In a recent interview with Metal Hammer Greece’s TV show “TV War,” SLAYER guitarist Kerry King shared his experience of meeting musical idols and whether any encounters were negative. He admitted, “Yeah. Only once. And I won’t even tell you who, because he doesn’t deserve it. But nine times out of ten… The last one that I’ll say I got over the hump with, ’cause I was still such a fan, was [BLACK SABBATH’s] Tony Iommi. It was very late in our careers, but it’s Tony; he’s the godfather of all this. I think it was, like, 2006, finally. And I knew him before that, but I couldn’t talk to him. It was Tony Iommi; I just couldn’t do it.”
Kerry continued, “In 2006, I went to the Classic Rock Awards in Britain. I was presenting Tony with an award, and I was nervous as hell. I was out of my environment. I’ve done metal shows, I’ve done the [Revolver] Golden Gods a billion times, but at the Classic Rock Awards, I was out of my element. Steven Tyler [AEROSMITH] was there, AC/DC was there, DEF LEPPARD was there — people I’ve admired for years but didn’t know. So I’m shaking up there. I hit the mic while talking. And I was just a complete idiot. [Laughs] But, I got to give Tony his award, took a picture with him. Then I felt like we were bros. I was over the Tony hump, and that was cool.”
King added, “I’ve had a lot of heroes, from [JUDAS] PRIEST to SABBATH and [DEEP PURPLE’s] Ritchie Blackmore. But Tony was the one. I had to climb that mountain and get over it.”
In 2017, King named BLACK SABBATH’s 1975 album “Sabotage” as one of his top 10 favorite metal albums, telling Rolling Stone magazine, “‘Sabotage’ is just a very heavy record. There’s so much good stuff on there. When I picked these records, I chose the ones I’m compelled to play if I’m working out or driving, and ‘Sabotage’ was my choice for BLACK SABBATH. It has ‘Megalomania’, ‘Symptom Of The Universe’, which has definitely got attitude, ‘Hole In The Sky’. And it has the instrumental ‘Supertzar’. I love that one. It grips me for some reason.”
Kerry King’s debut solo album, “From Hell I Rise,” was released on May 17 via Reigning Phoenix Music. Joining him in his new band are Mark Osegueda (vocals; DEATH ANGEL), Phil Demmel (guitar; MACHINE HEAD, VIO-LENCE), Kyle Sanders (bass; HELLYEAH), and drummer Paul Bostaph (SLAYER, TESTAMENT, EXODUS).
Earlier this month, the KERRY KING band performed its first live show at Reggies in Chicago, which sold out completely. The concert was described as “dark, packed, and exceptionally loud,” delivering everything you could want from such a landmark event. Following this, the band moved from an intimate venue to major U.S. festivals like Welcome To Rockville (Florida) and Sonic Temple (Ohio), delivering pure metal firepower.
Now, the KERRY KING band is set to embark on a European tour starting on June 3, King’s 60th birthday. The tour will feature headline shows in the U.K., The Netherlands, Germany, Italy, and Spain, along with festival appearances at Rock Am Ring, Hellfest, Tuska, Download, Sweden Rock Festival, and many more.
All material for “From Hell I Rise” was written by the 59-year-old SLAYER guitarist. Producer Josh Wilbur, known for his work with KORN, LAMB OF GOD, AVENGED SEVENFOLD, and BAD RELIGION, helmed the sessions at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles last year.
