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SLAYER Albums To Be Reissued On Vinyl
On December 10 (November 11 in the U.K.), American Recordings will reissue ten ofSLAYER's seminal albums on vinyl. All ten albums will be available individually and were remastered from the original analog flat master tapes and pressed on the highest quality, 180-gram audiophile vinyl. Albums include nine of SLAYER's studio recordings — "Reign In Blood"(1986), "South Of Heaven" (1988), "Seasons In The Abyss" (1990), "Divine Intervention"(1994), "Undisputed Attitude" (1996), "Diabolus In Musica" (1998), "God Hates Us All"(2001), "Christ Illusion" (2006), and "World Painted Blood" (2009), plus their live double-record "Decade Of Aggression: Live" (1991). Each title will feature the original album artwork, including reproductions of the original 12x12 inner sleeves. For the first U.S. run, 500 unmarked copies will be pressed on 180-gram, blood red, colored vinyl and randomly inserted and sold in stores as part of a "lucky dip." There will also be a very limited quantity of rare test pressings for each title that will be given away.
Fans are encouraged to check SLAYER's official web site and social media outlets for further announcements and details.
As American Recordings' owner and longtime SLAYER producer Rick Rubin put it, "SLAYER defines speed metal and these albums define SLAYER. Listen at your own risk."
ICED EARTH Taps Former SLAYER/TESTAMENT Drummer JON DETTE
For the remainder of ICED EARTH's European tour with VOLBEAT, Jon Dette (SLAYER,TESTAMENT, ANTHRAX) will sit behind the drums, taking over for Raphael Saini, who filled in during the summer festivals, the recording of ICED EARTH's new album, and the club leg of theVOLBEAT tour.
"Raphael came in and helped us out of a tight spot this summer with a full schedule of festivals, a new album to finish, and no room for diversion on the schedule," said ICED EARTHin a statement. "He came in and delivered and we are very grateful for that. We wish him all the best for his future endeavours."
Added Raphael: "When I had the chance to join ICED EARTH for their summer festivals and the new album, I couldn't say no: I was really excited even though I knew that it was going to be something temporary.
"I am honored to be part of the band's history, an amazing album, and to have worked with some supremely talented musicians. My journey will continue, there's more to come."
ICED EARTH earlier in the year parted ways with drummer Brent Smedley for "personal family reasons."
The second leg of ICED EARTH's tour with VOLBEAT kicks off at O2 World in Berlin, Germany, tomorrow, November 6, and wraps at Forum, Copenhagen, Denmark on December 1.
ICED EARTH will release its new album, "Plagues Of Babylon", in January 2014 via Century Media Records. The cover artwork was created and illustrated by Eliran Kantor(TESTAMENT, ATHEIST, SIGH, ANACRUSIS, GWAR).
TESTAMENT’s ALEX SKOLNICK: JEFF HANNEMAN’s Riffs Are ‘All Over’ SLAYER’s Iconic Tunes
Peter Atkinson of Metal-Rules.com recently conducted an interview with guitarist Alex Skolnick of San Francisco Bay Area metallers TESTAMENT. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
Metal-Rules.com: The last time you toured with SLAYER, was Jeff Hanneman still with the band?
Skolnick: The last time we toured with them, I think it must have been one of the last tours that Jeff did. Of course, no one knew that at the time. He hadn't developed his health issues so Gary [Holt, SLAYER's current touring guitarist] wasn't there yet, he was still going full-time with EXODUS, who we also toured with. You couldn't have known what was going to happen. That was 2010, and it was only 2011 when the "Big Four" shows happened and he [Hanneman] couldn't do those, which was such a shame.
Metal-Rules.com: You wrote a very eloquent and well-circulated tribute to Hanneman after his death. TESTAMENT toured with SLAYER many times, but did you really know him that well or was that more to show respect for his talents?
Skolnick: I never really knew him well at all. He was very difficult to get to know, actually. And I don't say that disrespectfully. Even close friends of his said it would take a long time to get to know him. Robb Flynn, a friend of ours from MACHINE HEAD, wrote that he'd toured with them, like, eight times and he still felt like he barely knew him. He kept to himself more. I don't think he related to many people — that was just the way he was — but he was a towering presence, no question. I wrote about him more from his reputation, which is tremendous. When you think about the music, the music is great and he is such a part of it. With all due respect to Kerry [King], when you take a look at the iconic SLAYER tunes, it'sHanneman's riffs all over it.
