Slayer is an American thrash metal band formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, who recruited vocalist and bassist Tom Araya, and drummer Dave Lombardo. Slayer's first two albums, Show No Mercy (1983) and Hell Awaits (1985), which were released on Metal Blade Records, did not chart in the United States. The band was then signed to Def Jam Recordings by Rick Rubin, who produced Reign in Blood (1986). The album helped Slayer break into the Billboard 200 for the first time, peaking at number 94. After South of Heaven (1988), Slayer signed to Rubin's new label, Def American, and released Seasons in the Abyss (1990). After the album was released, Lombardo departed Slayer and was replaced by Paul Bostaph.
| Slayer discography | |
|---|---|
 Slayer at the Fields of Rock in 2007 | |
| Studio albums | 12 |
| Live albums | 4 |
| Video albums | 4 |
| Music videos | 14 |
| EPs | 2 |
| Singles | 16 |
1994's Divine Intervention, the first album to feature Bostaph, peaked at number eight in the US, the band's best chart performance at the time. Diabolus in Musica (1998) was criticized for its nu metal traits, while God Hates Us All (2001) created controversy for its graphic artwork. Bostaph left the band due to an injury and was replaced by former member Lombardo. Christ Illusion (2006) was Slayer's most successful effort, debuting at number five in the US and winning two Grammy Awards. Slayer sold 5 million copies in the United States from 1991 to 2013, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and over 20 million worldwide. Slayer is considered one of the "big four" of thrash metal along with Anthrax, Metallica and Megadeth and has earned six gold certifications and one multi-platinum plaque from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Albums
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Sales | Certifications | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | AUS | AUT | DEN | FIN | FRA | GER | NLD | NZ | SWE | UK | |||||
| Show No Mercy |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | 44 | — | — | — | — | |||
| Hell Awaits |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | 41 | — | — | — | — |
| ||
| Reign in Blood |
| 94 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 47 |
| ||
| South of Heaven |
| 57 | 53 | — | — | 11 | — | 23 | 31 | — | 50 | 25 |
| ||
| Seasons in the Abyss |
| 40 | 58 | 29 | — | 12 | — | 19 | 69 | — | 47 | 18 |
|
| |
| Divine Intervention |
| 8 | 27 | 22 | — | 4 | 19 | 18 | 31 | 20 | 10 | 15 |
| ||
| Undisputed Attitude |
| 34 | 16 | 43 | — | 27 | 43 | 45 | 33 | 22 | 20 | 31 |
| ||
| Diabolus in Musica |
| 31 | 35 | 40 | — | 18 | 23 | 32 | 52 | 15 | 29 | 27 |
| ||
| God Hates Us All |
| 28 | 15 | 31 | 32 | 12 | 25 | 9 | 30 | 35 | 18 | 31 |
| ||
| Christ Illusion |
| 5 | 9 | 6 | 14 | 2 | 52 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 4 | 23 |
| ||
| World Painted Blood |
| 12 | 9 | 13 | 21 | 12 | 28 | 7 | 15 | 16 | 21 | 41 |
| ||
| Repentless |
| 4 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 5 | 11 | |||
| "—" denotes a release that did not chart. | |||||||||||||||
Live albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | AUS | AUT | FIN | FRA | GER | NLD | UK | |||
| Live Undead |
| — | — | — | — | — | 77 | — | — | |
| Decade of Aggression |
| 55 | 83 | — | — | — | 35 | 79 | 29 | |
| The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (with Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax) |
| — | 71 | — | 31 | — | 59 | 75 | — | |
| The Repentless Killogy (Live at the Forum in Inglewood, CA) |
| — | — | 36 | 49 | 91 | 16 | — | — | |
| "—" denotes a release that did not chart. | ||||||||||
EPs
| Title | EP details | Peak chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN | FIN | SWE | SWI | ||
| Haunting the Chapel |
| — | — | — | — |
| Eternal Pyre |
| 3 | 2 | 48 | 88 |
| "—" denotes a release that did not chart. | |||||
Box sets
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack to the Apocalypse |
|
| The Vinyl Conflict |
|
Singles
| Song | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Sales | DEN | UK | |||||
| "Black Magic" | 1983 | — | — | — | Show No Mercy | ||
| "Hell Awaits" | 1985 | — | — | — | Hell Awaits | ||
| "Raining Blood" | 1986 | — | — | Reign in Blood | |||
| "Angel of Death" | — | — | — | ||||
| "Postmortem" | — | — | — | ||||
| "Necrophobic" | — | — | — | ||||
| "Criminally Insane" | 1987 | — | — | 64 | |||
| "South of Heaven" | 1988 | — | — | — | South of Heaven | ||
| "Mandatory Suicide" | — | — | — | ||||
| "War Ensemble" | 1990 | — | — | — | Seasons in the Abyss | ||
| "Dead Skin Mask" | — | — | — | ||||
| "Spirit in Black" | — | — | — | ||||
| "Seasons in the Abyss" | 1991 | — | — | 51 | |||
| "Dittohead" | 1994 | — | — | — | Divine Intervention | ||
| "Serenity in Murder" | 1995 | — | — | 50 | |||
| "I Hate You" | 1996 | — | — | — | Undisputed Attitude | ||
| "Stain of Mind" | 1998 | — | — | — | Diabolus in Musica | ||
| "Bitter Peace" | — | — | — | ||||
| "Bloodline" | 2001 | — | — | — | God Hates Us All | ||
| "Disciple" | — | — | — | ||||
| "God Send Death" | — | — | — | ||||
| "Cult" | 2006 | — | — | — | Christ Illusion | ||
| "Eyes of the Insane" | — | 15 | 97 | ||||
| "Jihad" | — | — | — | ||||
| "Final Six" | 2007 | — | — | — | |||
| "Psychopathy Red" | 2009 | — | — | — | World Painted Blood | ||
