By "Metal Tim Henderson

Well, the day has arrived and blood is raining again. The theme is clear, concise and cutting edge. And unlike Christ Illusion, the band have put on their collectively thinking caps to create one of their finest hours, a riveting piece of Slaytanic ferocity, speed, while spitting in the face of mankind and its ills. World Painted Blood truly meshes with Slayer's beyond-illustrious path, but built towards a fertile future. The ideas are fresh, the song-writing is top-notch and each member - singer/bassist Tom Araya, guitarists Kerry King King and Jeff Hanneman and drummer Dave Lombardo - is at the top of his game. Kinda hard to believe when most of Slayer's contemporaries (you know who) struggle to be viable with new music, while resting on the laurels of their past accomplishments. That is what is stunning upon first listen to the title track, a rumbling, haunting awakening occurs as the spoken word of a Navajo Indian sends chills down your spine. You think it could be some studio trickery or backward masking, but Lombardo says it's a real person therein.

"He's speaking in Navajo tongue and he's talking about the apocalypse, the end of the world," the drum tornado begins. "In his own words and native tongue, he's talking about what is going to happen. It was recorded especially for this record. He came to the studio and we told him what we wanted and he even called his grandfather up to help him with the exact words. He had to make sure what he was saying was the correct way."

Slayer mean business, serious business. And 'World Painted Blood' sets the tone for the entire record and the band are on an obvious high. The four-piece have been more vocal and outspoken on this album more so than any in the past.

"The whole band is enthusiastic," Lombardo agrees. "From the get-go of this record, I noticed there was a strange synergy between Greg Fidelman (METALLICA's Death Magnetic) the producer and the band. And between the band members too, where we were collaborating and accepting each other's input and trying things out. And just really listening to each other in rehearsal, the small time that we were in a rehearsal room. And the foundation of the songs, which is the drums, to me were feeling so good. I thought to myself, 'we're on to something. There's something really cool going on here.' And sure enough, if the foundation is set with the drums, and it's solid and it feels good and it flows, I can just imagine what the rest is going to sound like. When I would play the drums with the guitar riffs, I was like 'man, this really feels good.' I think that's where the enthusiasm started and then little by little, as the album developed, I was like 'oh my god.' The melodies and everything blew me away. I think that's where the enthusiasm is coming from - our excitement for this record and the way it sounds. He (Fidelman) captured my drum sound and I think the drum sound is the canvas that you put the guitars, the vocals, the leads. That would be the foundation. Everything started to sound so amazing, we're so happy with this record."

Possibly your best sounding drums since Reign In Blood?

"Yes, yes absolutely. Again, he captured it. I told him what I liked. I like natural, real resonating drums. And that is what he totally got me. I couldn't have asked for a better drum sound."

In contrast, World Painted Blood sticks out creatively because Christ Illusion didn't. "I'm not going to disagree with you," says the drummer. "From the slow songs, to the fast songs, from the screaming style to a more melodic style. It's brilliant. I can't stop listening to it. Christ Illusion was a disappointment for me. I came back to the band with that record. And 'World Painted Blood' is going to be our new opener for the rest of our life probably!"

No doubt, Lombardo is credited with ushering in the speedy double-bass style, perhaps first famously heard on the Haunting The Chapel EP (1984) where the entire world (not yet painted with blood!) stood in jaw-dropping awe as 'Chemical Warfare' and 'Captor Of Sin' took a stranglehold and laid the groundwork for future atrocities. Given World Painted Blood's velocity, Lombardo reveals how he approached the new material.

"I started with a fresh slate. Where it first started, I took certain toms out of my drums. I took the biggest tom - the 15" - and the smallest one. Which gave me a different view of my drum set and a different approach. It's still double bass and everything, but removing those toms gave me a different approach to my drumming. I had to work around these missing toms, so I had to approach the drum rolls differently. What I tried to do also, I was noticing on the demos we did in rehearsal that when Tom sings, I go to the high-hat. When there's lead or no vocals, or bridges, whatever, I would use a ride. When I was on my ride, I was noticing that it was so boring 'cuz all I heard was my ride. So I changed it - when there were no vocals, instead of staying on my ride, I will go to another crash. A crash ride and ride on that. And then go to another cymbal in another section and create these crescendos within these parts where there's no vocals and all lead or whatever. And just make it a little more interesting. Cymbals create for me white noise, a shrill.... that noise has different notes. So I would go to a different cymbal that has a different note. So I would create these different textures and if you listen closely, that's what I do. Maybe just drummers will notice. So that was my approach. I just made it more diverse. I really focused on the drums to make sure they weren't boring to me. Make sure I decorated it as best as possible, with the limited amount of musical information the guys were giving me. Because I don't hear the vocals or the lyrics when I lay down my drum tracks. I have to rely on my instincts to know where the vocals go, where I should put a drum roll and how should I decorate the song without having vocals and without stepping on Tom's voice. I have to be careful. It's pretty cool."

That process sounds unbelievable and impossible given what we hear as the end result!

