Four decades on from October 7, 1986, Slayer is celebrating the longevity of Reign In Blood with an unusually intricate collector pressing. The thrash metal benchmark is receiving a limited run as a single LP filled with crimson red liquid, paired with zoetrope visual animations printed across the surface of the disc. Available on November 20 exclusively via Sound of Vinyl, the physical release arrives alongside a stretch of live dates built around playing the full record from start to finish.
Manufacturing fluid-filled vinyl is notoriously fussy. Pressing plants have to seal liquid between two separate vinyl discs, an exacting and labor-intensive method that typically restricts these releases to tiny batches. Layering zoetrope animation onto that liquid adds another layer of mechanical trickery. The artwork relies on a strobe light or a camera shooting at an exact frame rate to generate the visual illusion of movement while the platter spins. For an album that established Slayer's identity through unmatched tempo and gruesome subject matter, the deep red fluid feels like an intentional visual nod rather than mere novelty.
The original recording remains a fascinating study in restraint and speed. Reign In Blood arrived as Slayer's third studio effort, but it was their introduction to producer Rick Rubin. Rubin cut out the cavernous reverb that dominated the era, demanding strict, dry execution from vocalist and bassist Tom Araya, guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, and drummer Dave Lombardo. The band tore through ten songs in a brisk 28 minutes and 58 seconds. The tracklist is tightly structured, bookended by Angel Of Death and Raining Blood. Listeners working through the physical sequence must turn the record over right after Jesus Saves, letting the needle drop onto Criminally Insane to open Side B.
That brief runtime did nothing to deter buyers. The album eventually earned a Gold certification from the RIAA, demonstrating that uncompromising thrash could generate significant commercial returns. The sonic impact carried well beyond metal, too. Just two years later, in 1988, Public Enemy sampled the opening riff of Angel Of Death for their track She Watch Channel Zero?! on It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back. The borrow showed that hip hop producers could hear the immediate, kinetic weight that Rubin and the band had managed to pull onto tape.
The current touring calendar puts that material back on stage in its original running order. On the road, Araya and King are joined by guitarist Gary Holt and drummer Paul Bostaph to handle the ten tracks. The run begins on October 21 at Mexico City's Palacio de los Deportes, moving quickly to Fort Worth for Sick New World Texas on October 24. A pair of sold out hometown dates at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles follows on November 13 and 14, where the group will share the bill with Cannibal Corpse, Cavalera, and Crowbar.
From California, the schedule shifts south for four massive arena and stadium appearances across South America. Slayer will stop at Vive Claro Distrito Cultural in Bogota on December 5, Santa Laura Stadium in Santiago on December 10, Movistar Arena in Buenos Aires on December 14, and Nubank Parque in Sao Paulo on December 17. The band's commercial footprint has stayed remarkably resilient over the years, underscored when their 2015 studio album Repentless secured an entry inside the Top 5 of the Billboard 200. Turning their 1986 breakthrough into a kinetic, liquid-filled art object gives one of metal's leanest records its most tactile reissue to date.
