Slayer was an American thrash metal band formed in Huntington Park, California in 1981. The original lineup comprised Kerry King (guitar), Jeff Hannerman (guitar), Dave Lombardo (drums) and Tom Araya (vocals, bass).
Their fast, aggressive style made them one of thrash metal’s “big four” bands along with Anthrax, Metallica and Megadeth.
The band won numerous awards including 2 Grammy Awards out of 5 nominations.
Table of Contents
Best Slayer Albums Of All Time
Slayer released 12 studio albums and as always we will rank them as we see them from the rest to the best.
12. Diabolus In Musica (1998)
This was the band’s 8th studio album which was released on June 9th 1998. The title is Latin for “The Devil In Music” and most of the content was written by guitarist Jeff Hannerman.
It was their first album to be played mostly in C# tuning and named after a musical interval which is known for its dissonance.
The album peaked at number 27 on the UK album charts and number 31 on the US Billboard 200 chart.
11. Undisputed Attitude (1996)
“Undisputed Attitude” is the band’s 7th studio album which was released on May 28th 1996 and consists of covers mainly of punk rock and hardcore punk songs.
It also includes 2 tracks written by Jeff Hannerman during the mid 1980s when he was working on a side project called Smear.
There are covers of songs by artists such as the Stooges, Dr. Know, Minor Threat and Verbal Abuse.
The album peaked at number 34 on the Billboard 200 chart in the US and number 31 in the UK.
10. God Hates Us All (2001)
Released on September 11th 2001, “God Hates Us All” is the band’s 9th studio album. This album marks a return to their earlier thrash metal style with some experimentation with the Nu metal sound.
They recorded the album in Vancouver, Canada in a studio owned by Bryan Adams – The Warehouse Studio.
The album explores the themes of religion, revenge, murder and self-control.
It peaked at number 31 on the UK album chart and number 28 on the Billboard 200 chart in the US.
9. Christ Illusion (2006)
Released on August 8th 2006, this was their first album featuring all 4 of their original line up in more than 16 years and was Slayer’s 10th studio album.
They released 2 singles from this album which were; “Cult” and “Eyes Of The Insane”.
The band won 2 Grammy Awards for the songs “Eyes Of The Insane” and “Final Six” taken from this album.
This album peaked at number 5 on the US Billboard 200 chart and number 23 on the UK album chart.
8. Divine Intervention (1994)
“Divine Intervention” is Slayer’s 6th studio album which was released on September 27th 1994.
It was their first album to feature Paul Bostaph (drums) who replaced Dave Lombardo who left the band 2 years earlier.
It was released 4 years after their previous studio album “Seasons in the Abyss “ in 1990. Which meant they could spend far longer on the production of this album.
The album peaked at number 8 on the US Billboard 200 chart and number 15 on the UK album chart.
7. Repentless (2015)
“Repentless” is the 12th and final studio album by Slayer. It was released on September 11th 2015 and was their only album recorded without guitarist Jeff Hannerman who died 2 years earlier.
Jeff was replaced by Gary Holt and this album was also the first to feature Paul Bostaph (drums) since 2001s “God Hates Us All”.
They released 3 singles from this album which were; “Repentless”, “You Against Me” and “Pride In Prejudice”.
The album peaked at number 4 on the US Billboard 200 chart and number 11 in the UK.
SEE ALSO:
6. Hell Awaits (1985)
This was the band’s 2nd studio album which was released in March 1985.
Although the album never made the charts, it received mainly positive reviews from the music critics. It also marked Slayer’s distinctive dark thrash metal sound.
“Hell Awaits” is still cited as a major influence for many artists including Phil Anselmo and Dimebag Darrell.
5. Show No Mercy (1983)
“Show No Mercy” was Slayer’s debut album which was released in December 1983.
The band financed the recording of this album themselves and although it has been criticised for its poor production quality, it became Metal Blade Records Biggest Seller.
The label’s usual album release sales totalled around 5,000 copies and “Show No Mercy” sold around 35,000 copies worldwide.
4. World Painted Blood (2009)
Released on November 3rd 2009, this was the band’s 11th studio album.
It was their last album to feature Jeff Hannerman (guitar) and Dave Lombardo (drums).
It is also their last studio album to feature their full original line up.
They released 4 different covers for this album which, if put together displays a map of the world painted red.
They released 3 singles from this album which were; “Psychopathy Red”, “Hate Worldwide” and “World Painted Red”.
The album peaked at number 12 on the US Billboard 200 chart and number 41 on the UK album charts.
3. South Of Heaven (1988)
This is the band’s 4th studio album which was released on July 5th 1988.
This album is markedly slower than their previous album “Reign In Blood” (1986) and they used clean sounding guitars and toned-down vocals.
They released one single from this album which was the title track which became a popular track at live shows.
The album peaked at number 25 on the UK album chart and number 57 on the Billboard 200 chart in the US.
2. Seasons In The Abyss (1990)
Released on October 9th 1990 “Seasons In The Abyss” is the 5th studio album by Slayer.
They released 2 singles from this album which were; “Spirit In Black” and the title track.
The album peaked at number 18 on the UK album chart and number 40 on the Billboard 200 in the US.
1. Reign In Blood (1986)
“Reign In Blood” is the 3rd studio album by Slayer which was released on October 7th 1986.
This was the band’s first collaboration with Producer Rick Rubin who played a large part in the development of their iconic sound.
This was the album that brought Slayer to the attention of the mainstream metal fans.
This album received no radio airplay at all but still managed to get charted on the Billboard 200 chart peaking at number 94 and getting as high as number 47 on the UK album chart.
“Reign In Blood” is considered to be one of the most influential thrash metal albums of all time. Which is why it’s number one in our rankings.
SEE ALSO: Bands Like Slayer (similar music you’re guaranteed to love!)
All Slayer Albums In Chronological Order
| Album | Date |
|---|---|
| Show No Mercy | 1983 |
| Hell Awaits | 1985 |
| Reign in Blood | 1986 |
| South of Heaven | 1988 |
| Seasons in the Abyss | 1990 |
| Divine Intervention | 1994 |
| Undisputed Attitude | 1996 |
| Diabolus in Musica | 1998 |
| God Hates Us All | 2001 |
| Christ Illusion | 2006 |
| World Painted Blood | 2009 |
| Repentless | 2015 |
SEE ALSO: Cannibal Corpse Albums Ranked
THEN SEE: Metallica Albums Ranked (rated from worst to best)AND THEN CHECK OUT: Megadeth – Impressive Facts You Didn’t Know!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best selling Slayer album?
The best selling Slayer album is “South Of Heaven” which has sold more than 600,000 copies worldwide.
What is the newest Slayer album?
The newest Slayer album is “Repentless” which was released on September 11th 2015.
What is the first Slayer album?
The first Slayer album is “Show No Mercy” which was released in December 1983.
What is Slayer’s most famous song?
Slayer’s most famous song is “Raining Blood” which is taken from their 1986 album “Reign In Blood”.
When did Slayer start?
Slayer formed in Huntington Park, California USA in 1981.
What genre is Slayer?
Slayer’s genre is thrash metal.
Who are the members of Slayer?
Past members of Slayer are; Kerry King, Tom Araya, Jeff Hannerman, Dave Lombardo, Paul Bostaph, Jon Dette and Gary Holt.
Disclosure: We are a professional review site that receives compensation from the companies whose products we review.