It’s here, and the occasion is momentous. Been this way since Slayer released Show No Mercy in 1983, the band’s catalogue second to none, easily the most consistent in heavy metal. But it’s with mixed emotions that we greet Repentless. Our guitar hero Jeff Hanneman is absent from the mix and it still remains unclear whether or not he’s actually on the record in any capacity (riff or lyric-wise aside from "Piano Wire"). But the “bonded by blood” brothers Kerry King and Exodus mainstay Gary Holt go above and beyond the call of duty with a deep repertoire of razor-sharp leads and intense rifferama. Alas, this is Slayer and we wouldn’t expect anything less! And as a major Metal Church, Overkill and Pantera fan, the fact that Terry Date produced this opus is icing on the proverbial blood pudding.

 

With the first notes of Repentless, we are greeted with echoes of a wailing Middle Eastern-flavoured twin axe attack instrumental, a death march of sorts as Armageddon nears and it’s established how the record’s going to sound and feel. Emotions rise immediately as you begin to think that one of heavy metal’s greatest riff-makers and innovators is no longer with us, that to degree the entire record is a tribute to the fallen soldier of metal, Jeff Hanneman. 

 

For those of you who are thinking that Repentless might echo or evoke an Exodus record, you are sorely mistaken. If you are a Slayer fan, then you are no doubt an Exodus fan—or you should be. Slayer have managed to maintain their focus and clarity with the inclusion of another riff-master.

 

So onto to “Repentless,” a punishing title track that motors along with vicious accuracy and malicious intent. One instantly notices that there is much pent-up anger and aggression in the Slayer camp these days. While Tom and Co. are lashing out at the world’s atrocities, in some ways their hearts are bleeding.

 

“Take Control” features classic speed metal rhythms that take you back to very early Slayer, when Judas Priest and Mercyful Fate were still the game-changers. But Slayer kneaded that vibe into something much faster and entirely edible, and that is in evidence here.

 

“Vices” rolls with a thunderous beat, spotlighting again the atrocities of the world encountered on a daily basis. “A little violence is the ultimate drug… let’s get high!” King and Holt do battle amidst a spray of ammunition.

 

“Cast the First Stone” and “Chasing Death” reveal an unlikely hero on Repentless. Tom Araya’s voice is filled with passion and pain unlike his performance on any Slayer album, especially on the latter where he breathes fire. Araya manages to turn each lyrical nugget into its own erupting volcano. Sure, he ain’t no Dickinson or Halford in terms of clarity and harmony, but there is a need to push one’s voice to the limit when the topics you are dealing with resonate deeply. And Araya’s vocal style is like none other on the planet—his is a singular and authoritative voice in the world of anarchic heavy metal art.

 

We were introduced a few months back to “When the Stillness Comes,” which is your typical Slayer ballad and truly the only lull in the festivities. But I’ve felt that the track wasn’t finished and perhaps that’s the point. Hanneman’s life was doused following the spider bite incident and that’s what I will take away from this song. He had so much to offer us musically and now they are but memories lasting forever.

 

If you’ve been following any of our Venom coverage, “Implode” commences with a basic lead that sounds like it was pulled from the Mantas handbook. As well, we start to see the band throw in the odd lyrical reference to the past such as, “I’m pretty sure God still hates us all!”

 

While “Piano Wire” may be the weakest track on Repentless, “Atrocity Vendor” is the star, a veritable killing spree of the highest order. We’re talking record-breaking deaths here, but the paradox is that the tune’s mood is fun-filled thrash, catchy and smooth as silk as Araya spews: “I’ll never hesitate to beat you, break you, sever every part of you. Light you up, kerosene, watch you burn, watch you bleed. I am torture redefined, cancer shooting from my eyes.” OK, the content is brutally controversial, but in a twisted way, Slayer draw our attention because we live on a sick planet where this shit does happen. It is seriously the most tuneful sing-along Slayer song in years. Just don’t be on the sharp side of this knife!

 

The ride doesn’t get any slower with “You Against You,” a non-stop off-the-rails freight train of bludgeoning riffs atop Bostaph’s able back beat, but “Pride in Prejudice” closes off the album in a stand-up, stern mood, the main riff a drug to which you slowly get addicted. The towering expose pulls from the likes of gems like “South of Heaven” and “Seasons in the Abyss.” Slayer are fueled by social commentary, often lamenting the idea of humanity beating the shit out each other, to put it bluntly. Always reminds me of something Tom told me years ago: “We’ve been on this planet many thousands of years and we still can’t fucking get along.”

 

Simple but poignant words from a band some would deem just violent noise and controversy. The song ends in patented melancholic Slayer guitar, as Hanneman’s spirit haunts freely from the chapel. And so ends a killer Slayer record, one that sits proudly on the metal mantle beside the band’s celebrated finest.