The album was recorded in Los Angeles, California with "Reign in Blood" producer Rick Rubin. "PopMatters" reviewer Adrien Begrand observed that Rubin's production "shoves Lombardo's drumming right up front in the mix". Guitarist Jeff Hanneman has since said that "South of Heaven" was the only album the band members discussed before writing the music. Aware that they "couldn't top "Reign in Blood"", and that whatever they recorded would be "compared to that album", he believed they "had to slow down", something Slayer had never done on albums before, or since. Guitarist Kerry King cited the need to "keep people guessing" as another reason for the musical shift. "In order to contrast the aggressive assault put forth on "Reign in Blood", Slayer consciously slowed down the tempo of the album as a whole", according to Slayer's official biography. "They also added elements like undistorted guitars and toned-down vocal styles not heard on previous albums."