Search - Slayer :: Soundtrack to the Apocalypse

So... is it worth it?

Sean Zimmerman | 01/25/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Let's face it... the only people who are going to shell out $100 on a Slayer box set are die-hard Slayer fans. So the question is, is this set worth the hefty price tag?

Well I think it really depends on just how big of a Slayer fanatic you really are. If you are the type who just has to have everything a certain band puts out then yeah you'll want this. But if you are simply someone looking for the best the band has to offer I would suggest looking elsewhere.

What are some of the pro's and con's of this set?

Slayer (or whoever packaged this set) clearly intended this box-set both to recap their career and to offer lots of unreleased and rare goodies for collectors. Now there are two problems with this. First is the fact that anyone who would be willing to spend $100 on a Slayer product already has all of the tracks that the band is re-capping. In other words most of the first two discs on this set are pointless for the majority of the people who would buy this set as they would already have them all! But... the idea of offering a "best-of" overview as a way of celebrating twenty years of the band's existence does make sense. The next most obvious problem with this however is that American does not have access to Slayer's first 4 releases! It is simply impossible to have a satisfying retrospective of Slayer's career without healthy samplings from Show No Mercy, Haunting the Chapel and Hell Awaits (luckily there are some live recordings and footage of tracks from these albums to be found on other discs). Next I have to question the sanity of some of the choices on the retrospective... I mean who seriously needs the Criminally Insane (Remix) or the re-working of Aggresive Perfector when they could have put Altar of Sacrifice or Jesus Saves on? Another odd thing is the arrangment of placing Live Undead after South of Heaven and THEN placing Silent Scream after Live Undead... this of course ruins the transition that occurs on the original recording from South of Heaven to Silent Scream. Most of the other track selections are reasonable so I won't complain anymore.

A more interesting idea would be to put two complete concerts from the 80's on the first two discs instead of the "best-of" idea. Say a complete show from the Hell Awaits era or the Reign in Blood era coupled with one from the South of Heaven era. I chose these eras as they are the only era's (sans Diabolous in Musica) not covered in any official live release from the band: the Show No Mercy/Haunting the Chapel era is documented on Live Undead, Seasons in the Abyss is documented on Live: Decade of Aggression, etc. In fact there are NO live videos or recordings from 87-89 on this entire set... in other words while there are performances from virtually every year in Slayer's career on here the entire South of Heaven era remains blank. Very odd.

The rest of the rare tracks on disc two are pretty awful and not really worth talking about.

Now the third disc on the other hand is rather interesting. Aside from the AWFUL "No Remorse (I Wanna Die)" with Atari Teenage Riot this is a pretty good collection of tracks. It has a few songs that have never appeared on any Slayer live performance before. The DVD is even more interesting as it has footage from some of Slayer's earliest shows (the film quality is awful by the way). My only real beef with the material on these two discs is that it has too many tracks that every Slayer fan has already on other live recordings (Mandatory Suicide, War Ensemble, etc.). Personally I would have LOVED a live recording of Kill Again, Behind the Crooked Cross, Crypts of Eternity or even another recording of Black Magic (which is NOWHERE to be found on this box-set as is Captor of Sin).

Finally an entire live CD recorded in 2002 is included in the deluxe version. Overall this is a very good show (it includes the classic At Dawn They Sleep). While far from a flawless performance this is still very enjoyable.

The bonus features include a pointless backstage pass, a photo packed booklet and a cloth wall hangning. The booklet aside from the writing which grows a bit tedious at times is very good.

Overrall this set is really only worthwhile to die-hards. Casual fans will probably be satisfied with getting their first five albums."

Great 4 disc version, nice addition to a thrasher's collecti

Concerned One | Clarinda, IA | 12/21/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is a great streamlined version of the 5 disc version released at the same time, minus the second live CD. This comes in an excellent CD sized case with great artwork and 3 CD's + Live DVD. This has all the hits heavy throught the post reign in blood years, plus a few from the past. The DVD gives you a great chance to see and be reminded of what a metal show should be like (War at the Warfield!!!). The live show is not as great as Still Reigning, but is good. This is an easy addition to a slayer fan's collection, or a first time buyer looking at a good value and quick fix to bolster their collection fast with all the important tunes. I prefer the five disc version because I am a big collector, and the extra live tracks I find necessary for completion to my collection, but this is no slouch, and the price is right and I highly reccommend this."