Diabolus in Musica Album
- Release date: June 9, 1998
- Label: American Recordings
- Running time: 40:30
- US highest chart position: 31
| Track listing | Song credits | Time | Lyrics |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01. Bitter Peace | (Hanneman) | 4:31 | read |
| 02. Death's Head | (Hanneman) | 3:29 | read |
| 03. Stain of Mind | (Hanneman/King) | 3:25 | read |
| 04. Overt Enemy | (Hanneman) | 4:41 | read |
| 05. Perversions of Pain | (Hanneman/King) | 3:30 | read |
| 06. Love to Hate | (Hanneman/King) | 3:05 | read |
| 07. Desire | (Araya/Hanneman) | 4:18 | read |
| 08. In the Name of God | (King) | 3:38 | read |
| 09. Scrum | (Hanneman/King) | 2:18 | read |
| 10. Screaming from the Sky | (Araya/Hanneman/King) | 3:12 | read |
| 11. Wicked (on Euro/Japan ed.) | (Araya/Bostaph/Hanneman/King) | 6:01 | read |
| 12. Point | (Hanneman/King) | 4:12 | read |
| 13. Unguarded Instinct (on Japan ed.) | (Hanneman/King) | 3:42 | read |
Album credits
Slayer - Producer | Tom Araya - Bass, Vocals | Jeff Hanneman - Guitars | Kerry King - Guitars | Paul Bostaph - Drums | Rick Rubin - Producer | Howie Weinberg - Mastering | Greg Gordon - Engineer | Brian Davis - Assistant Engineer | John Tyree - Assistant Engineer | Sebastian Haimerl - Assistant Engineer | Allen Sanderson - Assistant Engineer | Exum - Photography | Frank - Art Direction | Wade Goeke - Assistant Engineer
Album reviews
Diabolus in Musica sounds like no other piece of work from Slayer, which makes for a bit of a queasy and uncomfortable experience at first. Undisputed Attitude's "Gemini" is the definite precursor to Slayer's newer, hardcore-driven sound. Sort of a speed-metal Machine Head at times, one can easily be discouraged from the first few songs, but album closer "Point" reaffirms faith in the band. It also opens the idea that in the rapidly expanding metal scene, a veteran band such as Slayer has to expand outward, not inward, in order to retain its throne. This is precisely what Slayer has done, and instead of the Reign-rehash of Divine Intervention or career-risking punk escapades, Slayer has thrashed their way out of the metal niche from which they were almost trapped. Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman tap their hardcore roots to create a speedy, bass-driven chug which pummels the senses in a whole new devilish way. "Death's Head," "Perversions of Pain," "In the Name of God," "Scrum," and "Bitter Peace" usher in a crisp new era of Slayer aggression. Thankfully the lyrics have not traveled the route of "Ain't My Bitch"; instead they stick to familiar topics such as religion, death, war, and serial killers. This album smokes and it is recommended to all fans of metal, even if that first listen is a bit of a shock. The greatest albums are those that take several daunting listens in order to become just that, a great album. Just think where Slayer would be if all those speed junkies had turned their backs on South of Heaven after only one or two listens. - Jason Hundey | All Music Guide |
I fondly remember when I first discovered Slayer in the record bins during my '80s metal daze. Their debut, Show No Mercy, was a combustible combination of gothic riffs and speed-laden antics which prefaced their role in the evolution of the speed and thrash metal movements, a role solidified with future sonic overdoses like Hell Awaits and Reign In Blood. Their first album also advertised the band as a Satanic outfit brandishing pentagrams, upside down crosses, and seriously sharp studs 'n' spikes.
How amusing, then, that the new Slayer opus should display a priest whose robe sports a cross in its proper position. Ironic? Well, OK, the priest looks pale as death and has his hand on his crotch, and the pictures inside the album are a bit gruesome -- there are images of a man who has been shot in the head, a bleeding ear, a pair of lips sewn shut by needles, and what looks like a fetus floating in a bottle. Obviously the band hasn't gone soft. In fact, musically, Diabolus harkens back to the hardcore bands to which Slayer probably listened before they began playing their brand of manic metal. (When they released Reign In Blood in 1986, you could have suspected that these guys were really a hardcore band in disguise.)
Living up to their band moniker, the new record certainly contains classic Slayer motifs -- tightly-crafted, constricting rhythms; bassist/frontman Tom Araya's incensed, demonic vocalizations; the warped, squealing solos of Jeff Hanneman and the slightly more melodic six-string assaults of Kerry King; and the brutal double-bass and tom-tom attacks of Paul Bostaph. It also possesses a raw, live sound and the deadest kick drum I have ever heard.
You'd think that after 15 years, the band might get tired of exploring and re-exploring the themes of war, death, murder, religious hypocrisy, and evil incarnate. Yet somehow they march on, obsessed with grim and morbid fascinations. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, for on some of these tunes Slayer conjures up some truly evil riffs, and Araya's angered shouts (some rhythmically rap-inflected) occasionally cut through you. On "Bitter Peace," when he screams "can't stop the warring factions," you feel both the frustration and horror of living in a world bent on destroying itself over greed and petty differences. On the more restrained, menacing "Desire," the bassist's subdued vocals nicely deliver the protagonist's perverse, murderous point of view. In general, the lyrics, for all their verbosity, are superior to those of the death metallers who are still spouting the 37 new ways they just learned to say "I'll dismember you."
The problem is, for all its moments of sinister, raw power, Diabolus still possesses all the subtlety of a jackhammer. Even at a palatable 40 minutes, it can be grueling to listen to, mainly because, "Desire" aside, the record keeps churning forward without respite. Sure, there are numerous tempo changes, but the band retains an antagonistic energy, both musically and lyrically, throughout. I'd really like to hear these guys toss in some acoustic passages or changes in dynamics -- that wouldn't be such a terrible thing now, would it? Many metal bands face the ""dangers"" of experimentation and the perpetual problem of living up to their audience's expectations every time they unleash a new album. But there's nothing wrong with challenging them once in a while, either. - Bryan Reesman | mtv |