Slayer - South Of Heaven review
| Band: | Slayer |
| Album: | South Of Heaven |
| Style: | Thrash metal |
| Release date: | July 05, 1988 |
| Guest review by: | un4givendemon |
01. South Of Heaven
02. Silent Scream
03. Live Undead
04. Behind The Crooked Cross
05. Mandatory Suicide
06. Ghosts Of War
07. Read Between The Lies
08. Cleanse The Soul
09. Dissident Aggressor [Judas Priest cover]
10. Spill The Blood
It's been 20 years since a masterpiece was left to us here on earth. 20 years of bleeding ears and head-banging; 20 years of Thrash at its finest. "South of Heaven" is not only a milestone for metal; it created a standard for all Thrash to follow. Slayer burst onto the scene like only Satan's minions could and rocked our bodies until our brains were sore. This album is fierce; it's powerful; it's metal.
"South of Heaven" starts with the title track famous for its ferocity and heavy, quick riffs. These guitars, the trademark of Slayer, really came into fruition in this album. They managed to make it sound so clear without sacrificing speed, or attitude and that is one of the things that makes this album stand out from the rest. "Live Undead" and "Cleanse the Soul" are perfect examples of this. The notes are crisper and the rhythms will knock you unconscious with their complexity. "South of Heaven" is clearly a stand-out track but not by any means the only one. The songs on this album will blow you away.
Do you have to be a hardcore Slayer fan to feel this? No, definitely not. This album is more Thrash Metal than Death Metal and some songs such as "South of Heaven" and "Mandatory Suicide" even lack the typically rampant Speed Metal aspect Slayer is known for. This is excellent because it shows how versatile the instruments and musicians of the band really are, while at the same time, they opened the portal to new fans. For instance, because of the little Death Metal influence, more female metal-heads would be drawn to this album than say, other Slayer releases. That's right guys; she might not change the radio on you. They never lost their attitude, not even to this day, but they showed a different side on this album. They proved they were here to stay and they were full of ideas. This album is sure to keep you entertained for quite awhile. This is a must for all metal fans.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 9 |
| Originality: | 9 |
| Production: | 10 |
Written by un4givendemon | 09.09.2007
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Rating:
9.5
9.5
|
Rating: 9.5 |
After the worldwide exposure Slayer received for their previous release, Reign in Blood, the anticipation for its follow-up was immense. They had already pushed the boundaries of Thrash Metal to its extremities, what could they possibly come up with to tread anywhere even close to that? In South of Heaven they gave the perfect answer to all the sceptics. Read more ›› |
Comments
Comments: 30
Visited by: 137 users
| Katatronik Angel of Lust Posts: 1018  |
Great album, the right sequel of that masterpiece called "Reign In Blood"... Their second best in my opinion!
---- "The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown." Howard Phillips Lovecraft
Loading...
|
| CrimsonSoaked Account deleted |
|
| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071  |
Written by [user id=24776] on 06.10.2007 at 20:53 I don't know where you got that idea from, but back in the day this one was accepted immediately. We (the Slayer fans back then) had problems acceptiong Seasons IN The Abyss NOY South Of Heaven.
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996 
Loading...
|
| CrimsonSoaked Account deleted |
|
| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071 |
Written by [user id=24776] on 06.10.2007 at 21:11 Yes South Of Heaven is slower but we didn't mind it at the time.
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996
Loading...
|
| Uirapuru Liver Failure Posts: 2955  |
i dont like this album.. its very very boring.. the worst in slayer history in my opinion
----  ---- member of the true crusade against old school heavy metal, early 80s thrash, NWOBHM, traditional doom, first and second wave black metal, old school death metal, US power metal, 70s prog rock and atmospheric doomsludgestoner. o/
Loading...
|
| Demonmayonnaise Posts: 362  |
I like this album, It has a Sabbath feel to it because of the slowness, not that thats a bad thing.
Loading...
|
| Timelord Posts: 276  |
I love this album! I am not so one tracked that I can't enjoy music at a slower tempo. To me slow heavy songs are more powerful than fast ones. I like them both. Upon first listen to SoH I was taken back by the complete flip of tempo but I did like it. If Slayer would have made Reign in Blood 2 it wouldn't have worked. I give this a 9.
Loading...
|
| Elio Red Nightmare Posts: 4920  |
IMO their best album...masterpiece.
Loading...
|
| amerislave Account deleted |
|
| southofheaven14 Account deleted |
|
| southofheaven14 Account deleted |
|
| Deadmeat Necrobutcher Posts: 2437  |
I don't like this album as RIB or SITA. first of all i find it more Heavy metal than the bands other releases in that period, i dislike araya'a singing (screaming/shouting is much better) especially on spill the blood... also as it is mentioned before i dont like that they slowed it comparring to RIB. it is not a bad album bad it is a bad continuance to RIB...
---- Υou've sold your human essence to the cold world of dead and empty things... You're SOLD!
