Thrash Metal Slayer

Slayer are a well known thrash metal band that formed in America in 1981 by Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman. They are widely regarded as one of the four horseman of Thrash Metal along with Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax.

They rose to fame slowly and by 1986 the release of 'Reign off blood' tapped them into the wider market with lyrics on items such as religion and serial killers. King and Hanneman enlisted the help of Tom Araya and Dave Lombardo and there unique fast double bass drumming coupled with there alternate picking style on guitar found new fans who were used to the more conventional style of Metal and a new genre style was formed.

As with most bands they started as a cover band and were soon spotted by Brian Slagel who offered them a contract with Metal Blade Records. They self financed there debut album 'Show no Mercy' and it quickly became a underground hit reaching a sales figure of 40,000 worldwide.

The popularity led them to release an EP 'Haunting the Chapel' which had a more dark thrash style which laid the footprint for them and many others to follow. Around this time Kerry King played with Megadeth but not committing himself fully he left the band and thus a long running feud began between the two factions.

In 1985 the second album 'Hell Waits' was a great success on the back of the first album but success worldwide was to follow. They left the record label to go with Def Jam Records with Simmons and Rubin at the helm, there sound became a more crisp, shorter clearer sound. The album was 'Reign in Blood' and there first offering suffered some controversy as Def Jam distributor Columbia Records refused to release the album due to graphic artwork on the album, the album was distributed by Geffen and entered the billboard charts which was a major breakthrough.

The band embarked on a tour in Europe and America and soon a fourth album followed. A much more slower tempo album 'South of Heaven' was there most successful commercial release at the time but it did receive mixed responses from the media and public alike. Towards the end of the 1980s the band went into the studio to try and get back to basics and they released 'Seasons in the Abyss' which was released on Def American records following Rubins decision to leave Def Jam following creative differences. The album was a great success and saw a return to form with the album going top 40 in America.

The band continued its success in the 1990s and beyond and famously in June 2010 played a concert with Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax on the same bill in Poland and Bulgaria. True legends of the Metal scene.

In terms of the 1980s the band released 5 studio albums with two top 30 albums in the UK with 'Seasons in the Abyss' peaking at number 18. They only released four singles with 'Raining Blood' reaching number 64 in the UK charts as the only notable entry.