Slayer — World Painted Blood Album Review (2009)
Metal Nerdery Podcast — Episode 376 | Published November 5, 2026 | metalnerdery.com | @metalnerderypodcast
"It's been since August 7, 2025, since we've done a Slayer episode…"
"A lot of people called this the re-boot of Reign In Blood on a worldwide level…"
"This album, front to back, sounds like classic Slayer except for a few moments…"
"Fast…and balls…fast balls…"
"Let's make a pledge: no more album dives for a minute…"
⚔ In Memory of Jeff Hanneman (1964–2013)
World Painted Blood stands as the final album to feature Slayer's original lineup — and the last collaboration between the band, Rick Rubin, and American Recordings.
Hail. 🤘
About This Episode
Released on November 3, 2009, and produced by Greg Fidelman with executive production by Rick Rubin, World Painted Blood is the 11th studio album by SLAYER and would become the final album to feature the original lineup of the band prior to Dave Lombardo's departure and Jeff Hanneman's untimely death. In addition, World Painted Blood represents the final collaboration between the band, Rick Rubin, and Rubin's label, American Recordings, which began twenty-three years earlier in 1986 with Reign In Blood.
As one would expect, all of the requisite components of classic SLAYER content are present and accounted for, with numerous tracks that would sound right at home on Reign In Blood, South Of Heaven, and Seasons In The Abyss.
Get ready to learn which song from this album has allegedly (and mistakenly) been ranked as "the worst Slayer song ever," find out where you never ever want to "get chafed," and never forget that "he's the color commentary and I'm the straight man" when you JOIN US as we celebrate seventeen years of World Painted Blood.
Album: Slayer — World Painted Blood (11th studio album)
Released: November 3, 2009
Label: American Recordings
Produced by: Greg Fidelman · Executive Produced by Rick Rubin
Lineup: Tom Araya (bass/vocals) · Kerry King & Jeff Hanneman (guitars) · Dave Lombardo (drums)
Of note: Final album with the original lineup; final Rick Rubin / American Recordings collaboration (begun 1986 with Reign In Blood)
Gear spotlight: JCM800 2203 amp heads — "one of the most used amp heads in metal & thrash…and wildly, they all sound different, somehow"
World Painted Blood — Track by Track
01
World Painted Blood
"It does take a minute to get off the ground, but it's so good…" "Sounds evil, doesn't it?" A different flavor of Slayer — and every time that breakdown hits, you become that meme dude screaming "SLAYER!!!"
"Kind of a different flavor of Slayer…"
02
Unit 731
"Japanese Nazis…they may have actually been worse than the Nazis…" Classic Slayer velocity. "That sounds like Reign In Blood…" "That one was just balls out…like Piece by Piece is…"
"That sounds like Reign In Blood…"
03
Snuff
"That's a rad riff…" "See, this is old school Slayer…that could have been on Reign…South…Seasons…" Produced by Greg Fidelman — "That dude is a dude!"
"This is old school Slayer…that could have been on Reign…South…Seasons…"
04
Beauty Through Order
"This one's got a particularly creepy factor to it…" Tom Araya's double-tracked vocals are similar to Tony Iommi's double-tracked guitar solos. #usethoseheadphones
"Your screams tell me that you're not prepared to DIE!"
05
Hate Worldwide
"That's how you get rid of racism…just hate everybody!" Straight up, balls to the face Slayer.
"This is straight up, balls to the face Slayer…"
06
Public Display of Dismemberment
"Get ready for blast beats…" Dave Lombardo is a machine. Perfect for election season. "You know what…we're gonna China the China…"
"Individual pain is a strong incentive…"
07
Human Strain
"That's creepy…that's brand new for them…very creepy…" A creepier strain of Slayer. "This next song, to me…is the 'Reborn' of this album…"
"A little creepier strain of Slayer…"
08
Americon
"The music's cool…it just seems kinda weird…" "It doesn't sound like Slayer to me…I mean THAT does…this sounds like Rob Zombie…"
"To be fair…the next one gets my nips hard, dude…"
09
Psychopathy Red
"I just love hearing him scream like that…that's classic Tom." Apparently Loudwire said the next song was the worst Slayer song ever… #AskTheMetalhead
"I just love hearing him scream like that…that's classic Tom."
