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Thousands of music lovers anxiously awaited in the dark. Bass player Tom Araya stepped onstage. Guitarist Kerry King followed. All hell broke loose. For the next hour and a half, the intensity would not fade. In their new DVD release, Still Reigning, the four-person metal legend Slayer offers viewers a glimpse of the defining beginnings of the metal genre as captured in Augusta, Maine in July 2004. This staging of their classic 1986 album Reign in Blood makes Slayer stand out among a slew of mediocre and has-been bands that have either lost their way or could never reach the caliber of these metal giants. In its early days, metal music was a movement known for its aggressive, no-holds-barred attitude and raw power. Rockers fought for what they wanted – to play music their way. What resulted were bands that redefined what it meant to connect to an audience; their lyrical imagery, onstage theatrics, and pure audial onslaught gave metal-heads the intense experience they were seeking. Slayer has long been a defining force in speed metal, a subgenre that arose in the early 1980s, characterized by playing harder and faster than their predecessors. Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman’s twin guitars manage on stage what seems impossible outside the studio: they stay completely in sync with each other through high-velocity riffs and complex tempos. Just when a listener starts to think they are playing nonsense, the groove reemerges to prove that neither had lost it in the first place. Dave Lombardo’s precision on percussion keeps every head banger in the crowd on track. While many bands have since tried to replicate this approach, most have failed in blending such demanding technical performances with the interactive energy and mood that Slayer maintains. The band has managed to remain authentic and unique with the sound they developed and perfected over two decades ago. The show provides a stunning integration of classic metal with newly available technology. Slayer chose to implement their only stage effect for the last song of the set, “Raining Blood.” As they started to play, “blood” began to rain down on stage, covering the band and creating an extra sense of violence by seeming to fly from Araya’s raging hair. This was the first time they attempted this effect, but it seemed to have been part of the show since the very beginning. While the DVD’s technologically advanced features, complete with a “crowd surf cam” and aerial shots, are marks of 2004, the show itself evokes the sense that it is 1986. Lombardo’s drumming delivers the same off-beat bass and snare drive that has become his trademark. Between roaring verses, the fortysomething Araya made use of his long hair as if he were twenty-five again. Through all their guitar solos, breakdowns, and thrashing, Slayer makes it seem like child’s play— effortless, natural, and just plain fun. Araya’s nonchalant “We’ll see you in hell” as he walked off stage provides a stunning contrast to the previous hour and a half of hard rocking and screaming. A recording can never adequately encompass the full experience of a live performance, but Still Reigning successfully captures the show’s striking mix of old and new, austerity and technical prowess. The current state of metal music is discouraging to almost any fan; despite a multitude of bands on the scene, precious few promise enough originality and longevity to live up to the giants of the past. A resurgence of the original metal bands, such as Slayer, Metallica, and Black Sabbath, is just what the metal scene needs. This rendition of Still Reigning proves that Slayer still has the intensity and talent to deliver a sonic assault to an audience. With their drums pounding fast enough to feed the mosh pits endlessly and their guitars loud enough to vibrate through every concertgoer’s body, Araya’s triumphant voice reigned over the night, singing and screaming the return of metal as it should be. Slayer’s show sent a reminder of the rawness inherent to metal, an energy that needs no extra spectacle for enhancement. Even without the help of modern technology, they manage to blow other bands out of the water. That night in Maine, Slayer’s audience learned that when all else fails, sometimes we just need to call in the old pros to show us how it’s done. Angie Chamberland is a sophomore in Branford College. | ||||||||||||
