Slayer need no introduction, but I’ll give you one anyway. 1981 was a big year for music. It was the time when Disco had pretty much petered out and we were introduced to a whole new wave of pop and rock styles, courtesy of a little channel called MTV. It was also the year I was born, but the biggest thing to happen in 1981 was the formation of a band that would come to set the bar for every heavy metal act to follow. That band was the mighty Slayer. Over these past three decades, Slayer have released some of the most timeless and down right awesome records to ever grace the ears of metal fans. It really isn’t possible to list all of the achievements and the level of impact that Slayer has had on this music. Last year, Slayer released “World Painted Blood”, which was everything Slayer fans could hope for. Yet, the diehards are always out for more, especially when it comes to Slayer, which is why the Ultimate Slayer collector’s package has been made available. “The Vinyl Conflict” is a limited edition vinyl box set with Ten Slayer albums from ‘Reign in Blood” up to “World Painted Blood” on beautiful and highly collectable vinyl in a luxurious boxed set. This is a must have for any metal fan. But that isn’t all. The Big 4 DVD is out, which captures all of the intensity of Slayer’s jaunt with fellow trailblazers and heavy metal titans Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax, which was the first time these legends of thrash were all in the same place at the same time. Metal Exiles was lucky enough to snag a few minutes of Kerry King’s time to get the scoop on the box set and the big tours of the past year.
Interview with Kerry King of Slayer
By Rob ”Bubbs” Harris
Metal Exiles: Thirty fuckin’ years of Slayer! That’s awesome, man. In fact, you guys started jamming the same year I was born, so I can’t even imagine a world without Slayer.
King: That’s a good thing.
Metal Exiles: When the band first got going, did you ever think that thirty years later you would be considered one of the greatest, if not the greatest, metal bands of all time?
King: Every year we go on, and everything we accomplish is awesome to us, but it’s not something you can sit at home and think about. We’re very grateful to be where we are. I’ve been in Slayer from the beginning, and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else, but the level of success that we have achieved isn’t something that we have dwelled upon.
Metal Exiles: What would you have been doing had Slayer never formed, or didn’t quite make it to the point you are at today?
King: It’s hard to picture. I had a few odd jobs as a teenager, but for the most part, Slayer is all I’ve ever done. When you’ve done something all your life and had success in it, it’s hard to envision yourself having any other form of lifestyle.
Metal Exiles: As a music journalist, I have the pleasure of interviewing bands when they have something big going on. But with the case of Slayer, everything you guys do is huge.
King: It does seem like there are always big things happening with us. We’re sort of on a little hiatus for about four months, but after this break, there are some big things on deck. We’re going to play our first festival in Australia, which is very cool because we always just did our own shows when we went over there, but this will be our first festival experience over there, which is bad ass. I just love Australia. It’s so beautiful and like a whole different world. South American and European tours are coming up early next year too, and that is always a killer time.
Metal Exiles: Let’s talk about ‘The Vinyl Conflict”. Who’s idea was that? Was it a collective decision amongst the band to put this thing out?
King: Actually, we’re still very oblivious to things like that until somebody mentions it. We were touring Europe earlier this year when the record label told us about doing this box set. As you may know, when dealing with record labels and stuff like this, decisions have to be made yesterday. So, they told us about this plan and asked us if we had any ideas as to what we wanted to call it. I was like “No, but I’ll figure something out.” What they had was the most retarded, stupid, generic name you could ever fucking think of. I can’t remember what it was, but imagine stupid and generic, and that was it. So I said to give me a day off to sit at the bar and think about it, so it dawned on me to call it “The Vinyl Conflict”. I sent it over, everybody loved it and there it is.
Metal Exiles: I think releasing it on vinyl was a great idea. Not only is it a great opportunity for the serious collectors to get their hands on some tasty Slayer vinyl, but you can’t hork shit like that off the internet.