Metal-Rules.com: I haven't seen anything about Chuck's [Billy, TESTAMENT singer] health in a long time, so I'm assuming no news is good news there and his health is good. How's the rest of the band holding up, since none of you are kids anymore?
Skolnick: Yeah, thankfully, that's worked out really well. Chuck's been much better [after a battle with rare form of cancer in 2001]; he's been in great shape. Everybody in this band, knock on wood, is in relatively good health. I think as time goes on and you realize that you don't have as much free time as you once had, your perspective changes. Fortunately, most of us realize that and take better care of ourselves. I was always a lightweight when it came to alcohol and never really developed a taste for other substances, so I think that worked to my benefit. I was taking care of myself early on, and I would get a lot of funny looks, but it seems like now many people are catching up to me.
Metal-Rules.com: TESTAMENT's been pretty busy, especially over the last few years, and just about everyone has at least one other band going on the side — notably Gene [Hoglan, drummer] with DETHKLOK and now, apparently, with DARK ANGEL again. Are you all finding you are able to balance TESTAMENT with the other things you want to do?
Skolnick: That's been the toughest, I think, with Gene. I used to be the thorn in the side, with my trio shows and I was doing TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA for a long time. I narrowed it down to TESTAMENT, my trio [ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO] and a world music project I'm working on. But I have control over those, so I am able to let the chips fall where they may withTESTAMENT, because usually their shows are booked well in advance. Occasionally, there are some curveballs where we get last-minute things like festivals or something. I'm mostly able to work my activities around the TESTAMENT schedule. Eric [Peterson, TESTAMENT guitarist] and Chuck do their side projects [DRAGONLORD and DUBLIN DEATH PATROL, respectively] so sporadically that it never poses scheduling problems. With Gene, it got a little bit easier when he wasn't playing in FEAR FACTORY anymore, which happened last year. And theDETHKLOK shows are usually booked far in advance, so we can work around those. Occasionally, he'll have to miss a few dates, a friend of ours, Mark Hernandez fromFORBIDDEN, was able to fill in and it worked out. But with all of us, we really feel like the core lineup and we do everything that we can so the fans get to see this lineup.
Read the entire interview at Metal-Rules.com.
SLAYER’s KING On Recording HANNEMAN-Penned Material: ‘If It Ain’t Awesome, You’re Not Gonna Hear It’
Revolver magazine recently conducted an interview with SLAYER guitarist Kerry King and drummer Paul Bostaph. You can now watch the chat at RevolverMag.com. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).
On the progress of the songwriting sessions for SLAYER's long-awaited follow-up to 2009's"World Painted Blood":
King: "I've been working on stuff for the better part of three years, probably. I did a demo with [now-former SLAYER drummer] Dave [Lombardo] a year ago, [in] March [2012]. We finished two songs that we thought were gonna be out for [the Rockstar Energy Drink]Mayhem [Festival] in 2012, and to this day, they're not mixed. Now [drummer] Paul's [Bostaph] with us, so we're gonna re-record those with Paul. But [Paul] and I have done, like, 11 demos since Paul's been with us. I think there's two or three more that are finished that we've just gotta work on, and there's, like, halves of three others. So we have an abundance of material. We've just gotta sign a deal with whoever is gonna put it out and record it, which I'm really hoping to do in January. And we should be so prepared that it should be a pretty short recording time frame. So my idea [for a possible release date] is May of 2014]. But I'm always wrong."
On the possiliby of using material that was originally written by guitarist Jeff Hanneman prior to this death:
King: "Jeff had… We both had a song that was left off the last album ['World Painted Blood']. And mine, 'Atrocity Vendor', came out on some obscure single. But I'd like to re-record that with Paul, change the lyrics up a bit, change the leads and have that as a bonus track on the new record. Jeff's song he finished right at the end, so it was kind of like an afterthought. There's some good stuff on it, but good as a whole, it's gotta be reworked, and I plan on reworking it. I know Jeff wanted to rework it, so it's not like he's not here, so I'm gonna change his song. [laughs] I know he talked about rewriting lyrics for it.
