Customer Reviews

Christ Illusion

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4 star:		(63)
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2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

SLAYER - Christ Illusion
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Within seconds of `Flesh Storm' it was clear that Lombardo was back behind the kit and not only as competent as his last studio album with Slayer (Seasons in the Abyss) but had actually raised the bar.
Truthfully I loved Bostaph... I was sold from the `Killing Fields' intro and was quite sad to hear of his departure from the band. With all the hype of Lombardo coming back I was thinking this album would just be another `standard' modern Slayer album... Boy was I wrong! Lombardo used his time away from Slayer to become better grounded and gained much more `groove' in addition to his fantastic speed/thrash abilities. Playing with such greats as Fantomas (With Mike Patton), John Zorn and even Apocalyptica.

Christ Illusion is easily the most consistent album since `Seasons...' with not one bad song to be heard. Though Slayer may never again rival the Reign / South / Season Trilogy that does not make this a bad album by any means and to be putting out music this good (And this heavy!) after almost 25 years is a grand achievement by all rights.

In addition to the fantastic drumming of Lombardo, there is the skillful guitar work of King and Hanneman whose performances are amazing as always. Araya's voice is holding out quite well for a man his age and his Bass playing tight as hell!

Favorite Songs: Cult, Jihad, Supremist and Consfearacy
-4.5 Stars

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In a move almost no one expected, Slayer has released arguably the best metal record of 2006 in Christ Illusion. There is going to be a lot of people who will hear the VERY recognizable elements of Slayer on this and will quickly dismiss this as more "same old, same old", and in doing so will miss out on what is the best songwriting package Slayer has delivered since "Seasons In The Abyss" 16 years ago.

This record is the prototypical modern era Slayer record. It has all of the elements that make Slayer, well, Slayer.. the speed, the thrash, the aggression. However, Slayer's core sound has continually expanded as they evolve with the metal scene. There are some black metal influences here, some Nile-like guitar riffing, even some metalcore influences in the heavy double bass beat patterns all over the record. Still, Slayer makes all of these elements their own and successfully incorporates them into their own style - without comprising anything that makes Slayer Slayer. The most important element here is the songwriting.

A key factor is the return of original drummer Dave Lombardo. Since Dave left, he has continued to grow and evolve as a drummer in the many projects he was involved in, and this diversity and experience really comes through here. Dave delivers, in my opinion, his most inspiring and interesting drum performance on Christ Illusion. Paul Bostaph, most agree, is a better pure technical metal drummer. A true machine. Lombardo's style however is KEY to Slayer's sound and his return highlights that. Has his feet ever sounded faster than on "Supremist"? Is that an actual blastbeat I hear? YES!

This is the first record since Seasons in which I can honestly say that I like every track. The previous few Slayer records "God Hates Us All", "Diabolus in Musica" and "Divine Intervention" all had their good moments and their forgettable moments. Christ Illusion is really a strong record as a whole without any glowing weaknesses.

If there is a weaker track, for me its probably, ironically, the much hyped lead track "Cult". This has more to do with the over-the-top lyrical content. It's not that I'm offended in the least, it just comes across so overtly as to approach parody. Jesus Christ this Jesus Christ that, "I've made my choice! 666!". I just feel it detracts slightly from the song. A great song to scare the parents with though.

A note on Slayer lyrical content: Art has a responsibility for each age to document things that don't go into a history book. People's fears, their desires, the mood of the times, the lifestyle, the beliefs, the ugliness, the beauty. This is reflected through song, through sculpture, through paintings, through books. Slayer is a reflection of the darkness of modern society. Violence, warfare, destruction, murder, corruption, genocide, betrayal, slavery, control, fear, punishment, religion. Whether it's recounting the horrors of the Jewish holocaust in "Angel of Death" or viewing the 9/11 event through the eyes of a terrorist on "Jihad", Slayer touch upon the dark realities of life that people don't like to think about. They do this without glorifying, without judgment or even condemnation - they merely reflect what "Is", music being their canvas. If the world ever ends, Slayer will play the soundtrack. Having said that, sometimes Slayer try a bit too hard to be "Satanic". While no one in the band is a Satanist (vocalist Araya is in fact a practicing Catholic), the lyrics are just Kerry King's way of rejecting organized religion (King writes most Slayer lyrics and music), it can still become near comical if it's used too much. An example is "Cult". A minor point.

