Slayer

The Chicago Tribune's Greg Kot wrote that the five-time-nominated, two-time Grammy winning Slayer is "one of the great American rock bands of the last 30 years, forget about genre." Their membership in "The Big Four" - Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax - the four bands that defined the thrash/metal genre - secures their place in music history. Indeed, few bands come close to matching the intensity that Slayer brings to its live shows, having been named "Best Live Band" by numerous media outlets including Revolver, SPIN, and Metal Hammer. With songs that mirror the turmoil and aberrations of our society - God's terrifying global genocide, the chaos of our broken political system, chemical warfare, the hideous minds of serial killers, and the way-too-close proximity of world horrors that technology has brought us, Slayer remains crushing and brutal, steadfastly refusing to cater to the Mainstream. Slayer's founding member, guitarist Jeff Hanneman passed in 2013, and Exodus guitarist Gary Holt has been filling in since.