"It's hard, because once a song is finished, it's hard to hear it any other way. You basically have to deconstruct it and start fresh. The verse will be the verse and the chorus will be the chorus, but all the glue in the middle, you've gotta deconstruct it and see what you can do to make it better. And I planned on working on that one; it's just that I've got a couple I'm working on I wanna finish first. And he's got, I think, two other strong ideas that I don't even think were done, so they're gonna need to be helped as well.
"My big thing is, if we're gonna put out something that Jeff wrote, I've seen other musicians and bands [release] music [that was originally written] in the past, and it's generally not good. I don't want it to be perceived like that. If we're gonna put out Jeff's last contribution inSLAYER, if it ain't awesome, you're not gonna hear it. So I wanna make it awesome, so youcan hear it."
On SLAYER's current North American tour featuring an "old-school" setlist:
King: "Well, we had a really good set made up, and since we were playing two shows in L.A., they wanted something for the night that was added, so I came up with a setlist that's'Seasons In The Abyss' and prior, and once we did it, everybody wanted it. And it's a good time to do it, because we don't have any [new] product, so… I'm, like, well, shit. It's fun to play, it goes by in a minute, it seems like. We just did it last night and played an hour and 25 [minutes], and it seemed like it was, like, 10 minutes. It was just [snaps fingers], bam, done."
KERRY KING Says ‘Fans Aren’t Ready’ For GARY HOLT To Contribute Material To SLAYER
SLAYER guitarist Kerry King spoke to Canada's Metro about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the band's 12th studio album — the group's first since guitarist and founding member Jeff Hanneman died of liver failure on May 2.
"To me, it will be business as usual as it can be," King said.
"Usually by the time any idea was presented, I'd have finished it or Jeff would have it finished, so they were essentially finished songs. We'll just move forward like that.
"Musically, I'm sitting on roughly 14 tunes that we can pick from and I've finished seven of those lyrically. I'm way ahead of the game compared to where I was for 'World Painted Blood' [the band's 2009 album]."
Asked if SLAYER's current touring guitarist Gary Holt — who is also the lead axeman in San Francisco Bay Area's EXODUS — will play on the new SLAYER album, Kerry said: "I've told Gary that I'd like him to play some leads, just to keep it interesting.
"We've always been a two-guitar attack, so if you're looking to have a segment like the 'Angel Of Death' lead trade-off, you can't do that with one guitar.
"As far as Gary being a contributing writer, number one, fans aren't ready for it, and number two, that's like throwing somebody to the wolves.
"I think if there's another record after this one and Gary is still with us at that point, I think that will be a time where I say, ‘Hey dude, feel free to throw any riffs my way if you're interested'."
Regarding how the new SLAYER material is shaping up and whether fans can expect any surprises on the next album, Kerry said: "Fans don't want you to change.
"How many fans do you think METALLICA pissed off when they did 'Load' and 'Reload'?
"People like SLAYER because it's SLAYER.
"You grow as a musician within your genre, not try and flip genres and become something else."
In a recent interview with LA Weekly, King commented on the possibility of SLAYER's next album featuring previously unused material that was written by Hanneman prior to his death.
"There's been musicians historically that passed on and had a lot of stuff put out that was unreleased during their lives," he said. "But most of it was unreleased for a reason. I don't want the last thing for people to hear from Jeff be mediocre."
For his part, SLAYER bassist/vocalist Tom Araya has expressed more optimism about the prospect of the band's next effort containing some of Jeff's final ideas.
"I would want to do that," Tom told Steppin' Out magazine about revisiting Hanneman's material.
"When we did 'World Painted Blood', there was a Jeff composition that didn't make it on the album. We were working on trying to put that song together lyrically, but it wasn't happening, so it got shelved. But it's a great song, it's complete. We've just got to finish it lyrically. He also put a song together about a month before he passed away that I thought sounded great. His guitar abilities weren't all there, but you could hear what he was trying to do. He gave me an idea of where he wanted the verses and how he was phrasing the song."
