Slayer - Undisputed Attitude (1996) [Original Japanese Pressing] RESTORED

The album is a collection of punk covers of bands like Minor Threat, T.S.O.L., D.I. and Iggy Pop. Guitarist Jeff Hanneman used two of the four punk songs he had written in 1984 and 1985 as part of a side project called Pap Smear, while King and vocalist Tom Araya wrote an original song titled "Gemini". Released on May 28, 1996 through American Recordings, Undisputed Attitude peaked at number 34 on the Billboard 200.

Slayer's Undisputed Attitude feels more like a stopgap than an actual Slayer record. Rather than another set of blasting, disturbing originals like 1994's Divine Intervention or 1995's Serenity in Murder EP, this album is a collection of covers. Containing 14 tracks, the band covers everyone from Minor Threat to T.S.O.L., from D.I. to Iggy Pop. Given Slayer's Huntington Beach, CA, homeland, the hardcore roots are plain enough. But HB is also a big metal town, and these cats as youngsters were exposed to everything from Motorhead to Black Sabbath and the early L.A. metal scene. True to their course, however, they've never sounded like anyone but themselves.

Paul Kott of Allmusic commented that "Undisputed Attitude, while not perfect, is a fitting tribute to the bands that inspired Slayer to break from the traditional metal mold". "Entertainment Weekly's Chuck Eddy dubbed Slayer's cover interpretations "generic hardcore-punk", and observed that that the group "seem to think that playing as fast and rigidly as possible makes for harder rock – but it's just lazy shtick".

For anyone who remains unclear about the relationship between hardcore punk and speed metal, Slayer's hommage to their roots on Undisputed Attitude hammers home the point with relentless fervor. The band attacks some of the terse rants from its formative years (selections from the likes of Minor Threat, T.S.O.L. and Verbal Abuse) with a ferocity that's as raw as that of Slayer's mentors' yet as refined as you'd expect from 14-year veterans of precision metal. Most of the tracks pummel past like a speeding thermonuclear reaction, but a couple (notably D.I.'s "Richard Hung Himself") actually move slowly enough to show off some brutally graceful rhythmic shifts. Of the three Slayer originals, "Can't Stand You" approaches the light-speed (metal) barrier, while the newly written "Gemini" leaves room for brooding and a more complex instrumental workout. Some punk purists will undoubtedly cry foul, but when the dust settles it's hard to argue with Slayer's mettle.

~ Sandy Masuo, Rolling Stone magazine

Tracklist:

01. Disintegration / Free Money (Verbal Abuse cover)
02. Verbal Abuse / Leeches (Verbal Abuse cover)
03. Abolish Government / Superficial Love (T.S.O.L. cover)
04. Can't Stand You (Pap Smear cover)
05. Drunk Drivers Against Mad Mothers (Pap Smear cover)
06. Guilty Of Being White (Minor Threat cover)
07. I Hate You (Verbal Abuse cover)
08. Filler / I Don't Want To Hear It (Minor Threat cover)
09. Spiritual Law (D.I. cover)
10. Sick Boy (G.B.H. cover)
11. Mr. Freeze (Dr. Know cover)
12. Violent Pacification (D.R.I. cover)
13. Memories Of Tomorrow (Suicidal Tendencies cover)
14. Richard Hung Himself (D.I. cover)
15. I'm Gonna Be Your God (The Stooges cover)
16. Gemini


Produced by Slayer & Dave Sardy
Executive Produced by Rick Rubin
Engineered by Greg Gordon. Mixed by Dave Sardy
Recorded at Capital Studios, California, USA
Add. recording & mixed at Hollywood Sound, Los Angeles
Mastered by Stephen Marcussen at Precision Mastering.

• Tom Araya - vocals, bass
• Kerry King - guitar
• Jeff Hanneman - guitar
• Paul Bostaph – drums

Original Release Date: May 28, 1996
Release Date: May 18, 1996
Format: Original Recording
Label: BMG Japan
Catalog No.: BVCP-920

Fully repackaged, originally shared by Sapo Malo for MMT