SLAYER guitarist Kerry King has revealed that he reacted with “anger” when it was first suggested that the iconic thrash metal band call it quits
In a new talk with Metal Hammer, King says he felt SLAYER‘s decision to split up was “premature” and that his “livelihood” was taken away from him .
When asked what his reaction was when the idea to call it quits with SLAYER came up conversation to end the band arose, King says: “Anger… what else? It was premature. The reason I say ‘premature’ is because my heroes from my childhood are still playing! I can still play, I still want to play, but that livelihood got taken away from me.
“But, anyway, on to the next chapter, I guess. We were on top of the world, and there’s nothing wrong with going out on top of the world, it’s a good way to go out. So, bravo for that. But do I miss playing? Yeah, absolutely.”
SLAYER‘s final show took place on November 30, 2019, in Los Angeles after a lengthy farewell trek, which King admits was rather difficult on an emotional level.
“Every one of those shows was a bummer! We were going to all these places and all these cities where we have all this history. It’s a bummer to think, ‘I’m not gonna see my friends there again.’ You’d get to that country and know you were going to see these people, and you’d see them yearly. I haven’t seen them now in three years. That sucks. And the fans, too. Slayer means a lot to our fans, and they mean a lot to us. I know I will see these people again, but no Slayer leaves a big hole for a lot of people.”
Kerry also hinted that his forthcoming, yet-to-be-revealed solo project won’t disappoint SLAYER fans, saying: “If you know my work, you know what it’s going to sound like.”
You can read the full interview with Kerry King in the new issue of Metal Hammer.