Show No Mercy

Show No Mercy

In 1983, Slayer was still a fledging underground group based out of Tom Araya’s parents’ garage in the South Gate neighborhood of Los Angeles. Araya and his bandmates — guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman and drummer Dave Lombardo — had started out playing Iron Maiden and Judas Priest covers at local parties, but after hearing Metallica they set about creating a sound that was darker and more ferocious than anything that had come before. Financed by Araya (who worked as a respiratory therapist), Show No Mercy shows traces of British Heavy Metal, particularly in the dueling guitars of “Face the Slayer” and the galloping rhythm of “Crionics.” However, most of the album reaches new levels of muscle and rage. “Evil Has No Boundaries,” “The Antichrist” and “Black Magic” pair blistering riffs with satanic proclamations. The guitar solos are searing and deranged — surges of totally untamed electrocution. Though it sounds tame in comparison to Slayer’s subsequent work, Show No Mercy will always be an incendiary statement.

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