While I genuinely enjoy every song on the record, a few highlights:

"Flesh Storm" - A great Slayer album opener. Very catchy chorus, the break down near the end has a heavy groove and is classic Slayer.

"Jihad" - definitely one of Slayer's most controversial songs, lyrically, and musically one of their most unique. Doesn't sound like any other Slayer song and shows off impressive tempo changes and dynamic shifts. Really creepy monologue delivered by Araya at the end.

"Skeleton Christ" - a medium tempo crushing song. A song that wouldn't seem too out of place on a Chimaira record. Heavy, pounding, mid tempo behemoth of a song. Great Chorus.

"Supremist" - could be Slayer's fastest song. A true blazer, heavy and relentless. The slow ending with Araya reciting "Must maintain control of the weak / must contain the minds of the free" is a picture perfect example of a Slayer moment to send a shiver down your spine.

Slayer has returned, and in returning they have ascended back to their throne, and retaken their dominion over all that is metal.

After 1990's classic "Seasons In The Abyss," Slayer parted ways with original drummer Dave Lombardo, and then (maybe coincidentally) proceeded to go downhill. 1994's "Divine Intervention," 1998's "Diabolus In Musica," and 2001's "God Hates Us All" were all decent enough, but no where near as novel or all around great as their earlier releases, and thus, Slayer lost some fans. Well, Lombardo returned to Slayer's live act a couple of years ago, and the band entered the studio last year with their original lineup for the first time in fifteen years, making some fans have a rekindled hope and high expectations for Slayer's tenth studio recording, "Christ Illusion."

"Christ Illusion" isn't a timeless classic like, say, 1986's "Reign In Blood," and it in no way reinvents the band or the genre. But it is, hands down, the fastest, most inspired, most powerful, and all around best Slayer release since the aforementioned "Seasons In The Abyss." Guitarist Kerry King (who wrote most of the album) could use a few new song ideas, but bare in mind that he has a reputation to live up to, so he can't drift too far from his famous subject matter.

The guitar shredding (done by Jeff Hanneman and the above mentioned Kerry King) is, as expected, fantastic. The riffs are smoking, the leads are lightning fast, and the solos are careening. Another area in which "CI" succeeds is in the vocal department, because frontman Tom Araya has improved his performance. His yelling is still kind of grating at times, but for the most part, Araya sounds more committed, a little more diverse, and all around much more listenable than he did on "God Hates Us All."

"Flesh Storm" and "Catalyst" blow the album's door open, and are about the fastest songs Slayer have written since the umpteen year old "War Ensemble." Both of these songs blindside the listener with brutal, blistering, insanely fast, dual guitar leads and two solos. Track three, "Eyes Of The Insane," slows down the album's pace significantly for a few tracks, but things pick up again for song number six, "Consfearacy," which is another blinding guitar onslaught.

"Skeleton Christ" is backed by punching, cascading riffs and a catchy, rhythmic drum beat, and "Catatonic" boasts crunchy, churning, lumbering power chords. But the album's best two songs are probably "Black Serenade" and "Cult." The former song effortlessly changes speeds as it segues from thunderous, pounding riffs to buzzsaw leads to wild, off-the-map solos. And the latter, "Cult," is another scorcher with stellar, remarkably fast drumming by Lombardo. It's also highlighted by some of Kerry King's most blunt and openly blasphemous lyrics to date (such as "Religion is hate/religion is war" and "I've made my choice...six six six!") These lyrics will undoubtedly get tattooed to your brain, whether you want them to or not, after just one listen. And finally, the set closer, "Supremist," is also of note because it features the first ever blast beats in a Slayer song.

Slayer are probably not going to make another indisputable masterpiece like their discs from the 1980's, but this album shows that they definitely still have some life left. If you gave up on Slayer in the early Nineties, it's doubtful that "Christ Illusion" will change your mind, but it will surely put a huge smile on every fan's face.

