Slayer's 1998 release, produced as always by Rick Rubin, has been called the band's most experimental album, embracing elements of the nu metal scene that was emerging and gaining in popularity at the time. Among the standout tracks is the song Stain of Mind, which became a staple of the group's live shows.

Slayer's 1986 album "Reign In Blood" marks the band's first in a long series of records produced by Rick Rubin, who took the group to a new level of success and brought them international critical acclaim. Now considered one of the most influential thrash metal albums ever released, Kerrang! magazine included Reign In Blood at number 27 on its list of the 100 greatest heavy metal albums of all time and Rolling Stone's readers named it the sixth best metal album in history.

Slayer had the unenviable task of following up 1986's "Reign In Blood", considered among the band's best, however "South Of Heaven" rose to the challenge and became Slayer's second record to make the Billboard 200 chart and the band's second American gold album. Produced again by Rick Rubin, the material has been called "slightly more mainstream" than Slayer's previous efforts, although no less heavy.

Slayer built a rabid following with faster-than-light thrash metal, eerie, disturbing lyrics, and bassist/singer Tom Araya's screamed vocals. 1986's „Reign In Blood“, a blinding metal classic that clocked in at below a half hour in length and was produced by Rick Rubin, put the band on the metal map. Although Slayer was a bunch of longhairs, it wasn't uncommon to see hardcore skinheads slamming away at the band's shows. But 1988's „South Of Heaven“ alienated many of Slayer's punk fans, as the group slowed their speed metal to a Black Sabbath-like crawl.