Slayer’s announcement of reunion shows came as a big surprise to hard rock and metal fans. It also surprised the band’s guitarist, Kerry King.
King has been busy promoting his debut solo record, “From Hell I Rise,” and Slayer’s reunion shows were announced only days after King shared details on his solo band and album. “It caught me off guard too,” he told Total Guitar. “Do I wish the timing was different? Absolutely, but that’s completely out of my hands.”
King has also shot down rumors that Slayer would be reuniting on a full-time basis, and he said fans should not expect the band to tour again. “Everyone thinks Slayer are getting back together, but that couldn’t be further from the truth,” he explained. “We’ve been turning down gigs ever since we stopped. This one came and I thought, ‘If we’re ever going to do one, this could be cool because it’s the five-year anniversary of our final tour.’”
King concluded: “We’re not going to record anymore. That final tour was definitely our final tour. This is just a reason to have some fun with the guys, play a few shows and then jump back in the coffin…”
King explained in greater detail earlier this month to Q104.3 in New York. “I’ll put it in the perspective everybody can understand,” he said. “We’ve been turning down offers since beginning of 2020, pandemic and all. And then it started getting near the five-year anniversary of us stopping playing, so I’m, like, ‘You know what? This is a three-show package. I think it would be fun to do.’ It’s kind of a five-year anniversary of our last tour. We’re never gonna tour again — it ain’t gonna happen. We’re never gonna record again; that’s not gonna happen either. But to do commemorative shows, I think that’s kind of fun. I don’t have to be married to it for a long time. Kids don’t have to worry about it coming around on tour because we said we wouldn’t. There’s not a whole lot of weird diabolical sh*t going on here. I think people have just gotta say, ‘Hey, it’s anniversary celebration shows.’ That’s gonna be the end of it.”
