Slayer is an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by bassist/vocalist Tom Araya, guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King, and drummer Dave Lombardo.

The group started out playing covers of songs by bands such as Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest and Venom at parties and clubs in Southern California.

Impressed with Slayer, he met with the band backstage and asked them to record an original song for his upcoming Metal Massacre III compilation album.

[7] Def Jam's distributor, Columbia Records, refused to release the album due to the song "Angel of Death"[7] which detailed Holocaust concentration camps and the human experiments conducted by Nazi physician Josef Mengele.

[7] Although the band was not happy with the final product, Hanneman deeming it "a poor representation of Slayer" and King labeling it "a hunk of shit", it was one of their first songs to garner radio airplay.

Bostaph's first studio effort was a medley of three Exploited songs, "War", "UK '82", and "Disorder", with rapper Ice-T, for the Judgment Night movie soundtrack in 1993.

Other themes included murder, the evils of church, and the lengths to which governments went to wield power, Araya's interest in serial killers inspired much of the content of the lyrics.

The album featured three original tracks, "Gemini", "Can't Stand You", "Ddamm"; the latter two were written by Hanneman in 1984–1985 for a side project entitled Pap Smear.

With Bostaph's departure, Slayer recruited Testament drummer Jon Dette, and headlined the 1996 Ozzfest alongside Ozzy Osbourne, Danzig, Biohazard, Sepultura, and Fear Factory.

Blabbermouth.net reviewer Borivoj Krgin described the album as "a feeble attempt at incorporating updated elements into the group's sound, the presence of which elevated the band's efforts somewhat and offered hope that Slayer could refrain from endlessly rehashing their previous material for their future output",[34] while Ben Ratliff of The New York Times had similar sentiments, writing on June 22, 1998, that: "Eight of the 11 songs on Diabolus in Musica, a few of which were played at the show, are in the same gray key, and the band's rhythmic ideas have a wearying sameness too.

[36] Slayer teamed up with digital hardcore group Atari Teenage Riot to record a song for the Spawn soundtrack titled "No Remorse (I Wanna Die)".

[39] The September 11 attacks on America jeopardized the 2001 European tour Tattoo the Planet originally set to feature Pantera, Static-X, Cradle of Filth, Biohazard and Vision of Disorder.

The dates in the United Kingdom were postponed due to flight restrictions, with a majority of bands deciding to withdraw, leaving Slayer and Cradle of Filth remaining for the European leg of the tour.

[40] Pantera, Static-X, Vision of Disorder and Biohazard were replaced by other bands depending on location; Amorphis, In Flames, Moonspell, Children of Bodom, and Necrodeath.

The band also released War at the Warfield and a box set, Soundtrack to the Apocalypse featuring rarities, live CD and DVD performances and various Slayer merchandise.

[52] In Flames, Mastodon, Children of Bodom, Lamb of God, and Thine Eyes Bleed (featuring Araya's brother, Johnny) and Ted Maul (London Hammersmith Apollo) were supporting Slayer.

[53] The tour made its way through America and Europe and the bands who participated, apart from Thine Eyes Bleed, reunited to perform at Japan's Loudpark Festival on October 15, 2006.

[76] On April 23, 2011, at the American Big 4 show in Indio, California, Hanneman rejoined his bandmates to play the final two songs of their set, "South of Heaven" and "Angel of Death".

"[91] On May 2, 2013, Hanneman died due to liver failure in a local hospital near his home in Southern California's Inland Empire;[92][93] the cause of death was later determined to be alcohol-related cirrhosis.

[111] When speaking to Revolver, King was asked if there were any plans in place for the band to begin working on the album, he said, "Funny thing is, Repentless isn't even two years old yet, though it seems like it is.

"[130] The final North American leg of the tour, dubbed "The Last Campaign", took place in November 2019, and also included support from Primus, Ministry and Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals.

[133] However, within two days after the tour's completion, King's wife Ayesha stated on her Instagram page that there is "not a chance in hell" that Slayer would ever reunite to perform more shows or release new music.

[141] Lombardo has been involved with various acts since his third split with Slayer in 2013, such as Suicidal Tendencies, Dead Cross, the Misfits, Mr. Bungle and Testament, the latter of where he had previously served as the drummer for the band's 1999 album The Gathering and rejoined in March 2022,[142][143] only to leave again in the following April.

[148][149] Araya, aside from an appearance in the Bay Area thrash metal documentary film Murder in the Front Row, had not been publicly active in the music industry nor given any interviews between the conclusion of Slayer's final tour and the band's 2024 reunion.

[163] Slayer will play its first show in the UK in six years at Villa Park on July 5, 2025 as one of the supporting acts (alongside Metallica, Anthrax, Pantera, Alice in Chains and Mastodon) for Black Sabbath's final concert, dubbed "Back to the Beginning".

"[168] In an article from September 1988 by the New York Times, writer Jon Pareles also described Slayer as speed metal, additionally writing that the band "brings the sensational imagery of tabloids and horror movies" and has lyrics that "revel in death, gore and allusions to Satanism and Nazism.

[citation needed] AllMusic cited the album as "abandoning the extravagances and accessibility of their late-'80s/early-'90s work and returning to perfect the raw approach",[170] with some fans labeling it as nu metal.

[1][176] Slayer's "downtuned rhythms, infectious guitar licks, graphically violent lyrics and grisly artwork set the standard for dozens of emerging thrash bands" and their "music was directly responsible for the rise of death metal" states MTV, ranking Slayer as the sixth "greatest metal band of all time",[177] ranking number 50 on VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock.

[178] Hanneman and King ranked number 10 in Guitar World's "100 greatest metal guitarists of all time" in 2004,[179] and were voted "Best Guitarist/Guitar Team" in Revolver's reader's poll.

"[184] Groups who cited Slayer among their major influences include Cannibal Corpse,[181] Pantera,[185] Kreator,[186] Sepultura,[187] Children of Bodom,[188] Mayhem,[189] Darkthrone,[181] Avenged Sevenfold,[190] Bullet for My Valentine,[191] Trivium,[192] As I Lay Dying,[193] All That Remains,[194] System of a Down,[195] Killswitch Engage,[196] Slipknot,[197] Machine Head,[198] DevilDriver,[199] Lamb of God,[200] Gojira,[201] Behemoth,[202] Evile[203] and Lacuna Coil.