10
Playing with Dolls
"This reminds me of AC/DC for some reason…" "It sounds like there's a piano coming up…" Not your typical Slayer song — but it still sounds like Slayer. "Yeah, I don't know what Loudwire has got a problem with…"
"All alone in my funeral home, playing in blood, there's just got to be something wrong with me…"
11
Not of This God
"There's a middle part that'll knock your socks off…it's like a half-time thing…" "It's a different song…completely." Blastbeats, Kerry King's total hatred for religion, and a finale that brings it all home.
"This album, front to back, sounds like classic Slayer except for a few moments…"
⚔ The Verdict
"This album, front to back, sounds like classic Slayer except for a few moments…"
"A lot of people called this the re-boot of Reign In Blood on a worldwide level…"
"Fast…and balls…fast balls…"
All 11 tracks reviewed — hear the full breakdown only in the episode.
Episode Timestamps
00:01"Stop and get something else…" / "It's Friday night…" / "The King has the best #ASMR…" / The joy and challenges of THC beverages / "She actually likes it better than booze…" / "A lot of gas stations have them now…" / "I don't want it if it tastes like Guinness…" / #THCNitro #FloatHouse #CyclingFrog #Wyld / "I'm a social drinker…I'm an alcoholic…"
05:27WARNING: #listenerdiscretionisadvised / #RussellsReflectionsEncoreEdition / WELCOME BACK TO THE METAL NERDERY PODCAST!!! / Go check out our High School Reunion episodes for a macro dose of the 'Mas!
08:20PATREON US at patreon.com/metalnerderypodcast / "If you get a shirt, most likely…you're probably gonna make somebody come…" / "I've never listened to the Hog Story…don't ever get chaffed on your ding dong…" / #markthetime / SOCIAL MEDIA US at #metalnerderypodcast on #YouTube #Facebook #Instagram & #TikTok / EMAIL US at metalnerdery@gmail.com
10:40VOICEMAIL US at 980-666-8182!!! / A voicemail from Jem regarding our 1976 & Technical Ecstasy episodes / "His '76 might have been like our '86…or '84 or '83…" / "We can deny it all we want…we would have been listening to it…"
15:02"Before we begin…he's the color commentary, I'm the straight man…" / "I'm the black guy, apparently…" / "Out of the 3 of us, by far, Bill is the funniest mother fucker in this room…" / #comedytiming / "We're absolutely NOT fisting…you can't fist after something like that…"
17:40#TheDocket — METAL NERDERY PODCAST PRESENTS: SLAYER – WORLD PAINTED BLOOD!!! / "It's been since August 7, 2025, since we've done a Slayer episode (which was the Christ Illusion episode)…" / The last official Slayer album featuring the original line-up prior to Jeff Hanneman's passing / "A lot of people called this the re-boot of Reign In Blood on a worldwide level…" / Released November 3, 2009 ("Seventeen years ago…") / A few other albums released in 2009 / "You know what? When we do our progressive metal month…we'll have to start with OSI's Blood…"
23:06World Painted Blood — "It does take a minute to get off the ground, but it's so good…" / "Sounds evil, doesn't it?" / "Kind of a different flavor of Slayer…" / "Like a disease, spreading death, erasing your existence…" / "Every time I hear that part…you know that meme with the big dude screaming 'SLAYER!?!?' Every time that part happens…I'm like that dude…"
27:59Unit 731 — "Japanese Nazis…they may have actually been worse than the Nazis…" / "That sounds like Reign In Blood…" / "That one was just balls out…like Piece by Piece is…"
29:29"Here you go, Russ…" / Equipment rundown (for the album) / #GearBoner / "The JCM800 2203 is one of the most used amp heads in metal & thrash…and wildly, they all sound different, somehow…" / "To be fair, they're still channeling the early Slayer guitar sounds…" / "So, you're never happy is what you're saying…"
33:20Snuff — "That's a rad riff…" / "See, this is old school Slayer…that could have been on Reign…South…Seasons…" / "Okay, so here's the gear on South of Heaven…" / World Painted Blood was produced by Greg Fidelman ("That dude is a dude!")
