would listen to in college. There is something about the ferocity of the pace and the athleticism of the performances that kind of knocks the wind out of you, especially considering when this came out. They take it to the edge without going over the top, and that is what makes them more palatable to me than some other metal. Takes itself seriously enough to give you chills but not completely freak you out. Those high notes in the vocals are like a reassuring wink to the audience that it's all in good fun. Not something I'd put on every day but would be very welcome in the right context/mood. Stands head and shoulders above other metal from the era and holds up remarkably well over 30 years later.

Explosive!

Probably a 3.5 but I do enjoy the album a fair bit.

Can you imagine the discussions between the band members, when they were putting these songs together? "Oh yeah, that sounds great, but let's try it like 5 times faster." "Totally, and while you guys do that, I'm going to scream at the top of my lungs about BLUHHHHHHHHHHHHD!" Whatever state of mind they were in, the result is a blistering fever dream of thrash metal that set the bar for everything else to come. For my tastes, I'd love to hear the album sans vocals. At times Tom had a hard time keeping up with the track, which was distracting. More important to me though is that the lyrics feel cringy and pointlessly scandalous. I think they turn a lot of listeners off from appreciating the album on the whole.

4/5. Solid, kinda sloppy sometimes, self-indulgent, pretty fun though

Ahhh… this takes me back to high school. While I was more into Anthrax, Slayer and Metallica rated a close second. This was the album from them that I played often to my parents discontent.

great content. good pacing. enjoyed the fanciful lyrics. for me this fills the excellent workout jams niche.

Blood, sacrilege, violence, and general mayhem are key in this classic old school thrash album. Did I mention the blood?

SLAYERRRRRRRRRRR

Schockt viel krasser als das lame Black Album von Metallica neulich. Stimme, Schlagzeug, Gitarren, Geschwindigkeit, Aggression und Nihilismus: genauestens kontrolliert auf den Punkt gebracht, geil abgeliefert. Wäre das mein Style (und würde es mich nicht doch irgendwann bisschen ermüden), hätte es vielleicht sogar noch mehr Punkte gegeben. Aber bei (Thrash-) Metal die Latte an der ich jetzt alles andere messe.

if you like hard rock is a good disc. Not my cup of tea this type of music

Album rocks. Postmortem into raining blood is fucking sick. Definitely deserved of all the praise it gets

I'm not really into this type of music, but sounds interesting

A silly but perfectly formed blast of death metal. It sounds like there are too many lyrics for each song. Can't believe it came out in 86, it still sounds fresh.

This is a good album. Thrash is always a fun listen and Slayer do it particularly well. Highlights: Angel of Death, Jesus Saves Lowlights:

Fast and heavy, what more do you need

A classic of the genre sending a flaming spear into the future of metal that nearly every other metal band has had to dodge.

I’d lever listened to a full Slayer album, now I will often

More like it.

Yo this album goes hard as fuck.

So freaking sick!

good metal album if I am in the mood for it.

Not for everybody, but enjoyable.

Ja. Endelig.

Thrashy goodness

Tremendo para su época

Got go wrong with a classic metal album

Solid.

Atmospheric spacey jungley good for a brew day

pretty good, didn't know slayer so much, happy to have listened to this one

Probably my favorite Slayer album and without the immensity of Raining Blood I’m not sure they would be remembered with as high regard

Solid classic thrash. I generally prefer more melodic metal, but still very good.

In my opinion, the mark of a good metal band is the ability to play fast music while also sounding controlled. This just sounds all over the place when they wanna be “intense.” Also not really a fan of the being edgy for the sake of being edgy either. That being said, I do just kinda like metal

I love metal but I could never really get into this album, it's just fast for the sake of being fast. Raining Blood is still awesome

Hmmm not really my thing. This is too much metal for my tastes. A good album, of course, but not for my ears.

Not for me

Another album of thrash goodness, overall besides Raining Blood and Angel of Death in the grand scheme of entries it's middling

2,9/5

I love the riffs, love the drums, enjoy the stupid-fast solos. These guys are immensely talented. My challenge with Slayer, as well as Megadeth and Anthrax, is that the lyrics are just so stupid, as is the singing itself. Maybe this makes me a Metallica normie, but that's how I see it. The lyrics are a dork who watches literally every horror movie. The music though? It rocks. "Raining Blood" is the apotheosis of this. It's an awesome song to listen to, unless you listen closely, at which point the stupid comes seeping through.

Pre Listen: Slayer's a band I've heard of, I've intended to give a listen to, but never got around to it. If I've heard any of their work before, it hasn't been to my knowledge. The cover art builds sufficient expectations on what to expect I think. Notable Tracks: Angel of Death - 10 seconds in and this is exactly what I was both expecting and hoping for. This'll be a fun one. Epidemic - Favorite track of the album. Does their style best. Criminally Insane - Least favorite track on the album. Other songs are edgy and bordering goofy, this one just comes off as too goofy. Post Listen: You know, I was hoping for a bit more after the first song. It's thrasher metal, which I generally appreciate, but it fell flatter and flatter after each song. It all started blending together faster than I thought it would. Edgy lyrics, thrashing guitar and drums, strained lyrics, over and over. Minimal changes in chord progressions, tempo changes, lyrical subject matter, and overall sound. All that to say I enjoyed it overall, but I'm thankful this is a shorter album, it lasts exactly as long as it needs to. Fun music, just got boring. 3/5

Kerry King is a fucking moron but this was a solid album. Really haven’t ventured into metal much over the years so this was a nice experience regardless. I don’t see myself listening to this regularly but I was impressed by the musicianship here, particularly the guitar work.

Slayer slaying

An absolute stunner on a technical level, this thing is like molten lava and just unrelenting. But, even at 28 minutes, it gets repetitive and very hard to distinguish the songs. And the darkness of the subject matter made me feel pummeled into submission. I guess that's the intention. If I was in a mosh pit at one of their shows circa 1986, I wouldn't last long.

Speedy, you’re too fast. And the devil Rick Ruben was involved. How appropriate. If I want to scare my husband and/or my dogs this is going to be my go to. Definitely. Not much more to be said, really. 3 - cause it’s fun to scare my dogs. They get up and leave the room. They look worried. Boolean: um… yes?