Loading...
|
| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071 |
Written by Deadmeat on 24.06.2009 at 00:52 Imo tSOuth Of Heaven is vastly superior to Seasons In The AByss. And I think it was wise of the band to slow down the tempo compared to RiB because they knew they could never equal that again plus it i salso extremely safe to continue in the same vein
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996
Loading...
|
| Elio Red Nightmare Posts: 4920 |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 24.06.2009 at 13:23 IMO this is their untopped best, way better than the mediocre Seasons, better than RiB since it has more variety and better than the first efforts, that are anyway overlooked 
Loading...
|
| Deadmeat Necrobutcher Posts: 2437 |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 24.06.2009 at 13:23 what do you mean "same vein"?? this totlally different from rib. or i got i wrong???
---- Υou've sold your human essence to the cold world of dead and empty things... You're SOLD!
Loading...
|
| Deadmeat Necrobutcher Posts: 2437 |
Written by Elio on 24.06.2009 at 13:28 why more variety?? rib has also veriety. no same styled songs... also south of heaven is their less agrressive and slayer were always an agrressive thrash metal band and imo this is a disadvantage of it...
---- Υou've sold your human essence to the cold world of dead and empty things... You're SOLD!
Loading...
|
| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071 |
Written by Deadmeat on 24.06.2009 at 13:39 You got my message wrong I said it is a good thing they changed because it is safe had they continued in the same vein (which of course they didn't)
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996
Loading...
|
| Deadmeat Necrobutcher Posts: 2437 |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 24.06.2009 at 13:44 i don't know... they may didn't manage to make a 2nd RIB but imo slayer with "melodic" or "slow" cannot compare to slayer with fast and aggressive...
---- Υou've sold your human essence to the cold world of dead and empty things... You're SOLD!
Loading...
|
| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071 |
Written by Deadmeat on 24.06.2009 at 13:49 Although I really love RiB I find there to be more power and punch in South Of Heaven (and then especially the title track)
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996
Loading...
|
| Deadmeat Necrobutcher Posts: 2437 |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 24.06.2009 at 14:00 it's just a matter of taste i guess..i totaly dislike the moments araya sings. i cannot even try to compare them with RIB's screams... also the production, which is clear and not bad, makes the album sound too "heavy metal" in my ears...
---- Υou've sold your human essence to the cold world of dead and empty things... You're SOLD!
Loading...
|
| !Mac! Posts: 10  |
I'm sure diehard Slayer fans will label this as blasphemy, but this is Slayer's best album. It surpasses Reign in Blood for one reason -- maturity seen through structure. Slayer's song writing and creativity shined here because it was a band that was growing by the second. Reign is a band taking what it's created -- the fastest and most vicious form of metal to date from Show No Mercy and on -- and taking it to its peak. Reign in Blood was the best the best could do with such a ear-blistering, unrelenting and chaotic style. South of Heaven is a step forward towards better music, not just metal. It's why Seasons in the Abyss ever happened. Slayer's best moments are heard on this album, with the PERFECT merging of "South of Heaven" and "Silent Scream", the consistent bridges in the belly of the record, and the final hammer swings heard in "Read Between teh Lies" -- one of Slayer's most brutal tracks -- and "Spill the Blood", a spell-binding epic that acts as a precursor to what would be one of the creepiest songs of their careers on Seasons: "Dead Skin Mask". I'm a huge Slayer fan and can listen to anything by them at any point, with the exception of possibly Undisputed Attitude, and I'm saying that South of Heaven is bar-none, one-hundred percent, one of the five best metal records of the last three-decades.
Loading...
|
| ponderer Posts: 153  |
Good review dude. IMO this one is absolutely brilliant and shows off a more technical side to the band. It's brutal, it's fast, but it's also got some chunkier, slower moments that show the band maturing musically. Reign in Blood is fucking epic, but South of Heaven retains its own brilliance.
Loading...
|
| pkillerjp Posts: 122  |
I just don't understand how anyone can call this album boring. Brilliant song writing, awesome atmosphere, killer riffs, elite metal album- perhaps their best.
Loading...
|
| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071 |
Written by pkillerjp on 24.02.2014 at 18:24 Brilliaant album, especially the song South Of Heaven which is an immense concert opener. So menacing, brooding.
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996
Loading...
|
| pkillerjp Posts: 122 |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 24.02.2014 at 18:38 Absolutely, but the best thing about this album is the obscure tracks are really good as well, Behind the Crooked the Cross, Live Undead, Spill the Blood- classic and hardly ever or never included in their set lists over the years.
Loading...
|
| -DC-002- Mastercommander Posts: 1703  |
I appreciate how this album has been talked about recently. This is probably my favorite Slayer release. Reign in blood may have hooked me first but this album made me stick around.
---- Coldgrits
Loading...
|
| Bad English Tage Westerlund Posts: 62002  |
Being a hard core slayer fan to like this I would say that part will fits in next one, but this is good album, not perfect, not best, next is, but good 80's album
---- I stand whit Ukraine and Israel. They have right to defend own citizens. Stormtroopers of Death - "Speak English or Die"  I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
Loading...
|
| BlankFile Posts: 705 |
|
| JoHn Doe Posts: 5081  |
My favorite Slayer album. 
---- I thought the two primary purposes for the internet were cat memes and overreactions.
Loading...
|
Hits total: 9175 | This month: 15