"Yeah, I guess, I don't know! It's how I've done it all these years. I've never sat down and known a song completely with vocals and everything. I never learned it that way. If I did, it would be even better, but that's not the way Slayer works. And how it would be better, I would follow. Let's say for example, when we play 'Mandatory Suicide' live, how I played it in the studio was very plain. Very plain, there was nothing to it. But live I accentuate certain parts that Tom sings, so whatever he says, I may do a roll that will follow his voice. That will accentuate a certain section of his vocal part. You know, 'count the bullet holes in your head' - I do the sound of a machine gun. And that's live - I don't do that on the studio version. It's little things like that that I feel make it better, but because it's Slayer, I can't do it that way. Maybe in a way that's cool because then I can go live and I can do all these little things that I didn't do in the recording, instead of making it exactly the same. It's one of those things that it's neither good nor bad."

Can you tell us about any instances when you heard the final take of a song and you said to yourself, 'I could've done a better drum track.'

"Absolutely. But it's too late, I can't do anything about it. There'd be songs I'd listen to off of South Of Heaven or Seasons (In The Abyss) and I thought, 'damn I sucked! Why didn't I do something else on this song? Why didn't I do this, why didn't I do that.' I actually ask myself that question and there's nothing I could do."

Was that part of your frustration when you left that band (first in 1986 and then in 1992)?

"Maybe unconsciously it was? But there were other things that had happened that led to me leaving. Because my first intent after leaving Slayer was I wanted to do something different. I didn't want to be known just as a metal drummer. I want to be known as something much more than that. It could've been unconsciously, but that wasn't what made me leave."

On World Painted Blood, how much did you have to fight to retain your territory so to speak?

"None. I think it was the producer being attentive to what we wanted or what I wanted as far as drums sound. And they let me do whatever I want when it comes to the drums. For example, Jeff will have a guitar part completed on a drum machine and he goes, 'Dave, just do your thing.' So there was no pulling teeth or anything getting in my way."

Who are you the tightest with in the band? Have the best connection?

"I connect really well with Jeff. Me and Jeff ... there's a connection there. I don't know what it is, but there always has been that connection. Whether it's musical, enjoying this riff, enjoying this song or jokes or making each other laugh on stage. It's usually me and Jeff. I get along great with Tom and I get along great with Kerry now. I watched football at his house recently. It's tough to say, because we all laugh and have a great time when we're together. We're busting each other up cracking jokes!"

The fact that you and Jeff appear to be brothers in arms and Jeff has more of a writing hand in World Painted Blood than Christ Illusion, together you both have elevated this record to greater heights.

"Yeah, I feel a little responsible. They've said it to me and I have the right to say it too - there were some riffs like 'Americon' where I came into rehearsal and Kerry was warming up before I get there so we can start playing and he's jamming out this riff and I'm like, 'what is that? Keep playing it, turn it up!' I get behind my drums and start pounding on them, doing all these drum patterns. I give him six, eight or ten variations of patterns that I could place on that particular guitar riff. And it turned into a song. He went home and wrote it with that basic idea that I gave him. Just like 'Beauty Through Order' - Jeff was sitting on the front of the bus and he was practising before he gets on stage and I run out of the back and ask 'dude, what is that riff?' And it was the opening riff of the song. I went 'dude, that's dark, that's amazing. That is really, really good.' And he went home and wrote a piece around it. So my influence is not direct, but almost indirect and motivational. Maybe I'm their metre - if the riff is good, maybe they run with that. I can tell when something feels good or sounds good more than most people. Maybe an instinct. The producer once said that I have this instinct. I dunno, it's odd. But my instinct isn't always right, because there were times where it's off. There was one song that Kerry wrote and he was really frustrated with it it. We titled it 'Industrial' - 'killing is my future' (which is the song 'Snuff'). That one I had trouble with because there is a transition there where he goes into that 'killing is my future' part. I felt that it didn't work. I told him I wasn't happy with it. And sure enough that was like pulling teeth - they said 'c'mon Dave, you really have to try this.' It was really very simple, but the transition in the song didn't feel good. So I did it, and right now I'm super happy with it. It's like 'wow, this really turned out good.' You have to really listen to what the riff is asking of you and you can't overplay. I've been playing this stuff fast for so many years, it's easy for me. But what you do, you make sure you don't overplay. You make sure you give what the riff is asking and no more, then you just become a drummer soloing over a song. There is such a thing as overplaying. So you have to kind of find a balance on what to do and what not to do."

And fans will even encounter the odd blast-beat on World Painted Blood, particularly on the varied spectacle, 'Beauty Through Order'

"Yes, I do use blast beats. And no, I haven't been listening to NAPALM DEATH, I just know how blast beats are done and hell, I've been ripped off all my life right? All these drummers have been ripping off my drum playing. The next evolution of my drumming style would be blast-beats - 'hey, I can do that too.' I don't care if somebody else took something at a different level, I can use it. People borrow from me, I can borrow from them. We share!"