Christ Illusion

The long wait for a new Slayer album is finally over! "Christ Illusion", one of the most highly anticipated metal releases of 2006, is here! It's been almost five years since Slayer's last studio album, "God Hates Us All". One of the big questions many Slayer fans have been asking themselves is whether or not they would get another album in the vein of "God Hates Us All" or even "Diabolus in Musica". If you were to take "South of Heaven", "Seasons In The Abyss", "Diabolus in Musica" and "God Hates Us All" and put them into a blender, the end result is "Christ Illusion". After listening to "Christ Illusion" several times, I feel that many Slayer fans will have mixed reactions. "Christ Illusion" marks the welcomed return of original Slayer skin basher Dave Lombardo and the artwork talents of Larry Caroll ("Reign In Blood", "South of Heaven", "Seasons In The Abyss"). It also marks a change in producers, using Josh Abraham (Velvet Revolver, Staind) this time instead of long time producer Rick Rubin. Slayer wastes no time getting back to what they do best. The first two tracks, "Flesh Storm" and "Catalyst" are a return to classic styled speed/thrash metal Slayer. These two songs sound like they could have easily come from albums such as "Reign In Blood", "South of Heaven", or "Seasons In They Abyss". Josh Abraham does a great job in re-creating the production and mix that is very close to that used on "South of Heaven" and "Seasons In They Abyss". From the tone of the guitars and killer riffs, to the guitar solos, Dave Lombardo's sorely missed drumming patterns and the vocals of Tom Araya, "Flesh Storm" and "Catalyst" will immediately grab a hold of you and throw you around like a rag doll! Track three is one of the reasons why I feel this album is somewhat inconsistent. "Eyes of the Insane" is a slower, more groove oriented track that incorporates some of the nu-metal influences Slayer used on albums like "Diabolus in Musica" and "God Hates Us All". Right away you will notice the thick, detuned guitar power chords. The only things that save this song from being a total failure are Dave Lombardo's tribal like drum patterns and the guitar soloing of King and Hanneman. "Jihad" has a some Angus Young like guitar playing at the beginning and even seems to pick up where "Eyes of the Insane" left off tempo wise. However, this false sense of view is immediately cleared after the first thirty five seconds or so. At that point the song seems to sound like "Spill The Blood" from "South of Heaven" and then accelerates into an all out thrashing assault similar to that of "Angel of Death" from "Reign in Blood". The only beef I have with this track is when Tom Araya speaks through that distorted voice box towards the end of the song. "Skeleton Christ" is another track that seems to take use the nu-metal sound at first. It is one of the more varied tempo tracks, switching off between slow pounding riffs and drumming, then psychotically erupting into an all out frenzy. The mid break reminds of "War Ensemble" from "Seasons In The Abyss". "Consfearacy" and "Black Serenade" seem to get things back on track. "Consfearacy" is very similar to "Born of Fire" from "Seasons In They Abyss"; Speed/thrash metal at its finest! "Catatonic" is the probably the slowest song on the album. It's another track that grooves and drives, using detuned guitar riffs and tribal like drumming. I find this track a bit mesmerizing and ritualistic at times because of the tempo and beats. The structure of "Cult" is similar to that of "Jesus Saves", starting slow and then igniting into supersonic Slayer tempo! The lyrics deal with religion. The album ends in the same manor it started in with "Supremist". Another awesome instant Slayer classic! This is probably Slayer's most listenable and best release since "Seasons In The Abyss". I do feel that Lombardo's drumming and Josh Abraham production have put Slayer back on the right track to re-claiming the speed/thrash metal crown! This album might not sink in right away so give it a few listens before passing judgment, though I'm sure many of you will immediately be able to form some kind of opinion just on one listen. With the exception of one or two songs, this album is pretty solid!