“It’s the record where Slayer became Slayer.” So said Kerry King about the band’s second album, Hell Awaits. Released on 8 April 1985, Hell Awaits certainly moved Slayer into the upper echelons of the burgeoning Thrash movement. Whilst debut Show No Mercy had displayed the band’s NWOBHM Speed Metal roots, Hell Awaits dripped with malevolence and evil intent.
Slayer – Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition)
Release Date: 15 May 2026
Words: Paul Hutchings
So why have we got an album that is over 40 years old in the in-box?
Well, Metal Blade who financed the original album are issuing a series of unique physical releases to celebrate the 40th anniversary. I have never needed an excuse to listen to Slayer, so I rolled back the years to when 15-year-old Hutch was a skinny, long-haired Metalhead to experience this seminal album once again.
The first thing that grips you about Hell Awaits is the enormity of the title track that opens the album. The chilling voices that roar “Join Us” as the burning riff builds before the evil “welcome Back” opens the gateway for the gargantuan riff and Dave Lombardo’s sinister snare.
The transfer into the next gear is immense, and it is still a spine-tingling sensation as the song slowly builds into the explosive piece that has seen thousands swirl in circle pits for four decades. Hell Awaits is certainly in my top five Slayer songs of all time. It might even be number one!
The second thing about this album that is noticeable is the transition in quality of songwriting. Whilst there are certainly gems on Show No Mercy, Black Magic, Die By The Sword, and Evil Has No Boundaries are all total bangers, Hell Awaits is a more consistent and ferocious release.
Kill Again, at just under five minutes, builds on the title track, whilst the slower, yet still powerfully double bass underpinned At Dawn They Sleep is a masterpiece of tension and power. The dual guitars of King and Jeff Hannerman add a wall of riffs whilst Tom Araya is building towards the peak of the band on their next couple of albums.
When you listen back to this album, it is impossible to avoid the fact that this was a groundbreaking release. With several long songs, three over six minutes, it was far removed from the three-to-four-minute Speed Metal that featured on the debut.
Not that the speed is AWOL, far from it. Listen to Praise Of Death on decent headphones, and your flesh will rip off your torso, such is its tempo.
The album is littered with mesmeric time changes combined with dissonant nuances that allow it to sound as fresh today as it was then. Praise Of Death is incredible in its approach to the point that at one part you think it has finished before the explosive reprise that really grabs you by the throat.
The shortest track on the album is Necrophiliac, which clocks in at under four-minutes in length. It is the track that, for me, shows Dave Lombardo at his best on this album, with some tremendous rolls and fills, and I can ignore the Venom homage at the 1:10 mark simply because the song is so visceral in delivery.
It is impossible to think of an album that could have such an impact on the Metal world today. The second half of Necrophiliac may owe much vocally to Conrad Cronos Lant, but musically this outmuscled Venom by a million miles.
Although it is only 37-minutes long, the eight tracks fill every second of the release. Crypts Of Eternity maintains the demonic themes and sees Araya once more fall into the Venom vocal style, something that he would eschew by the time the band’s greatest piece of work came out in 1986.
And by the time you get to Hardening Of The Arteries, the closing song, the only thing you will want to do is go around again. It is what I did when I got home from Spillers Records in Cardiff when I bought the album.
Although most would say that Reign In Blood was the band’s pinnacle, many would cite this album as their favourite. I am always torn, for there is much to admire about both records. Hell Awaits is the more gritty, dirty and evil of the two, whilst RIB is a different level of lyric and subject matter. Whatever you choose, there is no doubt that this release is a Metal classic.
Most of us no doubt own a copy of this album, either on vinyl or CD, so this release needs something else to persuade the hard-earned coin to leave the pocket.
In this case, it’s an 18-track live show from Bochum in Germany, which I understand has not been released previously and shows the band at their vicious best. Pre-RIB, it is a setlist filled with tracks from the first two albums, and contains some real classics like Haunting The Chapel, Black Magic and the ever-brutal Chemical Warfare.
The quality is decent, and the performance is electric. In many ways, the combination of the first EP plus Show No Mercy and Hell Awaits is perfect for those of us who evolved with the band.
A potent reminder of the raw power that the band possessed for much of their career, this is a package that comes with options. Pick your own, take your choice, and enjoy a Thrash frenzy that cannot be beaten.
Slayer release Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition) on 15 May 2026 via Metal Blade Records. Pre-orders are available from metalblade.com/slayer.