Awful, but better than expected

I occasionally love super heavy metal/rock like this, but it also seemed to be lacking much depth beyond being as fast and dark as possible. Would have preferred some variety and definition. Overall 3.25/5

If there's one genre I really don't enjoy, it's thrash metal. This is very much NOT made for my taste. I'm open to other types of metal but I really struggle with the tempo mixed with the "singing" which isn't singing in my opinion. At least you can hear the lyrics in this album; having indiscernible lyrics is one of my main points of contention with lots of metal. But it's just grating to me. I understand that lots of people love this type of music and that Slayer as a band is very famous and well regarded, but I am not a metalhead and so it's not of historical importance to me either. I get metal as a whole, the energy, the emotion, etc. Like yes, I understand that the drums and guitar are technically sound, they're clean and there's a lot of musical interest. One of my main pain points with metal is also that I don't typically like music that feeds on negative feelings vs positive ones. In much simpler terms, I like happy music. Or if the emotion is more negative, it's never to the level of rage and despondency that metal seems to embody. This is becoming an essay on metal instead of Reign In Blood by Slayer so I'll focus back on this particular metal album. It's decent by my standards. Again, it doesn't have the main points of contention that other metal albums have for me. I can understand the lyrics, the songs are short and quick. There's a distinct divide between songs and they're technically well executed. This is still not something that I would ever choose to listen to. However, I wouldn't judge someone for liking it. I would go to a concert to see them perform and I might not enjoy it fully, but I would willingly go. Not torture, more acceptance and interest in experiencing life through a different lens. The best way to listen to metal, I've learned, is to REALLY listen to it. Close your eyes and focus more on the depth and the different lines and rhythms all weaving together. But the singing here brings me out of that so quickly, and then it just sounds like a jumbled wall of gross emotion. I will also say, if you are someone who doesn't listen to metal regularly, the best thing to do is to let your brain get used to it. So I think listening to a whole album instead of a song is actually a great way to see if you like it more than your initial reaction. Also being angry before you listen really helps too but again, I don't like music that makes me feel MORE angry or MORE sad so it's just really not meant for me! Can you tell that I am a former metal hater who is with someone who is in a metal band? I have expanded what I like and don't like so much in music because of that. I wouldn't say I hate any whole genre of music now, I just know that I have a harder time connecting with metal and that I am going to be pickier about the metal I do like and want to listen to. I will say, the last song Raining Blood was my favorite song on the album by far. All in all, not a bad album for metal but because I'm ranking it and it's still metal, the highest I can give it is a 3.

15 year old me would have been too good for this.

Good

One I appreciate for its impact more than actually enjoy. Some great stuff in here, Raining Blood was my fav song and first listen, but I found it too heavy for my personal taste

Definitely metal! Time for some Jesus!!!

I don't mind thrash metal at times, but I think this album really shows to me how great Metallica is. This album had its moments, but a lot of times it was just full throttle with no vocals or anything that made a song stand out. I did like how each song was 2-3 minutes of just pure rage, but in my mind it doesn't compare to something like Master of Puppets or Battery by Metallica. Raining Blood was probably my favorite track on the album.

So so

Well, that opening song is certainly worth an attentive ear. Here I was thinking this would be another mindless headbanger as far as lyrical content goes, but then a very vivid song about Auschwitz experiments hits me in the face. The fairly descriptive, fleshed-out lyrics would continue for most of the album, but would dip into more typical themes, like on “Altar Of Sacrifice”. I can hear the exact reasons why this album is great, and I respect each reason. The sonics and recording work are superb. Drums are full and relentless, the guitar distortion is heavy, the atmosphere is dreadful and dire. The composition trims all the fat, holding the listeners focus with all sorts of new riffs thrown around - as someone whos a bit allergic to most things metal (I have all sorts of modern dubstep/riddim to fill that hole), these quick tracks are what I appreciate the most. The chaotic ending puts a bow on the package here. It could be a 4 or even 5 if I personally relished listening to metal more. I don’t, so it’s a 3/5, but I recognize the greatness. I wish for a moment or two of silence and melody, but it’s all good

Bueno

Not my thing at all! But man there are some great guitar riffs!

A head banger for sure but there have been better beans bangers on this list

I too was prepared to launch into a huge piece about the importance of this album. But either you get it or you don't at this point. I'm the former. Quintessential for those who know. I've adjusted my ranking because it isn't as good as what came after. But it started it all.

Not bad, not for me. But I can respect this genre for providing the foundation to other works that I enjoy more. Thanks, Slayer. 2.75 rounded up to 3.

Går ikke an å gi dette 3, men både 2 og 4 blir feil

No es mi palo

Grungy and heavy, and classic. Not for me (devout christian)

Slayer feels like they were in a rush to get the album finished before the get thrown out of the recording studio

Maybe it's my brain that's off beat, but something isn't right here. I actually like it. Keeps you awake for sure. I don't think I'd be super excited if someone put some Slayer on, but I wouldn't complain. Background thrash metal.

Heavier than I'd normally listen to, but still better than lot of things on this list.

This was just made to ragebait old white people and while it’s not my cup of tea, I have to respect it.

rock, metal, good

5/10

Good record, one of my favorites in the genre. I would definitely need to take a deeper dive to their discography. 8/10 [KEEP]

I’ve been meaning to listen to Slayer for so long and I just forget or never get around to it. Finally!!! Here I am. Annnndddd I’m kinda disappointed. As far as metal bands go, it’s decent. Mid level. As far as ground breaking albums for me? Nah, not even close. This album won’t make you more of a fan. That’s all. Choice cut: Reign in Blood

Having a hard time calling this "good" despite enjoying some aspects of it. Everything just seems disjointed. "OK Lead Guitar Guy, let's spend 2 minutes and 38 seconds shredding. Throw in a guitar solo whenever it feels right to you. Pick whichever notes you want for the solo; doesn't really matter, all guitar solos are cool, so just pick some notes and play them fast. OK Drummer Guy. 2 minutes and 38 seconds. Don't ask me what the tempo is because you already know the answer--it's fast, the same as it was on the last 3 tracks. Just fucking crush those drums, bud. OK Vocals Guy. We don't have enough studio time to get the vocals synced up with the music so, you know, use your best judgement to yell these words within your allotted 2 minutes and 38 seconds. Just mix it up whenever you feel like it. Takes some breaks here, try to shove too many words into a single line there, scream a little louder here. You get it." All that said, this worked better than some other thrash metal on this list. It wasn't a *complete* mindless assault on the ears. It's good for headbanging. I just wish it were better. A little more polish and a little less meth could've done wonders here. 2.7

Ese tipo canta terrible ;; pero el ritmo es especcc, aunque muy upbeat todo el tiempo. Mucho para mí, un tre

I honestly wasn't sure if metal would be included in this list, so I'm pleasantly surprised that it is!

