In late 1987, Slayer returned to the studio to record their fourth

In late 1987, Slayer returned to the studio to record their fourth studio album. To contrast the speed of Reign in Blood , the band consciously decided to slow down the tempos and incorporate more melodic singing. According to Hanneman, “We knew we couldn’t top Reign in Blood , so we had to slow down. We knew whatever we did was gonna be compared to that album, and I remember we actually discussed slowing down. It was weird—we’ve never done that on an album, before or since.”