King: Metal fans, more so than any type of music fan that I’ve noticed, are more inclined to support their favorite bands fully. They don’t just show up at shows and buy shirts; They want product. Whether it be backstage at a gig, or doing an in-store, the real fans don’t just show up and buy the album for you to sign it; They already had it. I think that’s what separates metal fans from the rest, is the fact that they care enough about the music to get that original product and cherish it.
Metal Exiles: While you might be on hiatus right now, that doesn’t mean that you don’t have plenty of things going on. There is the three DVD set and the Big 4 DVD out. How cool is it to be able to take some time off, yet still be handling business as usual?
King: It’s great. It’s nice to know that we can take a little bit of time off and still have people talking about us and have things going on. We pride ourselves on getting new product to our fans and them being happy with said product, especially since it’s all cool.
Metal Exiles: Let’s touch on the Big 4 subject. That was a historical tour. How awesome was it to be a part of that and to be able to play with and hang out with some dudes that you might not have seen in quite some time?
King: That was cool for everybody involved, because those four bands have never played together before. It was definitely a lot cooler than I expected going in. We had a great time and had lots of fun with everybody. I went and watched Metallica like four out of the seven shows from right there behind Lars’ drum riser. It was really cool.
Metal Exiles: How is Tom’s (Araya) back doing?
King: It’s doing fine, because he isn’t head banging anymore. He’s getting comfortable in his new skin, and he’s going to keep going until he’s tired of it, not because it’s causing him physical pain.
Metal Exiles: I imagine after 30 years of banging your head and having a guitar strapped to you, it would take a toll. But to look at you guys, it might not seem like you have been doing this for thirty years. I guess thrashing is pretty good for your health, huh?
King: Well, from mid-tour on. Like right now, we have this four months off, but I’d rather be out touring just to keep in shape for it. We go back out in mid to late February, and I’ll probably get started in early February on getting back into tour shape. You forget how much things hurt until you get some time off.
Metal Exiles: So, what kind of tour packages are we looking at for next year?
King: To be honest, we really don’t know yet. We’re just kind of waiting for the next wave of things to take off. When we are informed of the details, we’ll get the word out. I do know that it all starts in February, and I imagine we’ll stay out until late summer at least. I don’t know who we’re going out with yet, though.
Metal Exiles: Thank you for sparing a few minutes to chat, Kerry. It was truly a dream come true for me. As a Slayer fan for life, I look forward to the future, and if you have another 30 years in you, we’ll be here to support.
King: Thanks, but I don’t see it going another thirty. We will keep doing it until we all decide it’s time to pack it in. Right now, we’re still having too much fun to call it quits.
Buy “The Vinyl Conflict”
Buy the “Big 4” dvd
Official Slayer Site
Interview with Kerry King of Slayer
By Rob ”Bubbs” Harris
Metal Exiles: Thirty fuckin’ years of Slayer! That’s awesome, man. In fact, you guys started jamming the same year I was born, so I can’t even imagine a world without Slayer.
King: That’s a good thing.
Metal Exiles: When the band first got going, did you ever think that thirty years later you would be considered one of the greatest, if not the greatest, metal bands of all time?
King: Every year we go on, and everything we accomplish is awesome to us, but it’s not something you can sit at home and think about. We’re very grateful to be where we are. I’ve been in Slayer from the beginning, and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else, but the level of success that we have achieved isn’t something that we have dwelled upon.
Metal Exiles: What would you have been doing had Slayer never formed, or didn’t quite make it to the point you are at today?
King: It’s hard to picture. I had a few odd jobs as a teenager, but for the most part, Slayer is all I’ve ever done. When you’ve done something all your life and had success in it, it’s hard to envision yourself having any other form of lifestyle.
Metal Exiles: As a music journalist, I have the pleasure of interviewing bands when they have something big going on. But with the case of Slayer, everything you guys do is huge.