It’s a real jarring transition from listening to this in the car at a high volume to my job as a children’s librarian. I own this album, but I listen maybe once a year just to get all riled up. Thrash metal isn’t my genre (I prefer sad women with guitars or lesbian pop), but I can acknowledge the talent and work that goes into this, even if I never need to listen to another Slayer album. In conclusion, FUCKIN SLAYERRRRRRRRR!!!

It's funny how the line between liking and not liking metal is so thin for me. If it gets too screamy, then I'm out. This one was on the wrong side of that line, so I was leaning 2. But, it shredded just enough to get a 3.

A lot going on here. It didn't suck nearly as much as I feared. I'd rather have this than Def Leopard any day of the week. I can see the appeal and there may have been a time when this would be what I chose to listen to. That time is not now. I'm liking at least as much as any Metallica I've heard, though. Half way through and I'm three pushing four.

I'm not a metal fan, but I much preferred Reign In Blood to anything by Metallica. The much higher tempo made it a far more enjoyable listen. Fundamentally, it's silly music. Over the top and with abrupt transitions from shouting to soloing. I expect if it was much longer than it's 29 minute run time, it would start to wear thin. But as it was, while I wouldn't go out of my way to listen to Slayer again, I did get some enjoyment out of this album.

Love the riffs, proper chuggy at some points

Never been a huge metal fan, but this stuff was pretty solid.

I enjoyed this album, I do like early Metallica, but not overly keen on Megadeth. I haven’t ever really listened to Slayer as I guess I thought they were too Thrashy! But it turns out that they are not and I found this album to be a good listen.

Vocals were pretty terrible but the metal was good enough to cancel that out for the most part

Ahh my favorite Metallica tribute band. The singer does a better job of not sounding exactly like the singer from Metallica in this one. But now he sings every song with the same tempo which I can only describe as “sped up punk rock vocals”. It’s fine but I didn’t recognize a single song and towards the end they all kind of mashed together. 5/10

Milevis bedre enn den Slipknot skiva hvertfall, men mange av låtene høres helt lik ut. Beste spor er nok tittelsporet.

just girly things 3 stars

If a panic attack had a sound, this would be it.

Random thoughts: * I have no context to properly rate this album. * I didn't hate it. * I rocked out a few times. * I'd definitely listen again even thought metal isn't really my jam.

blimey, thrash is tiring isn't it ?

Technically impressive…rough listen. Technically great…difficult to listen to as far as problematic subject matter (angel of death).

Maybe I’m just blind to this genre but all the songs sound the same just different tempos. Super mid for me. 2.8

Metals not my thing but this was quite good.

This was pretty great. Some great guitar bits and vocal moments. Not that familiar with thrash metal and I might need to expand my repertoire some.

This gets to the point immediately. And does it with haste too. No let up, complete with graphic lyrics and all sorts of tempo changes and breakdowns. I almost wished it slowed down to breathe just a little bit, but I can understand its inclusion on this list. Probably one of the first big speed metal albums out there.

It was alright.

If you take the fastest and most in your face of Metallica's early songs (think of songs from Ride the Lightning or Kill 'Em All) and then speed up the drums and add more screaming, this is what you get. I enjoy thrash, mostly because I'm a life long Metallica fan, but Slayer is too much for me beyond short doses. The benefit is that this is a short album. Side note, Slayer will always play second fiddle to Metallica, and while that sucks for them, they could have read the market a bit better and course corrected earlier on. Either that or found a producer that could help them with their sound a bit.

Saw them once live. Never been into speed trash, but you've got to admit they have quite the energy. 5/10

The technical chops to play metal at this level are completely insane. The guitar solos sound like they are not part of the songs. The songs all blend together as one.

Way more fun than I expected

I really like "South of Heaven" and "Seasons In the Abyss" (SLAYER!!!), but I've always liked this one less. Don't get me wrong, it's everything a guy could hope for in a frenzied thrash album. But there's a grooving, moody dynamic to the two albums that followed this one...and it just isn't here. This one's all speed, always at the same volume, and never giving you more than a single measure (at like 250 bpm) to breathe. A couple of the songs hint at the "more reserved" (ha!) sound of later albums, that makes it a tiny bit more possible to keep up with the music: "Postmortem" had me headbanging in the middle of my living room (SLAYER!!!) and "Raining Blood" is of course a masterpiece, as any metal high school kid in the 90s could tell you (hell, any Guitar Hero player could, for that matter). But the rest is maybe just a tiny bit TOO fast even though speed is the point? A little TOO chaotic even though it wouldn't be Slayer without chaos? The lyrics throughout are pretty dumb (I'd expect no less), and sometimes the gruesomeness is more badass than others: "The only way to exit is going piece by piece" is horrifying and awesome, while "bones and blood lie on the ground, rotten limbs lie dead" was clearly written by a third grader. Simultaneously the dumbest and most notable song (notable in a not-good way), "Angel of Death" is waaaay too interested in its subject matter. I know the occasional Nazi focus was for shock value rather than for political endorsement (it is indeed shocking) but 1) that's still not cool, and 2) comparing it to all the other gruesome imagery on the record it just doesn't strike the same tone...it especially fails as a first track (for me at least) because of the pall it casts over the much sillier 9 songs to follow.

Very heavy but if you lime this kind of music its pretty solid.

