Thrash icons Slayer bid the music world farewell with an extensive tour last year, and it appears guitarist Kerry King and drummer Paul Bostaph will now come together for more metal madness on a new recording project.
In conversation with Australia's Riff Crew, Bostaph explained how he and King have been at work on new music this summer. They hope to properly record and roll out the material when a pandemic can't upend the best laid plans.
Asked about the musical direction of the material, Bostaph offered, "I guess the best way to put it is Kerry writes what he writes. Is this gonna be a rock'n'roll record? No. Is it gonna be what you want it to be? Yes. Is it gonna be what you expect it to be? Yes. It's not gonna be some rehashed stuff… It's gonna sound like Slayer without it being Slayer — but not intentionally so. I mean, Kerry's been writing songs in Slayer his entire career, and he has a style. And that style, as a songwriter, you just don't change your style because your band is done. But that's what you love to write."
Bostaph admitted that "Kerry's on fire right now. So, all I can say is if you like heavy music and you like Slayer, you'll like this."
"The thing about it is that we don't wanna sound like 'Baby Slayer,' you know what I mean?" the drummer added. "There is Slayer. But it's gonna be good — it's gonna be really good. I've been listening to the music and I just cannot wait to get into the room and start jamming with Kerry."
Bostaph's updates come days after King himself revealed to Dean Guitars that he has recorded a wealth of material during pandemic downtime.
"I've been very, very lucky with riffs in 2020. Maybe because I can't go anywhere — I don't know — but riffs have certainly not been a problem," King said. "And looking forward into the future, what that means for me is I'm gonna be able to cherrypick the best stuff. And it's good stuff. I've got more than two records' worth of music, but to be able to go through that and cherrypick the best 11 or 12 [songs]… That first record should be smoking."
In March, it was rumoured that King and Bostaph would launch the project alongside Slayer bandmate Gary Holt and former Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo, though King added that it wasn't clear who his partners would be.
"Right now, I'm the only lyricist, because I'm the only one writing music, because I'm not positive who everybody is that's gonna be playing with me. So it's all on me at the moment," King explained. "So, actually, I've actually gotta cherrypick those songs, pick my 10 or 12 favourites and actually start trying to put lyrics on them, just to move the process forward."
Find the recent interviews from Bostaph and King below. Guitarist Holt tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this year.
In conversation with Australia's Riff Crew, Bostaph explained how he and King have been at work on new music this summer. They hope to properly record and roll out the material when a pandemic can't upend the best laid plans.
Asked about the musical direction of the material, Bostaph offered, "I guess the best way to put it is Kerry writes what he writes. Is this gonna be a rock'n'roll record? No. Is it gonna be what you want it to be? Yes. Is it gonna be what you expect it to be? Yes. It's not gonna be some rehashed stuff… It's gonna sound like Slayer without it being Slayer — but not intentionally so. I mean, Kerry's been writing songs in Slayer his entire career, and he has a style. And that style, as a songwriter, you just don't change your style because your band is done. But that's what you love to write."
Bostaph admitted that "Kerry's on fire right now. So, all I can say is if you like heavy music and you like Slayer, you'll like this."
"The thing about it is that we don't wanna sound like 'Baby Slayer,' you know what I mean?" the drummer added. "There is Slayer. But it's gonna be good — it's gonna be really good. I've been listening to the music and I just cannot wait to get into the room and start jamming with Kerry."
Bostaph's updates come days after King himself revealed to Dean Guitars that he has recorded a wealth of material during pandemic downtime.
"I've been very, very lucky with riffs in 2020. Maybe because I can't go anywhere — I don't know — but riffs have certainly not been a problem," King said. "And looking forward into the future, what that means for me is I'm gonna be able to cherrypick the best stuff. And it's good stuff. I've got more than two records' worth of music, but to be able to go through that and cherrypick the best 11 or 12 [songs]… That first record should be smoking."
In March, it was rumoured that King and Bostaph would launch the project alongside Slayer bandmate Gary Holt and former Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo, though King added that it wasn't clear who his partners would be.
"Right now, I'm the only lyricist, because I'm the only one writing music, because I'm not positive who everybody is that's gonna be playing with me. So it's all on me at the moment," King explained. "So, actually, I've actually gotta cherrypick those songs, pick my 10 or 12 favourites and actually start trying to put lyrics on them, just to move the process forward."
Find the recent interviews from Bostaph and King below. Guitarist Holt tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this year.