The climax of Slayer's new live DVD Still Reigning comes during "Raining Blood," when a deluge of fake blood pours down from the ceiling of the Civic Center in Augusta, Maine, covering the band. "It was messy," says singer/bassist Tom Araya. "I couldn't play because the initial dump at the beginning of the song got all over me. I couldn't hold my pick. I was slapping my bass trying to get sound out of it."

Shot this past summer, the DVD features a live performance of Reign in Blood, the band's 1986 speed-metal classic, in its entirety, along with six bonus tracks and commentary from the band.

Slayer are back on the road as part of the Jagermeister tour, and the nightly forecast still says blood for Araya and Co. -- but a little less of it. "They developed a portable system of rain that we could travel with," he says. "It's great to see the reaction in the crowd. People are looking around like, 'What the hell was that?' They don't see the raindrops -- they only see them landing on us. We do it for the very last thirty seconds of the song, and I say 'good night' and people are still trying to get over the fact that, 'Dude, it was raining onstage.' To me, that was worth it."

The band had to cancel some of the shows because Araya has been battling sore vocal cords. "I saw a doctor in Rotterdam, and he said, 'Maybe your body is telling you that you need to rest your voice,'" Araya says. "I take the occasional spoonful of honey before I go on, and I've been drinking tea with lemon and warm fluids -- and I avoid any excessive talking."

Slayer tour dates:

11/5: Chicago, IL, Aragon Ballroom*
11/6: Detroit, MI, Harpo's
11/7: Indianapolis, IN, Eygptian Room at Murat Centre
11/10: Pittston, PA, The Staircase
11/11: New York, NY, Roseland Ballroom*
11/12: Sayreville, NJ, Starland Ballroom*
11/13: Worcester, MA, The Palladium*
11/15: Providence, RI, Lupos at the Strand*
11/16: Portland, ME, State Theatre*
11/18: Philadelphia, PA, Electric Factory*
11/19: Cleveland, OH, Agora Ballroom*
11/20: Niagara Falls, NY, Dome Theatre*
11/21: Cincinnati, OH, Bogart's
11/23: Washington, D.C., Nation
11/24: Norfolk, VA, Norva Theatre
11/25: Atlanta, GA, Tabernacle*
11/27: Ft. Lauderdale, FL, Revolution
11/28: Orlando, FL, Hard Rock Live*
11/30: New Orleans, LA, House of Blues
12/2: Houston, TX, Verizon Wireless Theatre*
12/3: San Antonio, TX, Sunset Station*
12/4: Corpus Christi, TX, Concrete Street Amphitheatre*
12/5: Dallas, TX, Gypsy Ballroom
12/7: Denver, CO, Fillmore Auditorium*
12/8: Billings, MT, Shrine Auditorium*
12/10: Seattle, WA, The Premier
12/11: Spokane, WA, The Big Easy
12/12: Portland, OR, Roseland Theatre
12/14: San Francisco, CA, The Warfield*
12/15: Las Vegas, NV, House of Blues*
12/16: San Diego, CA, Soma*
12/17: Los Angeles, CA, Universal Amphitheatre*

*with "wall of blood"

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