Image: Slayer [Official Press Photo]
Slayer, one of the greatest bands in the metal scene, caused quite a stir in the USA with their upcoming reunion shows. Now, there is hope that Europe might also get to experience these legendary live performances. Here's the background:
Recently, Slayer announced a few reunion shows in the USA. However, Kerry King repeatedly emphasized that these would be the only shows. But in a brand new interview with Metal Injection, Kerry King hinted that he wouldn’t be surprised if Slayer played one or two shows in Europe.
“It’s hard not to. I’m trying to be real and definitely say, hey, we’re not gonna tour again. And we’re certainly not gonna record again, ’cause I have a means of doing that now with my band. [We’re doing] three shows for now. And I say ‘for now’ because I know Europe’s gonna come knocking, ‘Hey, man, you guys played America. Come see us.’ So it wouldn’t surprise me if something like that happened, but it’s certainly not on my books right now.”
How Did The Reunion Come About?
Kerry King also shared how the Slayer reunion happened. Although he had rejected many offers in the past, he changed his mind when he was offered a limited edition commemorating the end of the band five years ago.
“I turned it down for the longest time. You can imagine we’ve been turning down offers since December 1st, 2019. And at that point, I thought, ‘No, we’re never gonna play again.’ Tom retired. So it’s written. And then offers keep coming, offers keep coming, the money goes up. And this one came around and it was when we were booking shows from my band, and I go to my manager.
“I’m, like, ‘Are we talking about my band or Slayer? What are we talking about here?’ He’s, like, ‘Slayer.’ And I’m, like, ‘Yeah, but that’s done. We hung that shit up. I dropped the chains. Done.’ But then it started getting to where this is really gonna be the five-year anniversary of our last tour and I went, ‘That’s kind of cool. Three shows, five-year anniversary. Okay.’ That’s about all I thought about it."
Surprise In The Band
The funny thing is: Kerry King hadn't told anyone in the band about the plans. When they found out they would be playing three shows, everyone was totally surprised. It simply hadn't occurred to him to inform his bandmates. Paul Bostaph, the drummer for Slayer and King's solo band, knew of course, but the rest of the band was completely taken aback. King later apologized to them and explained that it just hadn’t crossed his mind.
“The funny thing about this story is I didn’t tell anybody in my band. I’d never been in that situation. And the news dropped that we were doing three shows and everybody blows me up. I’m, like, ‘Goddammit.’ ‘It never occurred to me to tell you guys.’ Never fucking occurred to me. It wasn’t a secret. They can keep secrets. I know that. And I felt so bad."
“It never occurred to me. Paul [Bostaph, Slayer and King’s solo drummer] knew, of course. But [the rest of the band], they all texted me and blew me up. I’m, like, ‘I’m so sorry, man. It never occurred to me. This is what’s up. This is what’s gonna happen. If it happens again, it’s gonna be the same thing. We’re never gonna fucking make a record. We’re never gonna fucking tour. This is my band.’”
Whether Slayer will actually come to Europe remains exciting. Watch the complete interview to learn more about Kerry King's and Slayer's plans.