TOM ARAYA: Why DAVE LOMBARDO Is No Longer In SLAYER
During a brand new interview with Brian Aberback of New Jersey's Steppin' Out magazine,SLAYER bassist/vocalist Tom Araya was asked about the band's decision to part ways with drummer Dave Lombardo bring back Paul Bostaph.
"That whole issue came down to this: Dave had been jamming with us for a while, as a working member of the band, but he wasn't a partner," Tom began. "Like all things like that, you have to have agreements, so nobody feels cheated. We had ongoing issues and finally he put us in a position where we had to find someone to replace him. He wasn't happy, so he decided to have his Facebook rant and told the world about a lot of issues going on within the band that are legally binding and private. I thought that was wrong and it was upsetting. A lot of the claims he made were untrue. Part of the agreement is you don't do that. Kerry [King, SLAYERguitarist], Jeff [Hanneman, then-SLAYER guitarist] and I got on the phone and made a collective decision and we let Dave go and gave Paul a call. Paul said he'd be happy to come back. He has brought some life back into our live performances. He's in hyper drive and kicking ass, which makes us play faster. People have commented on how energetic we've been lately. We're playing faster than we would have. It's good injection of adrenaline."
Lombardo sat out SLAYER's Australian tour in February/March due to a contract dispute with the other members of the group. Filling in for him was Jon Dette (TESTAMENT, ANTHRAX).
During an interview with the KZRADIO.NET alternative radio station in Israel conducted on May 1 — just one day before the tragic passing of SLAYER guitarist Jeff Hanneman — Lombardostated about his the circumstances that led to him being absent from SLAYER's current trek: "Basically, I had to renegotiate my contract two and a half years ago and I got an attorney because it was too complicated for me to do it myself. And my attorney was asking questions. And the answers she got from her questions, they weren't correct; they weren't the right answers. So we worked on it for two and a half years. And 2013 came around and SLAYER had to go on tour, and I said, 'Guys, I can't go on tour unless we resolve this, I've been advised.'"
He continued: "What I need is clarity — clarity and transparency.
"You go and make money for somebody, and if somebody is gonna pay you a percentage, you need to know where all this goes. They say I don't deserve to know, but I think if you're gonna pay somebody a percentage, they deserve to know. Because how are you gonna know what you got paid when you don't know everything else?
"It's a little complicated, and there's more to it as well.
"They feel that because I left in 1992 and I left for 10 years, they feel I don't deserve [to know all the details of their business].
"I mean, I love the guys — they're like my brothers — and I wish this didn't happen. But now there's like this wall between us."
Regarding some fans' criticism that money should not get in the way of the members ofSLAYER making music together, Lombardo said: "What people don't understand is that, being a musician, you have to be a part businessman. There's contracts… If you're a musician and you don't have a contract and you don't follow up on your business, people are gonna take from you and they're gonna steal from you.
PAUL BOSTAPH: SLAYER Is Honoring JEFF HANNEMAN By Continuing Without Him
Earlier this week, Dimitris Kontogeorgakos of Greece's Metal Kaoz conducted an interview with SLAYER drummer Paul Bostaph. You can now listen to the chat using the audio player below. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).
On how it feels playing with SLAYER again:
Bostaph: "It feels phenomenal. It feels really good. It feels like being home. I've always loved playing this music. I grew up on it… Just coming back to this, it's been really good. It's kind of like going back and playing with old friends again. I mean, Kerry [King, guitar] and I were really close and we still are, and I'm close to Tom [Araya, bass/vocals]. And I know Gary [Holt] from EXODUS [who is filling in for late SLAYER guitarist Jeff Hanneman] — I know Gary very well. The only bittersweet part of it, obviously, is that Jeff is not with us anymore. And I was looking forward to that, to playing with him again. But other than that, other than Jeff passing, it's been really good."
On his decision in December 2001 to leave SLAYER and how things are different today:
Bostaph: "Well, it's funny… I was different back then. The way I looked at things was different — right or wrong. And now I've had the time to kind of… Sometimes they say you don't know what you have until it's gone. And I think over the years, just seeing the guys and playing with different bands [since I left SLAYER], I kind of realized that playing with these guys is that there's a way that they do things that… In terms of… I don't know… It's hard to explain. There's a work ethic that appeals to me within this band. I think there's just a feeling of loving the music. First and foremost, and the primary thing out of everything, I couldn't find a band that could do what this band does. And that's the bottom line, really."