36:22Beauty Through Order — "This one's got a particularly creepy factor to it…" / "Your screams tell me that you're not prepared to DIE!" / #usethoseheadphones / "This is old school Slayer, at its best…" / Tom Araya's double-tracked vocals are similar to Tony Iommi's double-tracked guitar solos
39:52Hate Worldwide — "That's how you get rid of racism…just hate everybody!" / "This is straight up, balls to the face Slayer…" / "See that sounds like it could be on Reign In Blood, right? (Easy…)"
41:20"This next one is perfect for Election Season…" / Public Display of Dismemberment — "Get ready for blast beats…(Dave Lombardo) is a machine!" / "Individual pain is a strong incentive…" / "You know what…we're gonna China the China…"
44:04Human Strain — "(The middle part) That's creepy…that's brand new for them…very creepy…" / "A little creepier strain of Slayer…" / "Before we play the next one, I've gotta check something real quick…" / "This next song, to me…is the 'Reborn' of this album…"
47:43Americon — "The music's cool…it just seems kinda weird…" / "It doesn't sound like Slayer to me…I mean THAT does…this sounds like Rob Zombie…" / "To be fair…the next one gets my nips hard, dude…"
49:49Psychopathy Red — "I just love hearing him scream like that…that's classic Tom." / "Apparently Loudwire said this (next song) was the worst Slayer song ever…the worst Slayer song of Slayer songs…" / "Well, wait a minute…what's the worst Slayer song?" / #AskTheMetalhead / "I would probably say the original version of 'Aggressive Perfector'…"
54:17Playing with Dolls — "This reminds me of AC/DC for some reason…" / "It sounds like there's a piano coming up…when the bass kicks in…it sounds like piano…doesn't it?" / "I like this song better than a couple of the other songs on this record…it has more to it…" / "It's not your typical Slayer song…but it still sounds like Slayer…" / "Yeah, I don't know what Loudwire has got a problem with…" / "All alone in my funeral home, playing in blood, there's just got to be something wrong with me…"
57:33Not of This God — "There's a middle part that'll knock your socks off…it's like a half-time thing…" / "It's a different song…completely." / "Blastbeats and everything…and Kerry King's total hatred for religion…" / "What do y'all think relative to the older stuff? Or even relative to Christ Illusion?" / "This album, front to back, sounds like classic Slayer except for a few moments…" / "Fast…and balls…fast balls…" / "I had to make it stupid…to dismount properly…" / "Let's make a pledge: no more album dives for a minute…(but to be fair) these made sense…" / THANK YOU FOR JOINING US!!! / #untilthenext #outroreel
- Episode: Metal Nerdery #376 — Slayer: World Painted Blood Album Review
- Album: World Painted Blood — 11th studio album — November 3, 2009
- Label: American Recordings
- Produced by: Greg Fidelman · Executive Produced by Rick Rubin
- Final album with: Original lineup (Tom Araya, Kerry King, Jeff Hanneman, Dave Lombardo)
- Final Rick Rubin / American Recordings collaboration: Began 1986 with Reign In Blood
- Tracks covered: 11
- Gear spotlight: JCM800 2203 amp heads
- Intro topics: THC beverages, Russell's Reflections Encore Edition, High School Reunion episodes, voicemail from Jem re: 1976 & Technical Ecstasy, comedy timing discussion
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