The thrash metal titans bowed out at the top of their game
Slayer’s twelfth and final studio album, Repentless, arrived on September 11, 2015 as a statement of survival and continuity after years of upheaval. It was the band’s first release without co-founder Jeff Hanneman (who died in 2013) and their first on Nuclear Blast after a long run with Rick Rubin’s American Recordings. With Paul Bostaph back behind the kit for the first time since 2001 and Terry Date producing, the group tracked the record at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles, working in bursts from March and September 2014 through January 2015. The sessions preserved a piece of Hanneman’s writing—“Piano Wire”—while the bulk of the material came from Kerry King. The result is a lean 41:57 of classic thrash recorded under atypically heavy circumstances.
The rollout doubled as a re-introduction. Slayer first slipped “Implode” to fans as a free download in April 2014, signaling the label move and a 2015 album to come. They followed with the Record Store Day 2015 single “When the Stillness Comes,” then unleashed the title track “Repentless” that summer, pairing it with a blood-spattered prison-riot video filmed at the Sybil Brand Institute and directed by BJ McDonnell, with cameos from Danny Trejo and other cult actors. McDonnell went on to helm a violent trilogy—“Repentless,” “You Against You,” and “Pride in Prejudice”—that racked up millions of views and later anchored the 2019 theatrical release Slayer: The Repentless Killogy, which fused the narrative shorts to a full Forum concert film.
Musically and lyrically, Repentless hews to Slayer’s core attack while processing grief and defiance. King has said the title track was conceived as a tribute to Hanneman—“the Hannemanthem”—a clenched-jaw vow to keep moving without repentance. Elsewhere, the band toggles familiar modes: speed-strafed rippers (“Take Control”), punk-leaning brawlers (“Atrocity Vendor”), and ominous slow burns like “When the Stillness Comes.” Even with new/old personnel, the writing keeps the through-line unmistakably Slayer.
Critics largely agreed that the album did exactly what it set out to do. On Metacritic it logged a 70/100, “generally favorable,” with The Guardian awarding four stars for a set that proved the band’s “evil powers remain undimmed.” Pitchfork called it “solid—far from a classic, but the best possible outcome,” noting Bostaph’s reliable heft and how the record honored Hanneman’s punky velocity without overreaching. For a group three decades in, the consensus was respect for the focus and the refusal to compromise the brand of extremity they pioneered.
Fans responded in kind. The McDonnell videos became mini-events, drawing multi-million view counts within months, and the album cycle ultimately sprawled into the Repentless Killogy film/live album, further canonizing the material in the band’s stage arsenal. Contemporary live reviews underscored how seamlessly the new songs sat alongside the classics, a sign that the faithful had embraced Repentless not as an epilogue but as part of the main story.
Commercially, Repentless was Slayer’s strongest U.S. debut: No. 4 on the Billboard 200 with 50,000 album-equivalent units (about 49,000 in pure sales), and more than 80,000 sold in the U.S. seven weeks in. Abroad it was a juggernaut, bowing at No. 1 in Germany, hitting No. 2 in the Netherlands, No. 3 in Australia and Finland, No. 8 in New Zealand and Italy, No. 10 in Japan, and No. 11 on the U.K. albums chart; it also earned a Gold certification in Poland. In short, the record landed in the global Top 10 across nearly twenty markets—remarkable for a band this heavy, this late into their career.
After retiring from touring back in 2018, Slayer really ramped up their concert schedule in 2025. Having never ruled out festival appearances and one-off shows, the thrash metal titans have played five gig so far this year, with one more coming up on their docket. Slayer recently played their first UK and Canadian concerts in six years. The shows saw the band headline some of the countries’ biggest venues, including the 35,000-capacity Blackweir Fields in Cardiff, London’s 45,000-capacity Finsbury Park, and the 100,000 capacity Festival d’été de Québec in Canada.
Slayer’s upcoming one-night-only show is their only U.S. East Coast performance in 2025. The band will headline the 30,000-seat Hersheypark Stadium in Pennsylvania on Saturday, September 20, 2025. Very special guests include Knocked Loose, Suicidal Tendencies, Power Trip, Exodus, and Cavalera Conspiracy. Tickets for the show are on sale now.
The concert will be hosted by WWE Superstar Damian Priest, a well-known “metalhead” and a long-time Slayer fan. Priest’s signature “finisher” is Slayer’s “South of Heaven,” and Slayer’s Kerry King provided guitar for Priest’s “Rise For The Night” theme.
Slayer frontman Tom Araya screams, “Slayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyeeeeerrrrrr! One night only, stacked line up, it’s going to be fucking sick!!!! Hersheypark – be there – if not, you’re either dead, in jail or a sissy!”
About Slayer performing at the 30,000-seat Hersheypark Stadium, guitarist Kerry King commented, “Last year, Slayer played only two shows, and those shows affected me like playing The Big Four shows did. When we played our first show last year in Chicago, I figured it was going to be great for the fans, maybe there would be some people who had never seen us play before, but the reaction was just completely overwhelming. The fans reacted to us like I’d expect them to react to the biggest band on the planet. It was amazing. So for the Hershey concert, we’ll play a Slayer show, we’ll have all of our big fire effects, and just burn everything like we used to.”