12 tracks, 34 minutes, 8 lines of coke, 12 adderal. ADHDeath Metal is fun but I’ve listened to much better. Still rocks!

high energy and fast. classic speed metal

30 minutes nonstop fun. Not my vibe, but still a good time

Hieman kyllä alitti odotukset, suoraan sanoen hiukan ykstoikkoinen. Raining Blood erottuu joukosta mutta muuten levy tuntuu samalta tykitykseltä koko ajan. Postmortemin ja Raining Bloodin välinen vaihto oli tosi smooth. Parhaat: Raining Blood, Angel Of Death

Punishing even in 2026, I can see how this was a big deal in the 80s. Definitely takes more from the punk side of thrash compared to a band like Metallica, this album knows not to overstay its welcome. Unfortunately it’s also not nearly as memorable as Metallica’s best for me. Borderline 4, but I don’t see myself returning to it that much.

I enjoyed Angel of Death and Raining Blood, found the rest to be too similar for my ear.

Album #26: Reign In Blood - Slayer Genre (W): Thrash Metal Singles: Postmortem, Criminally Insane (Remix) I have only listened to “Raining Blood”. Thoughts: This is one of the most aggressive, heaviest albums I have ever heard in my life. I wound up quickly becoming overwhelmed with the riffs, the thrashing, and the heaviness. My goodness. That’s both a good and bad thing! Their playing is extremely technical, but I wound up getting a headache from all the headbanging. Yikes… Favorite songs: Angel of Death, Necrophobic, Jesus Saves, Postmortem, Raining Blood

a bit much for some chill music while cooking

That's some metally music alright

De her Guttan e mye sintere enn mæ. Ikke min sjanger. Ikke så veldig variert, men helt ok.

Lyttet til på morgenbussen til jobb og på vei hjem fra å hoste kulturquiz 06/01/26. Utrolig hyggelig gjenlytt med tenårene. Første gang jeg hører gjennom hele plata, relativt monotont, men legger ved at mine favoritter fra barndommen er Criminally Insane, Angel of Death og så klart Reign in Blood. Legg merke til at Criminally Insane (remix) ikke er på originalplata, men er desidert beste låt fra re-release

Metallica on x1.5 speed!!!!! Listening to this is kind of exhausting. But ya know what, it has its place.

it's straight up Metallica in 1.5x lmao

I forgot the subject matter of Angel of Death which made for a memorable start to my drive to work. Once we got into theoretical evil, my sense of humor came back.

Quality metal if that’s what you like

This was alright! Not my type of music tbh so hard to rate 3 ⭐️

I'm not in the mood for these songs back-to-back. Maybe I never will be. 3.

está potente pero monótono, podría tener la micha de rolas para estar al tirooo

Raining Blood is an excellent track but I find the rest of the album pretty so-so

Not my thing but I do have to agree that it is well produced. I can understand why this was a significant album in the metal genre.

Just little tiny bit ... HEAVY.

Kelpo hevilevy varmaan. ei herättänyt suuria tunteita.

My dad loves Slayer lol rip Fav song: Altar of Sacrifice, Jesus Saves, Raining Blood

Never listened to Slayer, but they seem like a good poster child for metal. Sounds a good deal like Metallica honestly. Definitely have heard Raining Blood before, never thought about who to attribute it to. Not an album I would be coming back to, but it got the job done to pump some energy into me.

Man this really goes all in for the short runtime. I was a bit tired going into it but feel like breaking through a wall right now. Wouldn't say it's my favorite out of some of the harder shit we've gotten but def not bad. Raining Blood almost brought this up to a 4 for me.

I remember going to concerts and inbetween acts the sound system always played Reign in Blood and people would go bannanas playing air guitard. I never got it. I'll appreciate that this may be my favorite metal band's favorite metal band, but it will not be mine.

Meh

I’ve got to be in the right mood but this is a great album.

I haven’t started listening yet but i’m excited. Ok so i listened to it. It was fine, like I get it. I know who they are, i know what they are to the genre. but it was just very *”ROCK”* which is fine cause they’re mount rushmore for trash, but i think sounding “basic” in retrospect comes with the territory of revolutionizing something

Another worthy feature to the 1001, 3.5 stars

Nowhere near my preferred genre of music but I didn’t hate it. At the same time I’m not entirely sure I see the draw in the subject matter of the songs. I can see why they’re such a popular band, it’s just not for me.

not really dog walking music but fuck yeah

Pretty good

Not on a Monday morning... I can admire the musicianship and skill, still not my kinda music.

Not really my vibe, but it was over quick and I found myself nodding my head at least once. 2.5 rounded up.

I liked this a lot more than I expected to. The lyrics and vocals do seem a little corny by today’s standards, but they would have been plenty edgy at the time. The music really holds up I think.

Some songs on here are solid 4 stars but then some other are 2. I find myself loving ine tune and then kind of dazing off for a few..... Just based on how influential AND groundbreaking this album is, it should be a 4 or 5 star record. But for me its a 3, almost a 4.

That album is a lot. Raining blood is cool and everything, but most of it just makes me want to listen to other thrash metal.

Sick guitars and manic drums. Yes! Not so keen on the vocal style, but appreciate it's part of the genre. Great for what it is, all sounds a bit samey though.

Basically early Metallica, sped up, sloppier, with a slightly worse singer, but certainly more testosterone.

Wow that was unexpected. Super unexpected. Did not think i would start with metal. It’s not super heavy so that’s nice, great PMS listen i must say.

The lead singer's voice reminds me of James Hetfield's voice. That's my initial impression. I do prefer Metallica, Megadeath and some of the other thrash metal albums that we have heard on this list to this one. Still, compared to some of the shit I have had to listen to from the 90's, this is much better. I like that the songs don't overstay their welcome and I could actually tell the difference in the tunes as well. I probably won't add this to my collection but it's a deserved album to be on this list. It's hard to define the thrash metal category of music without a mention of Slayer. Not knowing the rest of their discography, I would assume this is the best of their albums.

