Underrated Albums: Slayer: Show No Mercy

Show No Mercy is my personal favorite Slayer album.  Not Reign in Blood, Not South of Heaven, not Seasons in the Abyss.  Show No Mercy stands out as completely unlike any other Slayer album, mostly because the band had not truly found the sound that would eventually define them.  So while it is the least Slayer-like album, that quality is what actually makes it so damn good.

This album is Slayer's debut and their sound here is much closer to the evil, chaotic NWOBHM sound that was crafted by Venom.  The sound is much more melodic, yet retains the same dark and malevolent atmosphere that the band later became so well-known for.  What is missing from this album that later became the band's trademark is their kind of warlike, mechanical and precise riffing style.  This album feels much more human and raw.

The other difference with this album is the significantly more melodic vocal style used by Tom Araya.  He exhibits some terrific range and unleashes some truly blood-curdling shrieks here, something became increasingly rare as the band continued to release albums.  In fact, Araya's vocal style became decidedly one dimensional as time went on.

Slayer did play the title track to this album at the concert last week, but that was the only one from it.  It is likely that Araya simply cannot do justice to the vocals anymore and this is not close to the band's most popular album.  But it is still their best in my opinion.