Playing God and Other Short Stories

Playing God and Other Short Stories
Studio album by Salem
Released	April 3, 2010
Recorded	2009 at Harold Studios, Israel
Genre	Death metal, groove metal, oriental metal
Length	47:40
Label	Pulverised
Producer	Ze'ev Tananboim, Nir Nakav
Salem chronology
Necessary Evil (2007) Playing God and Other Short Stories (2010)

Playing God and Other Short Stories is the seventh studio album by Israeli death metal band Salem, released on April 3, 2010. ^{[1] [2]}

The album features At the Gates vocalist Tomas Lindberg singing lead vocals on "The Mark of the Beast Part 2" and co-lead vocals on "The Mark of the Beast Part 1".

The album features an unusual death metal cover to Bob Marley's classic song "Exodus".

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Drums of the Dead Part 1"	4:23
2.	"Drums of the Dead Part 2"	4:46
3.	"The Privileged Dead"	3:27
4.	"Exodus" (Bob Marley cover)	4:23
5.	"Downfall of Paris Part 1"	2:03
6.	"Downfall of Paris Part 2"	5:26
7.	"The Mark of the Beast Part 1" (feat. Tomas Lindberg)	4:13
8.	"Beast Lullaby"	0:46
9.	"The Mark of the Beast Part 2" (feat. Tomas Lindberg)	5:44
10.	"The Mark of the Beast Part 3"	3:58
11.	"I Hate Pigs!"	1:10
12.	"Playing God"	7:21
13.	"Et She'arei Ratzon" (Israeli bonus track)

• Note: The Israeli edition also contains a bonus track, an adaptation to a 12th-century Jewish hymn named "Et Sha'arei Ratzon" ("Time of the Gates of Grace") by rabbi Yehuda Ben Shmuel Abbas, which tells the story of the binding of Isaac.

Personnel

• Ze'ev Tananboim - lead vocals
• Lior Mizrachi - guitar
• Nir Gutraiman - guitar
• Michael Goldstein - bass
• Nir Nakav - drums, percussion

Additional personnel

• Tomas Lindberg - vocals on tracks 7 & 9
• Kristin E. Wallace - female vocals on tracks 2 & 9

Production

• Produced by Nir A, Ze'ev Tananboim & Nir Nakav
• Mixed by Nir A, Ze'ev Tananboim & Nir Nakav
• Mastered by UE Nastasi at Sterling Sound, New York City
• Artwork & Design by Nir G

Release history

Country	Release date
Israel	April 3, 2010
Europe	April 26, 2010
United States	May 25, 2010

References

1. Salem - Playing God & Other Short Stories, 2010, retrieved 2025-04-03
2. "Salem - Playing God and Other Short Stories - Reviews - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives". www.metal-archives.com. Retrieved 2025-04-03.