As dyed-in-the-wool metalheads we all love Slayer and appreciate everything they've done for heavy music. That much is a given. But what do all those normal people think of them? Y'know, the sort who think we're all mad for loving this music? That was the admittedly slim premise that prompted us to ask our very funny comedian pal Sarah Sumeray if she'd give their 1986 classic Reign In Blood a listen for the first time and let us know what she reckoned. Because it's nice to get some perspective on these things. Imagine hearing those songs afresh again. Lucky, Sarah, right? Or maybe not…
As someone who spent a large chunk of my childhood bopping around to inoffensive pop tunes released by sickeningly wholesome bands, the heaviest sound I ever came across was probably the chorus to Avril Lavigne's Sk8r Boi. So when I was asked to review Slayer’s Reign In Blood, I knew I was in for a challenge. To say I was thrown into the deep end is quite the understatement. Essentially, I was sailed off to the middle of the Pacific Ocean, abandoned, and required to work my way to shore without even a single armband to keep me afloat.
Never one to turn down a challenge however, and fully aware that I desperately need to expand on my musical tastes, I enthusiastically accepted the request.
So here it is, my in-depth review of Slayer's Reign in Blood…