King: It does seem like there are always big things happening with us. We’re sort of on a little hiatus for about four months, but after this break, there are some big things on deck. We’re going to play our first festival in Australia, which is very cool because we always just did our own shows when we went over there, but this will be our first festival experience over there, which is bad ass. I just love Australia. It’s so beautiful and like a whole different world. South American and European tours are coming up early next year too, and that is always a killer time.
Metal Exiles: Let’s talk about ‘The Vinyl Conflict”. Who’s idea was that? Was it a collective decision amongst the band to put this thing out?
King: Actually, we’re still very oblivious to things like that until somebody mentions it. We were touring Europe earlier this year when the record label told us about doing this box set. As you may know, when dealing with record labels and stuff like this, decisions have to be made yesterday. So, they told us about this plan and asked us if we had any ideas as to what we wanted to call it. I was like “No, but I’ll figure something out.” What they had was the most retarded, stupid, generic name you could ever fucking think of. I can’t remember what it was, but imagine stupid and generic, and that was it. So I said to give me a day off to sit at the bar and think about it, so it dawned on me to call it “The Vinyl Conflict”. I sent it over, everybody loved it and there it is.
Metal Exiles: I think releasing it on vinyl was a great idea. Not only is it a great opportunity for the serious collectors to get their hands on some tasty Slayer vinyl, but you can’t hork shit like that off the internet.
King: Metal fans, more so than any type of music fan that I’ve noticed, are more inclined to support their favorite bands fully. They don’t just show up at shows and buy shirts; They want product. Whether it be backstage at a gig, or doing an in-store, the real fans don’t just show up and buy the album for you to sign it; They already had it. I think that’s what separates metal fans from the rest, is the fact that they care enough about the music to get that original product and cherish it.
Metal Exiles: While you might be on hiatus right now, that doesn’t mean that you don’t have plenty of things going on. There is the three DVD set and the Big 4 DVD out. How cool is it to be able to take some time off, yet still be handling business as usual?
King: It’s great. It’s nice to know that we can take a little bit of time off and still have people talking about us and have things going on. We pride ourselves on getting new product to our fans and them being happy with said product, especially since it’s all cool.
Metal Exiles: Let’s touch on the Big 4 subject. That was a historical tour. How awesome was it to be a part of that and to be able to play with and hang out with some dudes that you might not have seen in quite some time?
King: That was cool for everybody involved, because those four bands have never played together before. It was definitely a lot cooler than I expected going in. We had a great time and had lots of fun with everybody. I went and watched Metallica like four out of the seven shows from right there behind Lars’ drum riser. It was really cool.
Metal Exiles: How is Tom’s (Araya) back doing?
King: It’s doing fine, because he isn’t head banging anymore. He’s getting comfortable in his new skin, and he’s going to keep going until he’s tired of it, not because it’s causing him physical pain.
Metal Exiles: I imagine after 30 years of banging your head and having a guitar strapped to you, it would take a toll. But to look at you guys, it might not seem like you have been doing this for thirty years. I guess thrashing is pretty good for your health, huh?
King: Well, from mid-tour on. Like right now, we have this four months off, but I’d rather be out touring just to keep in shape for it. We go back out in mid to late February, and I’ll probably get started in early February on getting back into tour shape. You forget how much things hurt until you get some time off.
Metal Exiles: So, what kind of tour packages are we looking at for next year?
King: To be honest, we really don’t know yet. We’re just kind of waiting for the next wave of things to take off. When we are informed of the details, we’ll get the word out. I do know that it all starts in February, and I imagine we’ll stay out until late summer at least. I don’t know who we’re going out with yet, though.
Metal Exiles: Thank you for sparing a few minutes to chat, Kerry. It was truly a dream come true for me. As a Slayer fan for life, I look forward to the future, and if you have another 30 years in you, we’ll be here to support.
King: Thanks, but I don’t see it going another thirty. We will keep doing it until we all decide it’s time to pack it in. Right now, we’re still having too much fun to call it quits.
Buy “The Vinyl Conflict”
Buy the “Big 4” dvd
Official Slayer Site
