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Metal Babes: Rare Photos of Slayer and Metallica from the Early Days of Thrash

Photo by Harald Oimoen

Forget earthquakes, thrash metal was the biggest, loudest tectonic shift to hit California in the early ’80s. Led by Slayer and Metallica, the bands combined the scrappiness of punk with the stomping fury of metal. In Harald Oimoen and Brian Lew’s ‘Murder in the Front Row: Shots from the Bay Area Thrash Metal Epicenter,’ those bands are seen in their wild and (relatively) innocent formative stages. This gallery focuses on recently deceased Slayer guitarist Jeff Hanneman. Let ’em rip.