In the eyes of many, Slayer defined the thrash metal genre with their 1986 album Reign in Blood, often hailed as the most brutal metal album of all time. It’s therefore not surprising that on their first visit to Perth, tickets sold out for their Metro City show in a single day. The gig moved to bigger digs at Robinson Pavilion, allowing under-18s to get in on the action as well.

After locals Chaos Divine played the opening set, Mastodon took to the stage with The Wolf is Loose from last year’s Blood Mountain release, followed by a selection of winding, complex songs from that album and from the Leviathan album, released in 2004. The technical mastery of the band’s performance was slightly marred by a too-quiet bass and poorly mixed vocals, but a solid lighting show – lighting being one of the best aspects of Robinson Pavilion as a venue – diverted fans’ attention to the visual aspect.

You needed to be a fan of Mastodon to enjoy this part of the show – anyone who didn’t fit that category seemed to look bored and wondering if it was worth wandering back to the licensed area – but those who had come specifically to see the support act seemed to be having a great time. In keeping with progressive metal chic, the band did not speak to the crowd at all, save for a “thank y’all” after Blood and Thunder signalled the end of the set.

Anticipation in the venue had built to unbearable levels by the time Slayer, the band everyone had come to see, arrived on stage, launching directly into Disciple, from 2001’s God Hates Us All. After a brief but sensible safety reminder to moshpit participants from wild-haired frontman Tom Araya, the legendary thrashers proceeded to take punters on a guided tour of their latest release Christ Illusion and impressive nine-album back catalogue.

Slayer have a lot of material to work with from their 26-year history, and given the typically short song duration they got through a considerable amount of it, some with brief introductions from Araya. From Christ Illusion, the band played Fleshstorm, Jihad, Eyes of the Insane, Supremist, and Cult, the song released on 6/6/06. Many Slayer classics also made it onto the setlist: Die by the Sword from 1983’s Show No Mercy was a crowd favourite, while Mandatory Suicide, from South of Heaven, was dedicated to the US military and Dead Skin Mask from Seasons in the Abyss, penned about serial killer Ed Gein, was cheekily announced as a ‘love song’. Chemical Warfare, often a Slayer show finale, was played early in the set, as were several songs from Reign in Blood including Post Mortem.

The combination guitar attack of Jeff Hanneman, mostly invisible behind his hair, and the bald, tattooed and seemingly neck-less Kerry King was as fast, vicious and technically brilliant as expected – and when King’s guitar cut out for half a minute, it was painfully obvious how dependent the band’s sound is on both guitars. The legendary double kick drum work from Dave Lombardo, back with the band on a permanent basis after a ten year hiatus, was a relentless undercurrent, along with Araya’s bass work. The frontman was quietly-spoken and polite between songs – “thank you, you’re too kind” being a typical response to roars from the crowd.

The final three songs were undoubtedly the highlights. First, the brutal Raining Blood, with spooky red lighting but sadly without any fake blood rain as on the 2003 “Still Reigning” tour. This was followed by the haunting title track from Seasons in the Abyss, the melodic twin guitar intro being the only quiet moment of the entire show. Finally, the conflict was resolved for every fan desperately waiting to hear Angel of Death, but knowing that the classic opening track from Reign in Blood will mean the show is over – the five-minute thrashfest about the Butcher of Auschwitz, complete with Araya’s signature blood curdling wail, had every punter in the venue shouting along.

Slayer fans went home after exactly the kind of show they had been hoping for: fast, loud, brutal, devastating. Let’s hope that we see the most metal of metal bands in Perth again sooner than Araya’s parting words suggested: “in another 10 years”.