I guess Slayer is one of the big 4 of thrash metal because it's some of the thrashiest thrash there is. That doesn't make it good, however. There's no nuance here, no musicality, just relentlessly pummeling metal. That counts for something. This album was a gear-shifter straight from hell coming right after Sarah Vaughan in our draw, and I'm here for it. Early Metallica and Testament's "The Gathering" are examples of what I would consider really good thrash.

Definitely not the biggest fan of thrash metal

Never been a thrash fan, so I don't feel I'm the best qualified to review this one. That said - if it was between this and some Madonna or Eminem crap, I'd go for this again in a heartbeat.

Highlights: Postmortem, Jesus Saves, Altar of Sacrifice. In a nutshell: Satan Saves. Overall: 5/10

6.95 - Not exactly my style, but instrumentally really cool. The guitar was sick. The singing style I didn’t love. Best song was Jesus Saves (8). Worst were Piece by Piece (6.5) and Necrophobic (6.6)

Having only heard the “Disney Channel edit” of Angel of Death before now, the opening track of this album felt like getting kicked in the teeth. But Slayer pairs absolutely heinous topics with some absolutely incredible technical work here. The playing is tight, ESPECIALLY for the drums, across multiple time signature switches over and over again. It almost serves as a guide to the rest of the players and the lead singer, to keep them on time throughout each song. …that being said, I can see why boomers were freaked out by 80s metal. There’s a LOT happening here. I came into this album thinking I would enjoy it as a fan of Metallica and of Ghost, and I did do a little bit of thrashing! But aside from the opening track and the closer I couldn’t tell you anything about the other songs on here. Still thinking about the drums though.

Had some great moments. Too intense for me.

well maybe they were one of the first metal acts with this sound but i cant muster anything past 3 stars. Decent, solid, but not particularly memorable.

Technically impressive just not my favorite flavor of rock.

I get it, like, I TOTALLY get it, but I've got to be in a real particular "mood" for it.

Metallll🤘🤘🤘3.5/5

Lowkey potent.

I wanted to like it, there were some great guitar riffs. There was also so much I didn't like

Don't mind the odd bit of thrash but could never really handle a full albums worth.

This is a classic death metal sound. Too fast and dark for me.

Not for me.

In the late 1980s owning this or Abyss was more hardcore than Straight Outta Compton, like you really had access to something evil. Even the covers, like they might actually spontaneously combust or provide a gateway for a demon to crossover. It’s good! But like everything in the genre, there’s a suspension of disbelief element required for me to really take this seriously or find it enjoyable and, well, it’s just kinda goofy. I admire the economy and focus and at another age, this might’ve been my jam but in middle age I just don’t have the patience to sift through the repetition.

It's certainly intense. The scream at the start of "Angel of Death" really set the tone, and it never slowed down or looked back from there.

Mam wrażenie, że cały ten wokal był na przyspieszeniu. Bardzo monotonna płyta. Kto by pomyślał, że taka dawka energii może się znudzić? 5/10

Maybe I'm not hardcore enough but I've always struggled to get into Slayer. Have to agree with a few others about the repetitive nature of most of the songs. I certainly couldn't pick out any individual track from another one. I recognise that it's a considered a classic of it's genre but I'll admire it from afar!

So, thrash metal is basically the hardcore punk of metal, right? Like kinda lo-fi, very aggressive, and the guitars chug along real fast and sound pretty cool? Reign in Blood especially feels pretty close to hardcore punk, in that it lasts less than half an hour, and also doesn't really have any of the songs separate themselves from the pack.

Good metal album, doesn't sound any different from the others I've listened to

A gloriously brief album, which counts for a lot. Anyway metal is corny as hell. Kinda fun, but just silly, musically and lyrically.

Exhausting!

Technically, I really enjoyed the album because of the powerful drums and gnarly guitar. I don't tend to like intense music, though, so that reflects my rating of the album.

Decent but a little repetitive even at just a 34 minute album

This is the better end of this genre. Enough tune and meoldy shines through to hold attention beyond just the anger, the speed and the growling.

Very good even though not my style

Well uh not my bag but impressive speed/musicianship, high 2/low 3

With Reign In Blood from Slayer you get exactly what is advertised. Fast, trashy guitar play that you could kill, fuck or dismember monsters to. Whatever one's satanloving mind prefers. It's heavy. It's chaotic. It's horror. Could you just imagine 80's moms react to this, hearing it from the basement of their fourteen year-old sweetheart? It is fantastic at what it wants to be, but not much more.

3.5/5 crazy ass playing from all members ... how

Might be a little primitive but it doesn't overstay its welcome much. Still very fun.

Listens: 3.5 Standout tracks: Angel Of Death, Criminally Insane, Raining Blood First foray into the thrash metal genre. Seems like a good choice for demonstrating the genre. I can definitely understand the controversy around making a song about the Holocaust. It's a fine line between singing about it and singing about it critically. It's especially tough in 2025. The old adage is true: If you have 11 people and 1 Nazi around a table sharing dinner, you have 12 Nazis. The song isn't an outright criticism of what happened in concentration camps; romanticism is definitely too strong of a word, but like, it's not too far off either. Let's call it an interpretation. To be clear, these guys aren't Nazis and the song isn't xenophobic, but it's a complicated issue. With the exception of outright hate speech, people should be able to sing about whatever they want. If you don't like it, don't listen. Criminally Insane for me is the actual standout tracks. It has some semblance of a guitar hook and was just overall enjoyable. Great subject matter :) I also love the album art. It's weird that the band didn't like it at first. I don't think this is a genre of metal I'll be listening to on the regular, but I did appreciate hearing it.

I’m glad I finally listened to a full Slayer album. Grew up in the 80’s and was well aware of them but they always seemed too heavy for my taste even though I loved Iron Maiden. I think it is the lack of any melody that keeps me from being a fan. The music is aggressive and I can dig that but it just doesn’t have anything else that appeals to me. When I got the album I really wanted to become a fan this morning but 53 year old me just isn’t in the same place that 15 year old me was. Solid 3 stars even though I wanted to give it more.

Good album. I imagine this is considered to be a great album by those who enjoy Thrash Metal. Kerry King's guitar solos make no sense to me. It's like he is soloing to a different song.