Added King, “This will be the first time Slayer has played with Power Trip or Knocked Loose, but I am well aware of them from word of mouth, and hearing their music on Liquid Metal. I’m looking forward to seeing them live.”
“We’re excited to play with some of the best heavy bands of all time, past and present,” Knocked Loose stated.
Power Trip adds, “Honored to share the stage with one of our all-time favorite bands, Slayer. See you sick fucks at the riff clinic.”
In addition to the band’s international headline dates, Slayer also helped celebrate Black Sabbath’s incredible career at the sold-out Back to the Beginning final concert back on July 5 at Villa Park in Birmingham, England. The massive show marked just the third time Slayer has shared a stage with Black Sabbath, following Ozzfest in 1998 and again in 2004.
Other featured acts that performed were Metallica, Anthrax, Pantera, Lamb of God, Alice In Chains, Mastodon, and Halestorm. Additionally, a rotating supergroup of musicians including Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins), David Draiman (Disturbed), Duff McKagan & Slash (Guns ‘n Roses), Frank Bello (Anthrax), Fred Durst (Limp Bizkit), Jake E Lee, Jonathan Davis (Korn), KK Downing, Lzzy Hale (Halestorm), Mike Bordin (Faith No More), Rudy Sarzo, Sammy Hagar, Scott Ian (Anthrax), Sleep Token ii (Sleep Token), Papa V Perpetua (Ghost), Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine), Wolfgang Van Halen and Zakk Wylde also paid homage to Sabbath and Ozzy.
“I am a Sabbath fan, and doing this show is an honor,” said Slayer’s Tom Araya said before the gig. “I was hanging out with my brother and his friends during my junior year in high school, and we would play Sabbath all the time, so I am a big fan. Black Sabbath were the originators, people call them ’the godfathers of metal music.’ I think it’s going to be an amazing experience, from the beginning to the end. I’m really, really honored to be a part of this, it’s going to be great.”
“I remember when we played with Black Sabbath at Ozzfest in 2004,” added Kerry King. “It was when Rob Halford came back to Judas Priest and we were third on the bill. You couldn’t give me a better bill, I’ll never forget that. As it stands now, Slayer plays a handful of gigs a year. But that’s how important this Sabbath date is, and it’s great we will get to play a longer set for our fans in Cardiff and London on this visit too. Being on the Sabbath bill means the world to me, because these are my uber-heroes. And to know that their camp thinks enough of us to offer us a spot is flattering and humbling.”
After nearly 40 years and 12 studio albums, Slayer decided it was time to say farewell back in 2018. They launched The Final Campaign, a massive world tour that wrapped up in November of 2019. Now, after not performing for five years, the thrash metal legends are coming back with a vengeance. The group previously confirmed plans to headline two major North American festivals – Riot Fest in Chicago, Illinois, and Louder Than Life in Louisville, Kentucky.
“Nothing compares to the 90 minutes when we’re on stage playing live, sharing that intense energy with our fans,” said Slayer frontman Tom Araya. “And, to be honest, we have missed that.”
Guitarist Kerry King adds, “Have I missed playing live? Absolutely. Slayer means a lot to our fans; they mean a lot to us. It will be five years since we have seen them.”
In addition to their slot at Riot Fest, Slayer will perform at Louder Than Life this fall alongside Mötley Crüe, Slipknot, and Korn. Other featured acts include Judas Priest, The Offspring, Seether, Anthrax, Disturbed, Evanescence, Five Finger Death Punch, Sum 41, Body Count, Architects, Jinjer, and Rammstein frontman Till Lindemann, among many others.
Slayer guitarist Kerry King recently unleashed the first taste of his highly anticipated solo project. The debut single, “Idle Hands,” is from his forthcoming album, From Hell I Rise. It was produced by Kerry King himself, alongside Josh Wilbur (Avenged Sevenfold, Lamb of God, Korn). It is slated to arrive on May 17 through Reigning Phoenix Music. For the record, King recruited Slayer drummer Paul Bostaph, Death Angel vocalist Mark Osegueda, Hellyeah bassist Kyle Sanders, and former Machine Head guitarist Phil Demmel, who briefly toured with Slayer back in 2018.
Last May, Kerry King and his band scheduled a featured performance at Sonic Temple in Columbus, Ohio with Disturbed, Misfits, Pantera, Slipknot, Judas Priest, Sleep Token, Falling In Reverse, 311, A Day to Remember, Clutch, Mr. Bungle, Mudvayne, and others. King and company also performed at Welcome to Rockville in Daytona Beach, Florida alongside Mötley Crüe, Foo Fighters, Slipknot, Limp Bizkit, Judas Priest, Falling In Reverse, Greta Van Fleet, Breaking Benjamin, Anthrax, In This Moment, Primus, Architects, and many more. Later last summer, Kerry King will serve as special guest on select dates for Lamb of God and Mastodon’s monstrous co-headlining tour.
Throughout their career, Slayer played nearly 3,000 concerts around the globe. They have received several awards, including five GRAMMY® Award nominations and two Best Metal Performance wins for “Eyes of the Insane” (2007) and “Final Six” (2008). They have multiple live recordings, greatest hits compilations, live concert films and two box sets under their belt. With over 20 million albums sold worldwide, their discography boasts multiple Gold records, and they had their own exhibit in the Smithsonian Institute.