Eternal Pyre
Encyclopedia
Eternal Pyre is an EP
by the thrash metal
band Slayer
. Released June 6, 2006 (06/06/06) through American Recordings, the EP was limited to a pressing of 1,000 (but later 5,000) copies. The album is a pre-release to the later album Christ Illusion
, which, like the EP, features the song "Cult". The album was released exclusively through Hot Topic
chain stores in the United States and copies were also available in Germany, Finland and Sweden on June 23, 2006. There are three tracks featured on the album, one of which is an audio track
and the others are videos
. The album was not well received by critics, with few critics actually reviewing the album. The album charted on four different charts, peaking number two in Finland
and three in Denmark
.
was originally set for release on June 6, 2006. Slayer guitarist Kerry King
stated this tentative release date was scrapped as a number of other bands had the same idea and thought it was "fucking lame", although USA Today
reported the release date was thwarted because the band had failed to secure sufficient studio recording time. Eternal Pyre was released instead, a preview of their album to be released in the coming months. The EP featured the track "Cult", a live performance of "War Ensemble" in Germany and four minutes footage of the band in the recording studio. Originally, it was thought that the extended play would feature a live version of "Dead Skin Mask" instead of the live version of "War Ensemble". Many news reporters were told that the album would feature the "Live Intrusion" video, described as a clip of one of the band's fans who carved Slayer's name into his forearm." 5,000 copies were released exclusively through Hot Topic
chain stores in the United States and copies were also available in Germany, Finland and Sweden on June 23. Nuclear Blast Records released a further 7" vinyl
picture disc version limited to one thousand copies on June 30.
's perception of flaws in American religion and was a comment on America, which he describes as "the biggest cult in the world". Their performance was positively commented on, with Pitch.com saying that "King and Jeff Hanneman
riff like they're summoning a storm of thunder, lightning and human blood," and was also noted to be a down-tuned, two-string vamp "that slithers into the foreground creates a tension as Lombardo's cymbals call the band into the riff that opens the tune. It's slow, meaty, unrelenting in its tautness. When Araya's voice comes in, the whole track is off the rails and stays there." "War Ensemble" was filmed live from Germany
, and contains four minutes of studio footage. Lyrics were said to "please fans still harboring a grudge from Catholic school."
a bargain. The Pitch's reviewer also said that "Slayer's worst is never far from its best, and this cut's in the middle." The extended play was, however, generally well-received by fans, despite having a limited number of copies available. Eternal Pyre debuted at number forty-eight on the Swedish charts
, and number two on the Finnish charts
. With a limited pressing of 1,000 copies, the EP was exclusively made available in Hot Topic
stores starting on June 6, and was later made available in Europe on June 23.
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
by the thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
band Slayer
Slayer
Slayer is an American thrash metal band formed in Huntington Park, California, in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. Slayer rose to fame with their 1986 release, Reign in Blood, and is credited as one of the "Big Four" thrash metal acts, along with Metallica, Megadeth and...
. Released June 6, 2006 (06/06/06) through American Recordings, the EP was limited to a pressing of 1,000 (but later 5,000) copies. The album is a pre-release to the later album Christ Illusion
Christ Illusion
Christ Illusion is the tenth studio album by the American thrash metal band Slayer. Released on August 8, 2006, the album received generally favorable critical reviews, and it entered the Billboard 200 at number 5—the band's highest U.S. chart position to date...
, which, like the EP, features the song "Cult". The album was released exclusively through Hot Topic
Hot Topic
Hot Topic is an American retail chain specializing in music and pop culture-related clothing and accessories, as well as licensed music on CD. The majority of the stores are located in regional shopping malls. The first Hot Topic store was opened in 1988 by Orv Madden, who retired as CEO in 2000...
chain stores in the United States and copies were also available in Germany, Finland and Sweden on June 23, 2006. There are three tracks featured on the album, one of which is an audio track
Audio file format
An audio file format is a file format for storing digital audio data on a computer system. This data can be stored uncompressed, or compressed to reduce the file size. It can be a raw bitstream, but it is usually a container format or an audio data format with defined storage layer.-Types of...
and the others are videos
Video codec
A video codec is a device or software that enables video compression and/or decompression for digital video. The compression usually employs lossy data compression. Historically, video was stored as an analog signal on magnetic tape...
. The album was not well received by critics, with few critics actually reviewing the album. The album charted on four different charts, peaking number two in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and three in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
.