Not chill

First of all, this is a template metal album that set the standard alongside Metallica and Megadeth. It is masterfully produced and performed, and has some real bangers on there. That said, it is INTENSE, and to be honest I have to be in a really particularly angry mood to have the motivation to spin it up. It's like a really difficult movie that you thought was excellent but can't bring yourself to watch a second time.

Actually enjoyed this more than I expected. I still don't really get the screaming

I. A see how other people like this, but not for me personally. Has pretty good production, ok musicianship

Kind of a punk format speed metal. The lyrics are all throw-away to me. The sound is interesting for about one song but nothing really seems to change with it stylistically.

3.5 good but alot of the songs sound the same to me

This is Slayer. It’s intense, it’s fast, the lyrics are comical. Not sure it’s a pleasurable listen. Maybe nice for a bit of headbanging and energy, but as an album to listen to out of pleasure mmmm. Relentless, pretty one dimensional, if this is your bag, you’ll be like a pig in shit, but for me a bit too much and too samey. Yeh, pretty bored by the end. Songs pretty much the same and hard to differentiate. Well done, you can play fast, noodle and write risky, satanic lyrics.

It’s fine. Thrash isn’t really my thing. I thought I recognized Raining Blood but it turns out I only recognize the opening riff because heavy metal disco cover band Tragedy used it for their cover of Raining Men. My only exposure to thrash metal is uber gay disco covers.

Ouais c'est du métal mais franchement c'est assez "classique"

Great thrash album! I can't believe I never got into Slayer!

If this is your thing, I can see how this would be the peak of it. This is not my thing.

Not really my thing, but I have to say that for what they’re doing, they do it well.

This is the first time listening to a Slayer album. The whole Satanic image they had was always a turn off, and the way the vocalist delivers the lyrics does not improve that. The music itself is good stuff, especially Raining Blood with its hooks. The other songs pale in comparison in my opinion.

Favorite Track: Raining Blood

Idk with metal stuff I'm always not sold on the vocals, while I think the guitars and drums are really cool. This is pretty much true for this. I did like that Sepultura album, but I feel like that was more expansive, progressive and varied than this. All these songs sound the same and have little to no progression, even though the instrument-playing is good. The vocals are quite bad in my opinion, maybe it goes back to the songs being too fast, but I guess thats the genre. I can definitely get some enjoyment from this though. Favourite songs: angel of death, piece by piece, Jesus Saves, Postmortem. Overall around 5/10

Favorite track: Criminally insane. Overall score: 5,5/10

Sounds like hell and I mean that as a compliment and a complaint.

Ik word altijd wat flauw van die Slayer-cultus onder heel vervelende alto-mannetjes. Dezelfde types die 'bierrrr' schreeuwen grappig vinden. Enfin, kunnen zij niet zo veel aan doen ook. Best een strak album, maar ik moet soms wel lachen als de zanger het tempo niet kan bijbenen. Speel dan even een wat lagere bpm jongens.

I think its a fantastic metal album, it just all sounds very similar though. Like every song i could jam out to one at a time, but all in a row it sounds just like one really big track. Also the singer can be really hard to understand sometimes. But overall a very rocking album.

2 or 3 out of 5 I like the music, but singer is not great

It’s mechanically precise playing but not compelling.. 2.7

This is a funny one for me. My brother was a huge fan so heard a lot by proxy. And there were loads of excellent bands around when I was younger that sounded like this. On the other hand the lyrics are pants. But the musicianship is great. I’ll give a generous 3.

Screamy death I love satan etc… 3/5

Thoughts before listening: I had Master of Puppets yesterday so it's pretty appropriate to get Reign in Blood today. I've never been able to get into Slayer. It's too heavy for me with extreme lyrics that are a huge turn off for me. That being said, I'm interested to give a new listen today. Review: I can't do it. I mean the music isn't terrible (although I certainly prefer Metallica and Megadeth) but the lyrics are just too extreme for me. Maybe I'm old and a prude, but I don't need to sit around having lyrics about Auschwitz and anti-Christian screeds shrieked in my ears. I will add the song "Raining Blood" to my playlist, and I can at least recognize Slayer's importance to metal music enough to give them 3-stars.

It's a good album but I need to be in a specific mood to listen to it. midday workday wasn't it!

This was better than I expected, but not something I'd really come back to. Best Songs: Jesus Saves, Reborn, Postmortem Worst Songs: Necrophobic, Raining Blood

I don't know if I've ever seen such a 1 vs 5 rating disparity for any other album on this list. It's dated, but it's thrash metal, and they nailed it. Considering this was released 1986 I can get that this album could be a landmark of it's genre. And I get the 1 ratings, because if you can't tolerate thrash (it's a devisive genre) , this could really suck. I'm not a fan myself, but I'm gonna hang on the fence for this one - it got my attention.

raining blood!!!

I don't think I've ever listened to a Slayer song before. They're alright, I can appreciate it but thrash metal in an acquired taste and I don't think I'm in that niche. I liked it enough though.

I am not so the metal person anymore, but this album is actually good. A bit of range brings motion in the life.

Tight, furious, and legendary, but I prefer my metal slower and heavier.

I'm definitely not a metal guy, but I kind of don't mind thrash metal. I feel like it tones down a lot of the theatrical elements of metal that are a non-starter for me. While I don't love this album, there's some parts of it I can get behind. I think the guitar tones are pretty solid and the vocals aren't too cheesy. Kind of reminds me of Metallica from around this time. 3 stars.

Not bad

It's ok... It starts to sound a bit samey after awhile, but it's definitely not bad with a couple of stand out tracks.

\m/YEAHHHHHHHH\m/ although metallica is a little bit better =) 3/5

A little too repetitive for my liking but it achieves what it sets out to do

This woke me up, fucking awesome ripping, makes me want to play DOOM. 3.5

Much better than some of the other heavy stuff on here. But not my bag.

For thrash metal you have a hard time being much better. That doesn't mean it's great music but it's doing a great job of it. Raining Blood is a great song for angry music. Great playing, vocals are what they want to be. Worth being on the list. I preferred listening to it when I was 17 vs now.

Gonna be honest - I did not hate listening to this. Dare I say I had fun? SLAYER!!!!! Raining blood is an awesome song. I’m giving it a solid three and I’m not ashamed.

