Former Slayer guitarist Kerry King has told Metal Hammer that he “won’t be dragging my feet much longer” when it comes to his new project.
King revealed in 2021 that he has more than two records' worth of music written for the as-yet-unnamed band. Speaking to Metal Hammer, he says that fans of his old band won’t be disappointed when it comes to the new music.
“You know me, so you know what it’s going to sound like,” he says of the new material. “I played this new song for a buddy, and I said to him, ‘If there’s anything I’ve written in the last few years that sounds like Slayer, it’s this.’ And he said, ‘That sounds like you could have pulled it off of any Slayer record.' I actually made that riff up backstage at a Slayer show. We were walking to the stage and I got my phone out and recorded it so I wouldn’t forget it.
“That actually ended up being one of the last songs that I finished for the sessions, so when that hits the air, or stores, or Apple, or wherever it is that people buy music from these days, you can all play the guessing game discussion about which one it is.”
While King was cagey about who else will be in the band, he confirmed the involvement of former Slayer drummer Paul Bostaph.
“We just started rehearsing and the only person I can give away is Paul because I took him from Slayer and we work very well together,” says King. “We didn’t start rehearsing until the end of March, and that was the first time since that last Slayer show at the end of 2019 that me and Paul finally got into a room together.”
King also talked about his desire to play live, suggesting he originally planned to tour with the new project before the pandemic.
“Had it have been up to me then I’d have been out in 2020,” he says. “But that thing called the pandemic fucked everything up for everyone. You know, I waited on that, because it had to run its course. I didn’t want to be the guinea pig, I didn’t want to learn how to tour again. I already did my dues; I don’t want to have to prove myself again.
“Have I been dragging my feet? Yeah, because I wanted this [pandemic] shit to get sorted. I won’t be dragging my feet much longer."
As for the shows themselves, Kings says fans should expect them to be a lot more scaled-back than Slayer’s final shows.
“I’d like nothing more than to bring out a huge production, but like I’ve told everybody, ‘Don’t expect Slayer [sized] venues.’ Unless people grasp onto it immediately, we’re gonna start in a much smaller scenario. But if I could keep anything from Slayer, it’s the fire. That’s the one thing that’s moved with me.”