Background
The album Christ IllusionChrist Illusion
Christ Illusion is the tenth studio album by the American thrash metal band Slayer. Released on August 8, 2006, the album received generally favorable critical reviews, and it entered the Billboard 200 at number 5—the band's highest U.S. chart position to date...
was originally set for release on June 6, 2006. Slayer guitarist Kerry King
Kerry King
Kerry King is an American lead and rhythm guitarist. He is best known as the lead guitarist and cofounder of American thrash metal band Slayer. He co-founded the band with Jeff Hanneman in 1981 and has been a member ever since...
stated this tentative release date was scrapped as a number of other bands had the same idea and thought it was "fucking lame", although USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
reported the release date was thwarted because the band had failed to secure sufficient studio recording time. Eternal Pyre was released instead, a preview of their album to be released in the coming months. The EP featured the track "Cult", a live performance of "War Ensemble" in Germany and four minutes footage of the band in the recording studio. Originally, it was thought that the extended play would feature a live version of "Dead Skin Mask" instead of the live version of "War Ensemble". Many news reporters were told that the album would feature the "Live Intrusion" video, described as a clip of one of the band's fans who carved Slayer's name into his forearm." 5,000 copies were released exclusively through Hot Topic
Hot Topic
Hot Topic is an American retail chain specializing in music and pop culture-related clothing and accessories, as well as licensed music on CD. The majority of the stores are located in regional shopping malls. The first Hot Topic store was opened in 1988 by Orv Madden, who retired as CEO in 2000...
chain stores in the United States and copies were also available in Germany, Finland and Sweden on June 23. Nuclear Blast Records released a further 7" vinyl
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
picture disc version limited to one thousand copies on June 30.
Composition
Eternal Pyre features three tracks in total. "Cult" was characterized by Thom Jurek as "scathing rejection of religion as the cause for world conflict." The song revolves around guitarist Kerry KingKerry King
Kerry King is an American lead and rhythm guitarist. He is best known as the lead guitarist and cofounder of American thrash metal band Slayer. He co-founded the band with Jeff Hanneman in 1981 and has been a member ever since...
's perception of flaws in American religion and was a comment on America, which he describes as "the biggest cult in the world". Their performance was positively commented on, with Pitch.com saying that "King and Jeff Hanneman
Jeff Hanneman
Jeffrey John "Jeff" Hanneman is a rhythm/lead guitarist and founding member of the American thrash metal band Slayer. Hanneman grew up in Los Angeles in a family of war veterans, and his fascination with warfare is attributed to his upbringing...
riff like they're summoning a storm of thunder, lightning and human blood," and was also noted to be a down-tuned, two-string vamp "that slithers into the foreground creates a tension as Lombardo's cymbals call the band into the riff that opens the tune. It's slow, meaty, unrelenting in its tautness. When Araya's voice comes in, the whole track is off the rails and stays there." "War Ensemble" was filmed live from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and contains four minutes of studio footage. Lyrics were said to "please fans still harboring a grudge from Catholic school."
Reception and release
Critics did not receive Eternal Pyre very well, with few professionals actually reviewing the album. The Pitch criticized the price of the extended play at 5.99, stating in comparison it makes iTunesITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
a bargain. The Pitch's reviewer also said that "Slayer's worst is never far from its best, and this cut's in the middle." The extended play was, however, generally well-received by fans, despite having a limited number of copies available. Eternal Pyre debuted at number forty-eight on the Swedish charts
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, and number two on the Finnish charts
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. With a limited pressing of 1,000 copies, the EP was exclusively made available in Hot Topic
Hot Topic
Hot Topic is an American retail chain specializing in music and pop culture-related clothing and accessories, as well as licensed music on CD. The majority of the stores are located in regional shopping malls. The first Hot Topic store was opened in 1988 by Orv Madden, who retired as CEO in 2000...
stores starting on June 6, and was later made available in Europe on June 23.
Track listing
Chart positions
| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Finnish Albums Chart | 2 |
| German Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
3 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
48 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
88 |
Personnel
The album's credits can be verified by Eternal Pyres back cover.- Tom ArayaTom ArayaTom Araya is a Chilean musician, best known as the bassist and vocalist of the American thrash metal band Slayer...
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Jeff HannemanJeff HannemanJeffrey John "Jeff" Hanneman is a rhythm/lead guitarist and founding member of the American thrash metal band Slayer. Hanneman grew up in Los Angeles in a family of war veterans, and his fascination with warfare is attributed to his upbringing...
– guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Kerry KingKerry KingKerry King is an American lead and rhythm guitarist. He is best known as the lead guitarist and cofounder of American thrash metal band Slayer. He co-founded the band with Jeff Hanneman in 1981 and has been a member ever since...
– guitar - Dave LombardoDave LombardoDave Lombardo is a Cuban American heavy metal drummer best known for his work with American thrash metal band Slayer. He has performed with Slayer on seven albums, including their groundbreaking 1986 release Reign In Blood and their 2006 release Christ Illusion, for which he received critical praise...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Josh AbrahamJosh AbrahamJosh Abraham is a Grammy-winning record producer and co-owner of Pulse Management and Check Your Pulse Publishing. He has produced songs and albums for many of the industry's most successful artists such as Velvet Revolver, 30 Seconds to Mars, Linkin Park, Kelly Clarkson and Courtney Love...
– producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
on track #1 - Matthias Mirke – producer on track #2
- John Sherwood – producer on track #2
- Kevin Estrada – directorFilm directorA film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
on track #3
- John Ewing Jr. – engineerAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
on track #1 - Ryan Williams – mixing engineerMix engineerA mix engineer, also referred to as "mixing engineer", is a person who, once all instruments, voices, and sounds, etc., have been recorded, creates what is called the final version of a song, hence the term "mix engineer"...
on track #1 - Frank Machel – editor on track #2
- Mare Schettler – mixerAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
on track #2