I guess this is fine but I was absolutely not in the mood for some heavy metal today.

Not my thing, but I get it.

Not a big metal fan, but I could appreciate the technical skill.

I love metal

Never really listened to Slayer before. Liked the music but not a huge fan of the vocals. Do not believe I will listen to this again.

It's a classic, but it's far from a top 3 Slayer to me. Their 2 main hits are on it, but as full albums, they can do better : Show No Mercy, Hell Awaits and the masterpieces South Of Heaven and Season In The Abyss. Still, it deserves its place here, I guess?

not bad

Raining blood

Thrash metal not my jam. Raining blood was kind of sick. Will listen to slayer again, but only when working out.

I asked Slayer to write a little ditty about reviewers of metal: Title: “Verdict of the Damned” [Intro – Thunderous Riff] Verse 1 In the void where riffs scream out, I prowl the wasteland of brutal sound. Distorted carnage, chaos unbound— Death metal albums bleed their truth profound. Pre-Chorus My pen’s a blade, slicing through decay, Exposing venom in every vicious play. Chorus I am the reviewer, judge of the damned, Unleashing verdicts with a merciless hand. In the forge of metal, my words ring clear— Only the unrelenting survive the sear. Verse 2 In the slaughterhouse of sound, each track ignites, Guttural roars and shattered riffs fuel the nights. I rip apart pretenders, carve every scar, Forging legacies in chaos where legends are. [Bridge] Shredding silence with echoes of demise, My words tear the veil from blinded eyes. [Outro] As the void swallows the fading noise, True metal stands, forged in unyielding poise.

I wish I understood

This is one of the better thrash metal albums of the early thrash years. Although, hearing it now a lot of the lyrics are pretty juvenile. Ooh, devil, blood, surgery, blood. Obviously all for shock value and it gets old quick. However, there is some great music here. I really liked the beginning of Jesus Saves and Raining Blood stands out. If you're looking for fast and loud with a sprinkling of satanic-panic you will find it here.

Tiene su cosa pero está muy pesado y hay demasiado grito. Agradecí que dura poco, no es muy mi onda.

Ein sehr energiegeladenes Metal-Album. Viele Lieder waren mir sehr ähnlich, aber es gab auch einige, die ich cool fand. Zum Beispiel der Opener Angel of Death und Raining Blood. Wenn man in der Stimmung ist, kann man es hören.

There’s like two good songs on here. The rest is just amorphous metal.

2,5

Good thrash album. Some of the songs would have been better if they extended them. The beginning of “Raining Blood” is great. 3/5 Might listen again

3 stars. Found many songs sounded fundamentally the same (same drumbeats, lyric pattern, same guitar riffs).

Like I understand why it’s beloved but I don’t know doesn’t do a bunch for me.

Enjoyed more metal for my metal-curiosity, but this was too fast for me. I don't think thrash metal is my thing.

Kinda fun, except for the lyrics.

I couldn’t believe this record was only 28 minutes long. Is Slayer the Beach Boys of 1980s thrash metal?

Actually got into the head banging after a while. Last song was the best.

Raining blood is a fun song but the rest of the album is quite boring in comparison

Not going to lie I’m really behind on the metal albums, so this band got two songs. This is the music Cody Walsh listens to. It’s both magnificent and stupid. I like the guitar and sound effects.

Not my usual style of music but this album RIPS. Angel of Death and Raining blood especially to open and close the album are awesome. Not something I will be coming back to much, but doesn't overstay it's welcome and has some ripping songs

Wall-to-wall hardcore metal theatrics played at a breakneck pace. And I really mean theatrics! These guys clearly love putting on a show. The vocals are all wild wails from the depths of hell and the guitar solos are absurdly fast. I love the tempo/riff changes too. The music is dense and I’m sure there’s plenty more to discover on repeat listens. I haven’t had any coffee yet today so this was a lot but I had fun with it. I’ll have to bank it and put it on for a workout sometime.

2.8 When I was younger I used to love metal. And I used to really love thrash metal. Obsessed with Metallica, I heard Angel of Death and Raining Blood, saw in Music Zone or wherever I shopped back then and thought "holy shit this will be the greatest thrash album ever". Cue handing over my hard earned money (3 hours washing dishes in a cafe this cost me) and ultimately, crushing disappointment. These absolute stellar 5*thrash anthems bookend what is an ultimately forgettable 20 minutes. Tom's vocals are monotonous, the drumming monotonous, the riffs monotonous. I couldn't tell you the differences between most of the songs in this album. Metallica at least varied their vocals and riffs substantially within a given album. I think this album marked the end of 80s thrash for me the disappointment was so severe. Just stuck with Metallica and Megadeth for a year or so and then moved on to progressive metal.

Primal awesomeness. Speed, hysteria and thrashing chaos.

This album single handedly proved that I'm no longer young. Thanks for that.

Made my morning commute more energetic.

Aggressive riffs, snarling vocals, heavy hitting drums. It all sounds the same, but what a sound!

Не моя чашка чаю

The riffs get 5 stars. The solos get 3 stars. The vocals get 1 star.

Raining blood

Reign in Blood is Slayer's third studio album, and their first while working with famed producer Rick Rubin. This is regarded as one of the best metal albums of all time, and the best speed metal album. Slayer makes intricate, technical metal that is played as fast as is possible. Tom Araya's vocals/screams focus on the darkest of topics: death, violence, torture, and the occult. The band is very good at making dark, angry music.

well, it is what it is. Im sure many ppl liked this a lot and it is just absolutely not my style whatsoever.

This is classic thrash, which is both its blessing and its curse. The pulse to start songs like Angel of Death or Raining Blood is incredible. Heavy guitar. Frantic pace. But the album is too spastic. While the songs I mentioned have some real melody to them, they also go off the deep end at other times of the song and it's just angry noise. And that's the blueprint for pretty much every song on the album - some hang onto the melody longer than others but they all get to be a little exhausting. These guys are mega talented musicians and this is a landmark album for thrash metal. But it's just a bit too much for a whole album. So I can't go above 3.5 here.

