Reviews list for Slayer - God Hates Us All (2001)

Probably the angriest album ever recorded. Definitely Slayer’s most vulgar, as well as their poorest lyrically, with way too many songs dedicated to “Fxck you, I’m gonna fxck you up, you better get the fxck out of my way.” It’s probably my least favorite Slayer record aside from their covers album for that reason. Although, another important reason would be how rhythmic it is; the band’s clearest foray into Groove Metal, and their most uninspired riffs go hand in hand with their most generically juvenile lyricism. I don’t hear the Nu Metal seasoning that many others seem to claim, but it’s definitely got a stain of “Modern Metal” on it. Many of the songs here don’t have any super iconic riffs, which is an absolute sin for any Thrash band. Even Diabolus, which I find much more underrated, did much better at crafting dark moods at the least, even if some of the riffs were similarly lacking a bit. Tom’s got a bit more production layered on his vocals here too, which in my opinion he doesn’t need and they just make him sound worse.

Why the high rating then? Cause at the end of the day, it’s still fxcking Slayer, the best fxcking Thrash band on the fxcking planet. “Disciple” is probably the angriest, most misanthropic anthem ever recorded, Araya going above and beyond delivering an intense vocal performance that is simply awe-inspiring in its aggression. “Deviance” is one of the bands most ominous and unique sounding songs ever, with a slight Gothic edge and unnerving double-tracked vocals delivering deeply disturbing lyrics. “Here Comes the Pain” is a slow build packed with power, whereas “Payback” has all the intensity and hate of aforementioned “Disciple,” all directed at a single person.

It's definitely got the most filler of any Slayer album, but even then the songs are still great. “Cast Down” fails to deliver any truly memorable riffs, but it’s incredibly unique in having one of the most somber and “real” themes in Slayer’s discography about the struggles and despair of drug addiction. “Bloodline” similarly lacks much musical punch, but is one of their catchier numbers, as “radio friendly” as this band got with a simple music structure, a focus on the chorus, and lyrics about vampires (which just barely precede the boom of vampirism in pop culture.)

So sure, it’s one of Slayer’s worst albums, but it’s also still Slayer fxcking shxt up like they always have, it pumps me up and melts my skin off, it’s got more intensity in it than most bands have in their entire career, and there is no better album to reach for if you just need pure, unfiltered rage.

Oh yeah, and it was released in 9/11, so that’s just one extra “fxck you” that comes with the package.

Slayer on their 2001 offering resemble a poor man's Hatebreed only with better lead work.  Nearly all semblance of their thrash routes are lost beneath a horrible mix and as a result Araya's vocals sound like he's formed a side project hardcore band.  There's times on this that the band remind me of a marginally more laughable Biohazard, such is the style of the direction here.

It all just feels like smash n' grab, juvenile shouty music and is a massive disappointment for any longtime fan of the group.  I mean, I thought Metallica had dropped the ball post the black album but fuck me this is up there with "St Anger" as one of the all time turkeys ever recorded by an established artist.  The frenzied pace is still most definitely there and the aggression that sits behind too is just as familiar, it is just somehow completely off in terms of the delivery.

I can see how younger listeners would enjoy it more than a seasoned thrasher would as somehow it retains an air of accessibility throughout but then again it also reeks of a band trying too hard to stay relevant.

Given my disappointment with Slayer’s previous outing I wasn’t exactly holding my breath in anticipation when it came to 2001’s “God Hates Us All”. 1998’s “Diabolus In Musica” was a strange release that seemed to indicate that the band had little idea of what direction to take at that point in their careers. They’d clearly decided that it was time for a change but had then only half-committed to it which had resulted in an unconvincing effort that wasn’t helped by an inadequate production job. There were certainly some promising elements but these were cancelled out by some very ordinary ones. So if Slayer were to get back on track then they would have to do it with confidence & an erected middle finger pointed squarely at their detractors.  

I’ll be perfectly honest & say that (although I don’t subscribe to the thought that artists hold any obligation to their fan base around staying true to their musical roots) I was generally horrified by the nu-metal moments on “Diabolus In Musica”. It was an indication that even the great Slayer could be tempted by the lure of popularity & wealth. The motive behind their newly-detuned guitar sound was also a concern & I was left with a number of questions. Would they return to their pure thrash metal roots or would they continue further in the nu-metal direction they had hinted at? If so, would they fully commit to it & make a better fist of it this time? Interestingly the answers to these questions didn’t end up being as straight forward as I thought they might be.  

Firstly, whether you like the end result or not it’s hard to deny that “God Hates Us All” has a much more defined concept & purpose than its predecessor. There’s none of the genre-jumping & inconsistency that plagued “Diabolus In Musica” & the band seemed to have a much better understanding of what they were trying to achieve. All the songs are working towards a common goal & that goal seems to be to blow your head off with aggression & hate. This is one angry record! Sure they’ve made angry records before but they’ve generally had more variety & progression than this one. There are none of the more brooding & atmospheric tracks that we’ve grown accustomed to hearing since the late 1980’s. The production really accentuates the crushing heaviness of the music but it also causes a lot of the record to sound a little samey.  

Style-wise this is a very different Slayer to the one I grew up with too. The continued use of detuned guitars is noteworthy but there isn’t much in the way of the nu-metal rubbish that plagued “Diabolus In Musica”. It may pop up every so often but there aren’t any songs that are primarily driven by that sound. That’s not to say that we have a return to the classic Slayer thrash metal sound that we all know & love either though. Their trademark thrash sound has been fused with a combination of ultra-aggressive hardcore punk & some very obviously Machine Head-influenced groove metal. I’m not much of a fan of either of those sounds so my first listen was a bit of a struggle but as I grew more familiar with the material it started to dawn on me that while it may not be the Slayer I know so well it’s still a bloody intense & professionally put together metal record.  

The album opens with a weird & fairly pedestrian intro track called “Darkness Of Christ” which doesn’t really work & is probably the weakest moment on the record however that lull is promptly F’d in the A when the massive “Disciple” kicks in. It’s comfortably my album highlight & it pretty much leads into pure carnage all the way after that. This makes it difficult to pick out individual tracks as there is a pretty consistent feel across the record but “Exile” is another standout. There are certainly some weaker moments (like “New Faith” & “Here Comes The Pain” for instance) but the ultra-heavy production does tend to carry them to an extent. I also feel that the flatter tracks generally coincide with the more obvious Machine Head-isms. In all honesty there is stuff on this record that sounds disturbingly like that band & although it’s very well done I find it a bit hard to accept that the great Slayer has stooped to mere emulation of a popular style &/or artist. Having said that it’s also difficult to deny the enthusiasm that the band shows across the board. Tom Araya screams like a madman throughout & although he’s pretty effective there are definitely some tracks that could have been improved by a different approach. It’s interesting that the trademark guitar solos have taken a back seat & are not the mandatory requirement that they have been across Slayer’s entire career. I’m not sure how I feel about that really.  

At the end of the day “God Hates Us All” is a very solid & professional metal release that ticks many boxes with me. Unfortunately I can’t deny that the more groove metal heavy sound does put me off a bit & I’d also like a bit more variety of feel & atmosphere but the overall anger & heaviness appeals to me quite a bit. It’s certainly an underrated album that deserves a little more appreciation than it gets.