On whether he was the first and only name on SLAYER's list of possible replacements for the band's original drummer, Dave Lombardo, when Dave parted ways with SLAYER earlier this year:
Bostaph: "Honestly, I don't think so; I don't think I was the first and only [name on the list]. I mean, there's probably some other guys [that were being considered as well]. But I'm the guy that's here now. It made sense [for me to return]. I mean, you can't think anything for granted and think it's just gonna work. You have to try it out and see how things feel. It's been over [ten] years [since I left the band], and I'm sure they wanted to see how it felt playing together again, and being in a room together, you know what I mean?! You just don't make a snap judgment like that and [assume] that it's going to work. And they didn't. And we got together and we felt it out, and it felt really good, and here we are."
On how different it feels being in SLAYER without Jeff:
SLAYER’s TOM ARAYA: JEFF HANNEMAN’s Death ‘Has Changed Everything’
Brian Aberback of New Jersey's Steppin' Out magazine recently conducted an interview with SLAYER bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. An excerpt from the chat follows below.
Steppin' Out: You just started doing press for this tour and know that everyone will be asking about [late SLAYER guitarist] Jeff [Hanneman]. How do you feel talking about everything that's gone on in the past six months?
Tom Araya: You know you're going to get those questions whether we decide to do press or not. If you don't do interviews, no one is aware that you're doing a tour. It wouldn't bother me if Kerry [King, guitar] did all the interviews. [laughs] But when I do interviews, I enter them with an open mind and try to answer the questions the best I can.
Steppin' Out: Did you have any idea that Jeff was seriously ill before he died?
Tom: Nobody ever thought about Jeff passing away. I thought about him getting better and getting back onstage. We've been talking about getting back in the studio for the last two years, with Jeff being a part of that. It was something to be continued.
Steppin' Out: Have you thought about folding the band following his death?
Tom: His death has changed everything. Knowing that Jeff was on the sidelines, I was OK. It was always about, "Jeff is going to come back." Then he passed away and it was more like, "Why am I doing this now?" It changed my attitude about some things. Someone said, "It's really great that you decided to tour and move on," but these tours were scheduled in advance. At the end of this tour, Kerry and I are going to have to sit down and talk as far as how we want to move forward, if we want to move forward. There hasn't been time for me and Kerry to talk. We've been on the road but we haven't really sat down and talked about it. Jeff and I collaborated a lot, and he offered me the opportunity to write or to collaborate with him. Like I said, there are things we have to discuss to either move forward or just to figure something out.
Steppin' Out: How tough was it playing the first shows after Jeff's death this summer in Europe?
GARY HOLT Will ‘Probably’ Record Solos On Next SLAYER Studio Album
Kevin J. Wells of Washington Times recently conducted an interview with EXODUS and SLAYER guitarist Gary Holt. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
Washington Times: Is there a new EXODUS record in the works?
Gary Holt: Right now, I'm starting to compile riffs and get to that stage and I'm gonna continue writing while out the upcoming SLAYER tour as well. I pretty much have a break from the world of SLAYER 'til next April. So, I'm using this time off to make sure that I get that next EXODUS record done.
Washington Times: Is SLAYER is also starting work a new record?
Gary Holt: The recording for that should start sometime maybe by the end of this year. So, hopefully, then kill two birds with one stone and manage to keep both bands touring at the same time. Who knows?
Washington Times: Will you do any of the recording with SLAYER?
Gary Holt: It looks like I'll probably be doing solos on the record, but the songs are all written. Kerry [King] will handle all that stuff. My plate's kind of full anyway, so I'll probably be bouncing back and forth from L.A. to San Francisco.
Washington Times: Tom Araya said that there are a few Jeff Hanneman songs that he was working on. Have you had a chance to hear them and has SLAYER done any work on them?
Gary Holt: No. I know they have some stuff, you know, I think the bulk of whatever's left over was stuff that remained from "World Painted Blood", but I haven't heard it yet, so I can't comment on it. I'm sure it'd be super cool to have some of his last final works end up on the SLAYER album. That would be awesome.
Read the entire interview at Washington Times.