Vaikka tämän levyn parhaat puolet ovatkin parhaimmillaan niukasti annosteltuina, en voi kiistää, etteikö kysymyksessä olisi jollain tapaa erityinen kokonaisuus. Bändi keksii jotain uutta lähes joka sekunti: rytminvaihdoksia, uusia osia ja koomisiä rääkäisyjä. Soolotkin ovat oleellista kuultavaa - myös niille, joille yleensä riittää Neil Youngin kitarointi. Matala 3

Does what it says on the tin Short sweet

Raining Blood is a classic but the rest of the album does sound all the same tbf. I like the sound but it's not something I'd really be interested in enough to play normally.

This is not a style of music that I normally like, I expected not to like this album...first song, not bad, mostly because the vocals do have at least a bit of nuance. I can do without the speed lead guitar solos, but they are short enough not to be totally annoying. And the album is under 30 minutes long. After listening to the whole thing mostly as background music I'll give it 3 stars

Funny how time changes things, huh? There was a period of my life where simply looking at this album cover was a death sentence. My dad told me the "lore" behind it from his Christian perspective, and it scared the living shit out of me (but of course, also enticed me. I love how when you're a kid, your parents unintentionally make the "bad" things sound like the greatest fucking things ever.) If I had ever been caught with this album in my possession, I would've been grounded, beaten, and probably starved from dinner that night. That's how much my parents wanted me to stay away from it. And I did. I was literally scared that if I listened to this, I would A) summon the devil to my house and B) buy a one-way ticket to hell. But of course, time makes fools of us all. When I finally did listen to this, my main thought was, "I don't get the fuss. Doesn't SOUND evil to me, just really fast and technical. That's not evil." And then I heard it today for the first time in years and thought, "Eh, low end's pretty weak throughout." I laughed at my past fears, and then thought more on how something so harmless like a mainstream studio album (produced by god damn Rick Ruben) could insight so much fear in me. Then I realized, it's not the world that instills fear, it's the people who want to keep you strapped to their ideologies so they remain in power. So, you know, fuck the fascists. Vote blue 2024.

I prefer my metal to be less reined in.

Fast Power Rangers Music

Me gustó Raining Blood. 🤟🤟🤟

Fast-paced, rocking, rolling, very fun, very heavy, influential, a bit same-y, quite good. Key tracks: Angel of Death Raining Blood

I'm no fan but I can admire the sheer ferociousness of the thing. Landmark metal.

There's certainly good musicianship here, but the lyrics are a little dark for me. If anything, it's great music to thrash around the room to.

Not my jam, too angry and too noisy. But, apart from that, it's not bad at all - on the spectrum of this kind of stuff, the lyrics are more intelligible, the music is hard and harsh but not unlistenable, and there's certainly some semblance of a tune there. Lyrics are a bit much in places, trying to show off how scary they are and it comes off as insecurity to me really  Doesn't go on too long either, which a lot of the metal albums we've had have done. Can't imagine I'll ever come back to this, but see why other people might like it, so gets a 3.

Somethin for the honeys

Fast and furious.

Not my style of music, I didn't really enjoy the album.

High energy metal that unfortunately all sounds the same. Got me pumped tho

This is #day40 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and... I'm sipping my morning coffee to some thrash metal... Not my usual breakfast fare, but that's part of the fun. One of the things I love about music is how it can spark memories. It's like a bridge to different stages of life, just needing a spark to light the way. The name "Slayer" has been familiar since my teenage years. I remember seeing it in the teen zines I devoured around age 13-15, I can recall Kerry King's tattoos, the name "Dave Lombardo", and a feature about their album God Hates Us All. But I never listened to their music until now. My initial thrash metal experience was with Metallica, actually, their 90s works (I know, it's a far-from-thrash Metallica but still), which set a high bar for me. Reign in Blood doesn't quite live up to that, and, I guess, it shouldn't because it's a pure inferno spread across a little more than 28 minutes runtime. As I listen to the penultimate track, I can only identify it by checking the tracklist. Maybe that's the whole point of it? A kick-in-the-teeth punk thrash? This isn't something I'm hell-bent on revisiting in the future, but it's definitely a cornerstone of the genre. This is a 3 out of 5 because I'm not a fan of the satanic lyrical content. Looking forward to #day41.

Good thrash metal album

Chaos!

I struggle to understand the past. It’s hard to understand something that needs to be lived through. My grandparents would likely have been listening to Elvis and watching him on TV when they were teens. Scandalous swinging hips Elvis. My parents could have been listening to this. We went from Elvis changing pop music and rock n roll, to Slayer in a generation. Weird to think about the changes music will make in the next 30 years. Will it be so obscene that I can’t listen to it and forbid my kids from doing so? Or will I embrace the change and boldly go into the musical future. Album was solid. Blown away that it came out in 85, obviously. Got really distracted in the car thinking about the path of events that lead music here.

For hardt, men respekterer talentet som kreves

Just a noise

Fav: Altar Of Sacrifice Least Fav: Necrophobic Haven’t listened to much metal in my life so this was interesting to listen to. I liked it but I felt like it relied on the same tricks and I got kinda bored by the end but I still liked it overall, so it’s worthy of a 3/5 in my eyes.

honestly this album is a classic but I just kinda can't with death metal anymore

Its fast paced, energetic and heavy.

Completely silly lyrics, exhaustingly relentless…but I couldn’t help but bob my head along. If nothing else, it gets points for achieving what it set out to do. 2.5 rounded up

good

It’s absolutely nuts that this was produced by Rick Rubin who at the same time was also working on Licensed to Ill by Beastie Boys and Raising Hell by Run-DMC. He’s probably one of the most accomplished producers of all time, and helped popularize both thrash metal and hip hop at the same time in the late 80s. Reign in Blood is a very good thrash album, and while I won’t comment about the maybe/maybe not Nazi sympathies the band has been accused of, in general I think lyrics dealing with actual horrors of war and individual violence are definitely more “metal” than worshiping Satan or horror mythology, so I guess I give Slayer credit for that. Generally though the lyrics are weak compared to the instrumentals, particularly guitar and drums which are awesome.

3 One of those albums you appreciate once but once is enough