Now celebrating its 40th anniversary, Hell Awaits is the second studio album by American thrash metal masters, Slayer. The crucial album was initially released on April 8th 1985, by Metal Blade Records, who, in honour of Hell Awaits’s 40th anniversary, will be unleashing 3 unique physical releases, along with a digital release for fans.
Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition): 3-LP Box Set – details below…
Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition): “Blood” Filled Liquid Vinyl – details below…
Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition): 3-CD Earbook – details below…
Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition): Digital – details below…
Vinyl Formats
1) Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition)
3-LP Box Set: Hell Awaits (1-LP, restored original master), Live from Bochum 1985 (2-LP, unreleased live show from 1985)
60-page hardcover book (12” size – numerous photos and liner notes by J. Bennett)
Hell Awaits (1-LP in a gatefold sleeve), mastered and restored from original 1985 production tapes by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in February 2025. Vinyl color = Fire Splatter
Live from Bochum 1985 (2-LP in a gatefold sleeve), 18 unreleased live tracks from 1985! Vinyl = 180g Black
Replica ticket from the Bochum show
Replica Hell Awaits tour laminate
Hell Awaits Tour poster (German dates)
Slipmat
Band posters
Replica merch flyer
Replica Satanic Wehrmacht newsletter
2 flyers
2) Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition)
“Blood” Filled Liquid Vinyl: 7-track Hell Awaits album // 1-LP
Hell Awaits 1-LP, mastered and restored from original 1985 production tapes by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in February 2025
“Blood” filled liquid vinyl – gatefold
Limited to 666 worldwide (Slayer web only)
CD Format
Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition)
3-CD Earbook: Hell Awaits (1-CD, restored original master), Live from Bochum 1985 (2-CD, unreleased live show from 1985)
60-page earbook (numerous photos and liner notes by J. Bennett)
Hell Awaits (1-CD), mastered and restored from original 1985 production tapes by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in February 2025
Live from Bochum 1985 (2-CDs) 18 unreleased live tracks from 1985!
Poster
Digital
Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary Edition)
Includes 7-track Hell Awaits + 18-track Live from Bochum 1985 (18 unreleased live tracks from 1985!)
Credits — Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary)
Credits 7-track Hell Awaits LP
Produced by: Brain Slagel and Slayer
Recorded at: Eldorado, Hollywood
Engineers: Bill Metoyer & Ron Fair
Assistant Engineer: Carolyn Collins
Mastered at: Bernie Grundman Studios, Hollywood
Mastered by: Bernie Grundman
Mastered for vinyl by: Mastered and restored from original 1985 production tapes by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in February 2025
Mastered for cd: Mastered and restored from original 1985 production tapes by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in February 2025
Artwork by: Albert Cuellar
Photos by: Lowell Katz, Harald O
Management: Rick Sales, Kristen Mulderig and Earnie Ernie H. Gonzalez for The Rick Sales Management Group
Slayer // Hell Awaits (40th Anniversary) – Booklet credits for the 3 LP and 3 CD
MANAGEMENT: RICK SALES, KRISTEN MULDERIG AND ERNIE H. GONZALEZ FOR THE RICK SALES ENTERTAINMENT GROUP
PRODUCT MANAGERS: HEIDI WEAVER, MARKUS “BART” GRASSECK
LAYOUT: BRIAN AMES
KILL AGAIN – The Story of Slayer’s Hell Awaits – written by J. Bennett
Interviewees: Brian Slagel, Kerry King, Tom Araya, Bill Metoyer, Chris Reifert, Paul Bostaph, Gary Holt, Phil Demmel, Gene Hoglan, Jeff Becerra, Tom Angelripper, Schmier, Götz Kühnemund, Anton Reisenegger, Michael Amott, Katon W. De Pena, Doug Goodman, Kevin Estrada, “Metal” Mike van Rijswijk
PHOTOS & FLYERS BY: HARALD OIMOEN, UWE “BUFFO” SCHNÄDELBACH, FRANK STÖVER, FREDERICH MOULAERT, KEVIN ESTRADA, MATTHIAS PRILL, (METAL) MIKE VAN RIJSWIJK, TIMO WEBER, JOCHEN HOFMANN, LEO KISTENICH, JAN BÜNNING, Rudy De Doncker
Slayer // Live from Bochum 1985 – Credits
Recorded live from Bochum, Germany 6/18/1985