I tried to love this CD because it is the return of Dave Lombardo but it just leaves almost NO impression on me. Kerry King has been writing most of the Slayer material for the past decade and quite frankly I think it is dry and uninteresting. Jeff Hanneman was the driving force behind the great days of Slayer and I don't know if he is just getting bored with the band or if he has lost his magic for writing great songs. Jeff has abondoned most of the song writing leaving King in charge. Sorry Kerry, but you are a subpar song writer at best. Your lyrics are juvenile and your wah guitar leads are annoying. I have a feeling that unless Jeff Hanneman gets inspired to write some new material we are doomed to listen to Kerry King's C level version of Slayer. JEFF WHERE ARE YOU????

4.5 Stars out of 5
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Well, this is what any old school thrash fan has waited for. And they have got what they asked for. It's the first Slayer album with Dave Lombardo since Seasons in the Abyss (1990). Many fans consider this to be their best album since that album. Personally I cxan't say that cuz I also liked Diabolus and God Hates. Hell, I like every Slayer album (ok, I never really cared for Divine Intervention, to be honest), but a good album it is. And contrary to some morons, this is not nu-metal, and neither GHUA and DIM were. Those 2 albums were not exactly thrash due to the downtuned guitars but real metal they were. The only 2 bad things I can say about those albums are that the lyrics and the vocals were weak. But other than that they were great and unfairly criticized CDs. But on the other hand Chirst Illusion is REAL thrash, not nu-metal in any aspect. I mean, can nu-metal get so intense with a dual guitar shredding and an actual GOOD drummer? Also they classic Slayer lyrics are back, this is a anti-war and anti-christian/islam album, so... not for the easily offended. And it also has the hands down best production since South of Heaven. The bass here is also quite audible. But what really makes this album rule is the guitars. Kerry and Jeff have never played this good since the late 80's.

So, why not 5 stars? Well, it's not completely without flaws. I mainly have 2 complains here; a) For those who have missed the vocals on Hell Awaits, Reign in Blood, South of Heaven and Seasons, they are no different than those on DIM and GHUA (aside from the fact Tom doesn't use the F-word every 2 seconds), they're no too bad but I would be happier if they were rawer and angrier. b) The song 'Catatonic' is not too good. But besides, a near masterpiece. Everything here is amazing.

All the songs (except 'Catatonic') are good but my favorite is possibly the opener 'Flesh Storm' for the speed and solos. 'Eyes Of The Insane' is also very creepy. And I also like the 2 fan favorites 'Cult' and 'Jihad'.

So, it's not Reign in Blood, Hell Awaits or South of Heaven, but what is? This is one of the best pure thrash albums in years and one of my top 10 of metal in '06. Once you buy this, you'll foget all about the new stuff from Megadeth and Anthrax and don't get me started about those sellouts who put the middle finger to their old fans in 1991 (I think you know who I'm talking about).

UP THE IRONS!!!

I am sorry, but most Slayer fans were dissapointed with the last two albums. The band strayed away from their signature sound in an attempt to modernize and to expand their fan base. With this album, Slayer have given up that false hope and returned to their roots. Unfortunately, this album still isn't all that great.
First the positive:
Most of the songs are fast and thrashy, and the missing-in-action leadwork is back. Tom screams about killing, war, and hating religion (all Slayer staples). There isn't too much new-metal incorporated into the album, although there is still some. They chose to use a bunch of leftover material from their early days. "Jihad" is a great modern-sounding Slayer song. Tom doesn't just scream curse words as lyrics as on "God Hates Us All". The biggest positive is that for the first time in fifteen years, Slayer has released an album that sounds like it was created by Slayer.
Now for the negative:
Tom is still doing the annoying punk thing he picked up when the band did "Undisputed Attitude". It's not like he was ever the greatest singer anyways, but this makes it worse. Kerry wrote most of the songs, so while they are fast, they really aren't all that great. Most of the riffs sound like inferior rehashings of older material. For instance, the opening riff of "Flesh Storm" is just a variation of the opening riff to "Angel of Death". While Dave Lombardo is an incredible drummer, he never did anything all that special with Slayer except play fast. Of course, Tom's bass playing is ever-absent. A few of the songs just drag on and on, and they get quite annoying. Honestly, this album just sounds like a collection of crappy B-sides from the past 15 years. It is 2/3 "Seasons" (the worst from this album)and 1/3 "God Hates Us All"(Perhaps the best from this record). All of this "Reign in Blood"-style talk is unfounded. It's not that fast, and one speed-metal riff does not mean that this album sounds like "Show No Mercy".
It is a thrash album. It does sound like slayer. Lots of crazy leads(actually, the leadwork is more structured than in the past, and in many ways better). Dave is back. If this album came out a decade ago, I would have cared. Not now. It just isn't good enough to be relevant. Too little, too late.

