SLAYER — Haunting the Chapel (review)

SLAYER — Haunting the Chapel album cover EP · 1984 · Thrash Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
5/5 ·
Unitron
Slayer - Haunting the Chapel

'Haunting the Chapel' is the first EP and overall second release by thrash metal legends, Slayer. There are a lot of good EP's around, but it's rare that an EP is perfect and stands on its own the same way an album does. It gives you an adrenaline boost with three (four on the reissue that I have) high energy thrashers that are among the best in Slayer's catalog in my book.

It begins with the classic 'Chemical Warfare', with fast yet menacing riffing and Tom Araya's signature aggressive vocals with the occasional maniacal laugh. Of course, you also have blistering solos that Slayer wouldn't be Slayer without. It's six minutes long, which is actually pretty long for a Slayer song, but it certainly doesn't feel that long. 'Captor of Sin' has some killer riffs that show signs of things to come in later albums. This is a little thing, but hearing the vocals under the end of the solo sounds pretty awesome. My favorite has to be the title track though, with Araya's vocals complimenting the relentless riffs. Listening to it, it sounds made for a mosh-pit, just as much as mosh-anthems like Anthrax's 'Caught in a Mosh' and Nervosa's 'Into Moshpit'. If you get the reissue, you get the song 'Aggressive Perfector', which sounds more in line with Slayer's debut then the rest of the album as it's a bit more of a speed metal-based thrash. However, it definitely isn't lacking in fantastic guitar and soloing.

The production for this EP couldn't be better. It's raw, gritty, and powerful, which is perfect for an aggressive thrash EP.

Overall, 'Haunting the Chapel' is a perfect transition between the debut and 'Hell Awaits' which would get them closer to their signature sound. It's not often when I'd call an EP essential, but I never tire of this short twenty-minutes of thrashing mastery. I'd go so far to say it's a desert island album for me. Yeah, it's that good. Hope you found this review helpful.

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voila_la_scorie wrote:
more than 2 years ago
I was just about to order this on CD but got Iron Maiden Final Frontier instead because it was on sale. I had this on cassette way back when and remember loving it. I'll still order the CD, though. And Hell Awaits, too!
Vim Fuego wrote:
more than 2 years ago
I only managed to finally get this a few years back. The impact of it was lessened somewhat because all of the tracks appeared elsewhere as bonuses or live, but put together, with the old, unremastered production, they rip!
UMUR wrote:
more than 2 years ago
Along with Live Undead this is Slayers best early output (before 1986). Great, great EP.

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