Review by Krys on January 6, 2005.

Why the hell would you need me to review this DVD? Isn’t over two decades of devastation, a firmly established classic status in the metal world and most importantly, the album focus of this release, Reign in Blood (undoubtedly one of the best and most influential metal albums ever), performed live in its entirety and with the original line-up not enough to pick this DVD? If not then I have nothing more to say to you, for the rest of us who already have it in our collections read the last two words of this review and move on with your lives.

Still Reigning is made up of three parts. The first section is the entire Reign in Blood release, their 28-minute benchmark album, played from start to finish and concluded by a theatrical downpour of blood during the closing track. I’ve listen to this album since 1986 and this piece still gave me chills. Amazing! Some might find a few signs of aging during the performance from our beloved quartet but over two decades of banging your head to this type of music who wouldn’t age? Don’t get me wrong here; this bunch still destroys punks 20 years younger with energy and dedication alone. Slayer by no means is just selling the performance; they relish every second of it.

The second part offers bonus material including live performances of Slayer classics such as "War Ensemble," "Hallowed Point," "Necrophiliac," "Mandatory Suicide," "Spill The Blood," and "South of Heaven.” The final section, a seventeen minute documentary called ‘Slayer in Their Own Words’ presents exclusive interviews with members of the band, their crew, fans and backstage footage. Even though this section is about past, present and future it focuses on Dave Lombardo's return to the fold and the performance of Reign in Blood, including the raining blood effect.

From technical standpoint the sound of the show is excellent and the only complaint I might have is the camera work that does not capture the full atmosphere of the show, but honestly until you see them live nothing will ever bring the excitement and full madness of their show onto the tape. If you’ve never seen this machine live do yourself a favor and jump into the pit, see if you’ll survive couple of tracks. Nothing, and I mean nothing, comes close to Slayer’s live shows and its atmosphere.

To sum it up in two words, because there’s no need to advertise this DVD any more: Metal Bible.

Rating: 10 out of 10

Review by JD on August 7, 2009.

Screaming out of Pennsylvania, Ethereal Collapse come out and is out to take over the known world with its power and strength. Combining Bay Area Thrash with Melodic Swedish Death Metal... they are attempting to bridge the gap with in these two styles.

Three songs, totalling a little over sixteen minutes and change of metal... it sure was a sudden strike to every sense I have. On hearing the album, I could hear through the Bay Area and Swedish things, and heard other influences popping out. I hear Trivium in how they do solos and some breaks, while there is this odd feel of Cradle Of Filth seemed to wind its way through intermittently as well. It seems like they have tried to pack every one of their influences into one to make up their sound.

Through it all... it seemed somewhat cluttered at times, but overall it was done more than just well. Ethereal Collapse had this bit of a feeling as if it they were at times sort of disorganized musically. It came clear quickly that it actually added to the explosive sound, making the argument that it was done on purpose clear. Interesting recording technique, one that I ended up liking very much.

Ethereal Collapse will be taking over the world, and make people do their bidding as the rip across the country. Their next release will probably prove me right with that assessment... as for the album "Categories", I seriously liked the album yet I had been left waiting to completely love it. Never got there though, but it does make me want to listen to it more.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship:7.5
Atmosphere: 7
Production: 8
Originality: 7.5
Overall: 7.5

Rating: 7.5 out of 10