| "Hate Worldwide" | 2 | — | — | ||||
| "World Painted Blood" | 2010 | 14 | — | — | |||
| "Implode" | 2014 | — | — | — | Repentless | ||
| "When the Stillness Comes" | 2015 | — | — | — | |||
| "Repentless" | 2 | — | — | ||||
| "You Against You" | 2016 | — | — | — | |||
| "Pride in Prejudice" | — | — | — | ||||
| "—" denotes a release that did not chart. | |||||||
Other appearances
| Song | Year | Album | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Captor of Sin" | 1986 | River's Edge soundtrack | Originally appears on Haunting the Chapel. |
| "Tormentor" | Originally appears on Show No Mercy. | ||
| "Evil Has No Boundaries" | Originally appears on Show No Mercy. | ||
| "Die by the Sword" | Originally appears on Show No Mercy. | ||
| "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" | 1987 | Less than Zero soundtrack | Iron Butterfly cover. Later appears on Soundtrack to the Apocalypse. |
| "Angel of Death" | 1990 | Gremlins 2: The New Batch soundtrack | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. |
| "Disorder" | 1993 | Judgement Night soundtrack | Collaboration with Ice-T. Medley and Covered of songs by The Exploited. Later appears on Soundtrack to the Apocalypse. |
| "Epidemic" | 1996 | The Perfect Woman soundtrack | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. |
| "No Remorse (I Wanna Die)" | 1997 | Spawn: The Album | Collaboration with Atari Teenage Riot. Later appears on Soundtrack to the Apocalypse. |
| "Human Disease" | 1998 | Bride of Chucky soundtrack | Later appears on Soundtrack to the Apocalypse. |
| "Here Comes the Pain" | 1999 | WCW Mayhem: The Music | Appears on God Hates Us All. |
| "Hand of Doom" | 2000 | Nativity in Black II | Black Sabbath cover. |
| "Spirit in Black" | Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 | Originally Appears on Seasons in the Abyss. | |
| "Bloodline" | Dracula 2000 soundtrack | Later appears on God Hates Us All. | |
| "Angel of Death" | Mrs. Death 2: Hells Fury soundtrack | Originally appears on Reign in Blood | |
| "Born to Be Wild" | 2002 | NASCAR: Crank It Up | Steppenwolf cover. |
| "Angel of Death" | Jackass: The Movie soundtrack | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. | |
| "Divine Intervention" | 2003 | Haggard: The Movie soundtrack | Originally appears on Divine Intervention. |
| "Warzone" | 2004 | UFC: Ultimate Beat Downs, Vol. 1 | Originally appears on God Hates Us All. |
| "Spill the Blood" | 2006 | Jackass Number Two soundtrack | Originally appears on South of Heaven. |
| "Eyes of the Insane" | Saw III soundtrack | Originally appears on Christ Illusion. | |
| "Raining Blood" | 2007 | Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. |
| "Raining Blood" | Skate | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. | |
| "Final Six" | 2008 | Punisher: War Zone soundtrack | Originally appears on the special edition of Christ Illusion. |
| "Raining Blood" | 2009 | Guitar Hero Smash Hits | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. Has a different mix compared to the Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock release. |
| "War Ensemble" | Guitar Hero: Metallica | Originally appears on Seasons in the Abyss. | |
| "Chemical Warfare" | 2010 | Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock | Originally appears on Haunting the Chapel. |
| "War Ensemble" | 2013 | Rocksmith 2014 | Originally appears on Seasons in the Abyss. |
| "Angel of Death" | 2015 | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. | |
| "Raining Blood" | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. | ||
| "South of Heaven" | Originally appears on South of Heaven. | ||
| "Seasons in the Abyss" | Originally appears on Seasons in the Abyss. | ||
| "Dead Skin Mask" | Originally appears on Seasons in the Abyss. | ||
| "Angel of Death" | 2019 | Rock Band 4 DLC | Originally appears on Reign in Blood. |
Videos
Music videos
| Song | Year | Director | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "War Ensemble" | 1990 | — | Seasons In The Abyss |
| "Seasons in the Abyss" | 1991 | Di Puglia Gerard | |
| "Serenity in Murder" | 1994 | Jon Reiss | Divine Intervention |
| "Dittohead" | |||
| "I Hate You" | 1996 | — | Undisputed Attitude |
| "Stain of Mind" | 1998 | Diabolus In Musica | |
| "Bloodline" | 2001 | Evan Bernard | God Hates Us All |
| "Eyes of the Insane" | 2006 | Tony Petrossian | Christ Illusion |
| "Beauty Through Order" | 2010 | Ben Hibon | World Painted Blood |
| "World Painted Blood" | Mark Brooks | ||
| "Repentless" | 2015 | BJ Mcdonnell | Repentless |
| "You Against You" | 2016 | ||
| "Pride In Prejudice" |
Video albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Video | AUS | AUT | FIN | GER | JPN | NLD | NZ | SWI | UK | ||||
| Live Intrusion |
| — | — | — | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| War at the Warfield |
| 3 | — | — | 2 | 58 | — | — | — | — | — |
| |
| Still Reigning |
| 7 | — | — | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| |
| The Unholy Alliance Live (with Lamb of God, Mastodon, Children of Bodom, and Thine Eyes Bleed) |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Big 4 Live From Sofia, Bulgaria (with Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax) |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 1 | ||
| "—" denotes a release that did not chart. | |||||||||||||