The approach works, bringing darkness and fury together for an appropriately eerie result. The song’s intro evokes the band in its early incarnation, trading a more modern vocal-only delivery later on.
The haunting intro of “When the Stillness Comes†follows, and it’s darkness all over the listener. The fury of this song can’t be denied, and it’s one of the best that the band has produced in the past decade. The solos near the end are vintage Slayer, and headbanging is mandatory.
“With blood you will paaaaaaayyyyy,†screams bassist/vocalist Tom Araya, and so will you. The haunting intro heralds a furious blast of fury that will make old and new fans bang their heads in approval. “Cast The First Stone†brings back the dark, evil tones early Slayer fans remember and crave. The dirge of “Vices,†particularly, is memorable, with drummer Paul Bostaph (Forbidden, Exodus) making his mark in his return to the band after an absence of over a decade. “Take Control†and “Vices†serve a quick one-two punch, without the listener even noticing a change. More than two years after Hanneman’s death, his presence is more than felt. “I Hate the life / hate the fame / hate the fucking scene†guitarist Kerry King writes his in his fallen friend’s voice, expressing his feelings towards the isolation of fame and his desire to maintain normalcy. Bringing about a dark, swirling atmosphere, it serves as the perfect into to the title track, a paean to founding member Hanneman. The haunting “Delusions of Saviour†is classic Slayer, reminiscent of the intro to 1985’s seminal Hell Awaits. The passage of time hasn’t taken its toll at all, with the unleashing of their twelfth LP (and first without founding guitarist Jeff Hanneman) Repentless. Slayer has brought their brand of darkness and evil (make that ‘EVIL’) to metal for three decades. Their reputation precedes them, being one of the progenitors of the “Satanic Panic†in the late '80s, to influencing just about every thrash band in the current century. But at its best, Repentless reaffirms that Slayer, even shorn of half its original lineup, is still capable of hanging with modern metal’s ever more extreme-leaning factions, all while remaining loyal to a sound they helped to create more than 30 years ago.It’s not like you don’t know what’s coming when Slayer hits your ears. “Vices” and end-of-the-world diatribe “Implode” are clearly built for speed but instead wind up stuck in a sort of stasis - rather than heavy, they just feel leaden. Repentless does falter, however, when Slayer sounds like it’s overthinking. Whereas most modern metal frontmen employ cartoonish shrieks and growls to evoke an over-the-top feeling of dread, Araya’s tuneless shout positions him as something more authentic - an enraged Everyman. Singer-bassist Tom Araya’s vocals, on the other hand, are delightfully dry and straightforward.
The best cuts - the punky “Atrocity Vendor,” the Hanneman tribute title track - effortlessly show that classic Slayer attitude: Guitars, played mostly by stalwart leader Kerry King, are sawtoothed and designed to cut rather than pummel, and the drums (by Paul Bostaph, replacing original Slayer member Dave Lombardo for the second time in the act’s history) pound, tumble and constantly reshuffle the beat.