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[Did you just call me Coltrane?]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

SOD. Holy shit is that an arcane reference. And talk about stuff that could never be released today.

I fell into Slayer through rap. I listened to a lot of rap on the Def Jam label because they had the best acts (most notably, Public Enemy). A buddy who was a musician decided to try out Reign in Blood as a novelty - the thrash band on the rap label, produced by Rick Rubin.

However, like everyone else who heard it, the minute that album started, you were locked in for 28 minutes. It transcended genres.

It's since slid into regular rotation among general hard rock classics ("Raining Blood" used to be played on big market terrestrial radio in these parts) and become a critics' favorite.

But they were about as far as I could get into death metal. I loved Sabbath of course (who doesn't?) and some of Judas Priest's and Iron Maiden's catalogs was excellent, but that was pretty much mainstream stuff. Venom and Celtic Frost were just too extreme for me. They crossed a line of sorts. You could do almost anything to Slayer, as it was jammed with killer hooks and so perfectly produced. I'm almost certain I've even had sex to it (6 cd changer on shuffle?). That super-dark shit like Venom, where the singers feigned an unnaturally deep register and seemed to perhaps actually worship Satan was just too silly.

That concludes my accidental channeling of Chuck Klosterman for the day.

ETA: If you've done the three-day version of Wagner's Ring Trilogy, you need therapy.

Klosterman - no one sniffs his own farts more.