For the longest time, folks that didn’t really know much about Slayer and the dudes that made up that band would sometimes link their songs and imagery directly with the Nazis. Despite numerous attempts by the band to clarify that they weren’t pro-Nazi despite writing songs like “Angel of Death” and using an eagle in merchandise that eerily looks similar to the one used in Nazi imagery.
Yet in a recent statement issued by Kathryn Hanneman, the widow of late guitarist Jeff Hanneman, explained that narrative that Slayer was in any way pro-Nazi is categorically false.
“If anyone here is posting immature or negative comments, you’re not representing what it truly means to be a @slayerbandofficial fan. My husband never glorified Nazism. He told stories through his music — essentially documentaries in song form — and did it with remarkable intelligence and depth. At no point did Jeff EVER condone Nazism.”
The impetus for her to post such a clarification stems from continued argument that Slayer’s use of similar imagery used by the Germans in World War II means they condoned what the Nazis did during that time.
Kathryn later went on to clarify some of the band’s uses of symbolism that strikingly resembled Nazi iconography was nothing more than imagery.
“For those that honor my husband with the Slayer ‘S’ or reference to his song ‘Angel of Death,’ please do not automatically assume the S represents the SS or that these fans are Nazis. That couldn’t be further from the truth. They are simply paying tribute to the music and legacy he created. Making assumptions like that is unfair, uninformed, and dismissive of the intelligence behind the art.”
Eventually, Kathryn ended her statement protecting her late husband’s legacy with a reminder the songs and imagery of Slayer do not condone Nazis in any way.
“Jeff never promoted hate — he told historic stories through music. To assume otherwise is not only inaccurate, it diminishes the meaning his work holds for so many people.”
When he was still alive, Jeff Hanneman defended his lyrics for “Angel Of Death” by stating that it was all about recounting what happened.
“I know why people misinterpret it — it’s because they get this knee-jerk reaction to it. When they read the lyrics, there’s nothing I put in the lyrics that says necessarily [Josef Mengele] was a bad man, because to me — well, isn’t that obvious? I shouldn’t have to tell you that.”