Before anyone blasts my review, please do me a favor and do an Internet search for "dynamic range compression" as this will give you a glimpse of what I'm talking about here.

First, I will say I am a fan of this "new" Slayer and the old. I love the music over all, but this CD and the original release are a mess from a technical stand point.

Track 10 - Supremist is laced with clipped peaks in the music. This manifests itself as static sounding. It's especially noticeable in the final 30-40 seconds of the track.

When you wonder what dynamic range compression is, I compare it to this:

If you punch someone in the face repeatedly, you have a lasting impact.
If you punch someone in the face and just hold your fist there, the impact is lessened and probably closer to no effect at all.

Dynamic range compression is the latter while proper mastering is the former. Dynamic range compression brings the levels of every instrument to the same level, lessening the impact of solos, drums, vocals and the music over all.

The first time I listened to this CD I couldn't make it past track 6. I had to stop as it just drains you while listening to it as it is literally in your face (so to speak) the entire time.

Slayer really should go back and "remaster" this properly from the original digital recordings so it sounds as amazing as it likely would live.

By now you've probably read a broad spectrum of reviews ranging from one-star to five-stars. The one-star ratings tend to be from folks who are looking for 'Reign in Blood II'. The five stars tend to be from folks who tend to like anything Slayer does.

I have been a Slayer fan since 'South of Heaven' and have every album. Some are better than others, but Slayer ALWAYS BRINGS IT with every album. Basically, all I have to say is that if you are a Slayer fan, this album is worth picking up. I personally think it's their best since 'Seasons in the Abyss' (I didn't think they were going to top 'God Hates Us All', but they did). The lyrics are some of their most intense in a few albums (except maybe 'Disciple' from GHUA). You might listen to it and feel otherwise, but I think it's almost guaranteed that a true Slayer fan will like this album (even if it you feel it's not their best). If you like Slayer just buy the darn thing and enjoy it. Crank it up, don't overanalyze it, and make up your own mind.
BTW - Regardless of how one feels about this album, it is definitely NOT NU-METAL. I think that is an accusation leveled by haters just to discredit a band or their work. The label does not apply here in any way, shape, or form.

I love Slayer and have for years however other then the first track on here, I just didnt feel it with this album. Alot of it just sounds fast for the sake of being fast..Where are those riffs that make you want to throw a relative from a ten story window? A joke folks but as much as some people on here whine about God Hates Us All, I find that alubm much more interesting then this one. People whine about how Tom's voice was "jarring" and "grating" on God Hates. Look if you want phantom of the opera go somewhere else. Tom isnt a singer but what I like about his vocals is the feeling behind them. He honestly sounds like someone in torment..screaming and not giving a damn what people think about it.. I respect the brutality of it, most fans do. Look if you like Slayer then buy this album..however I will have to agree with one of the above commentaries, Jeff needs to start writing some material again. I think he balanced Kerry out, so hopefully that will happen sometime in the future.

If you hated Reign and Seasons, you'll probably hate this one too. If you loved them, it's still not a safe bet, but it's worth a listen.

The good news is that this is easily Slayer's best effort in years, especially if you prefer their classic sound. Lombardo's return has definitely been an improvement.

The bad news is that it's still not as good as their older stuff and a lot of it sounds suspiciously familiar. It's sort of like one of those "Lost Tracks" CDs that a band puts out after their frontman dies - like leftovers and alternates from Reign and Seasons (not such a bad thing). A lot of the "blasphemy" seems forced or overly calculated ("we're still evil, we promise!!").

I still like it a lot. I certainly prefer it to their last several efforts. I'm hoping this was just a warmup for greater things.