“Hell Awaits” by Slayer will be reissued for a 40th anniversary edition

With the release of a new Slaytanic Verses online exhibit, thrash metal legends Slayer recently started commemorating the 40th anniversary of their 1985 sophomore album “Hell Awaits.” A 40th anniversary edition of the album will be released on May 15th, according to Metal Blade Records, so that celebration will also take on more concrete forms in the next year.

This new version will have bonus songs from the band’s June 18, 1985, live performance at Zeche in Bochum, Germany. For this release, Patrick W. Engel has additionally remastered and repaired the album itself.

Jeff [Hanneman, late Slayer guitarist] and I were still trying to figure out who we were as musicians, and we were both infatuated with Mercyful Fate‘s ‘Melissa‘ album during the writing process for ‘Hell Awaits‘ That’s why there’s so few songs and most of ’em are pretty long. That’s the only time anything like that ever happened with us.

It’s the record where Slayer became Slayer. – Kerry King

For this joyous reissue, a number of intricate versions are being provided.

Vinyl box set:

• 3 LPs total: 7-track Hell Awaits + 18-track live bonus audio (Live from Bochum 1985):
• 60-page book (12″ size)
• Hell Awaits album (in gatefold sleeve, 1xLP) mastered and restored from original 1985 production tapes by Patrick W. Engel at Temple Of Disharmony in February 2025. Vinyl color = Fire Splatter
• Live from Bochum 1985 (in gatefold sleeve, 2xLP) – 18 live tracks never before released physically or digitally
• Replica ticket from the Bochum show
• Replica Hell Awaits tour laminate
• Hell Awaits tour poster (German dates)
• Slipmat
• Band posters
• Replica merch flyer
• Replica Satanic Wehrmacht newsletter
• 2 flyers

“Blood” Filled Liquid Vinyl (Slayer store exclusive – Ltd. 666 worldwide):

• 7-track Hell Awaits album mastered and restored from original 1985 production tapes by Patrick W. Engel at Temple Of Disharmony in February 2025
• “Blood” filled liquid vinyl – gatefold

CD Earbook:

• Earbook includes 3xCDs – 7-track Hell Awaits CD + 18-track live bonus audio (Live from Bochum 1985):
• Hell Awaits album (1xCD) mastered and restored from original 1985 production tapes by Patrick W. Engel at Temple Of Disharmony in February 2025
• Live from Bochum 1985 (2x CD) 18 live tracks never before released physically or digitally
• 60-page 11″ book
• Poster

Digital:

• Includes 7-track Hell Awaits + 18-track live bonus audio (Live from Bochum 1985)

“Hell Awaits” (40th Anniversary) track listing:

1. Hell Awaits
2. Kill Again
3. At Dawn They Sleep
4. Praise Of Death
5. Necrophiliac
6. Crypts Of Eternity
7. Hardening Of The Arteries
8. Hell Awaits (live from Bochum 1985)
9. Aggressive Perfector (live from Bochum 1985)
10. Captor Of Sin (live from Bochum 1985)
11. The Final Command (live from Bochum 1985)
12. Kill Again (live from Bochum 1985)
13. Crypts Of Eternity (live from Bochum 1985)
14. Fight Till Death (live from Bochum 1985)
15. Necrophiliac (live from Bochum 1985)
16. Haunting The Chapel (live from Bochum 1985)
17. Hardening Of The Arteries (live from Bochum 1985)
18. Black Magic (live from Bochum 1985)
19. Die By The Sword (live from Bochum 1985)
20. The Antichrist (live from Bochum 1985)
21. At Dawn They Sleep (live from Bochum 1985)
22. Show No Mercy (live from Bochum 1985)
23. Evil Has No Boundaries (live from Bochum 1985)
24. Chemical Warfare (live from Bochum 1985)
25. Praise Of Death (live from Bochum 1985)

Get your copy by clicking here.

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