guitarist has revealed that he was just as taken aback as everybody else when the legends announced their comeback. In a statement sent to , King revealed his surprise at the reunion back in February. The guitarist had stated just days prior in a interview that he had not spoken to bassist/vocalist Tom Araya since the band’s 2019 retirement.
“I was very surprised,” King writes in his new statement. “I made my comments [about Slayer being finished] based on [Araya] not wanting to play anymore. “As far as I was concerned, we were done and never going to play again.
“To be honest, I don’t know what switched.” Sign up below to get the latest from Metal Hammer, plus exclusive special offers, direct to your inbox! King continues: “We’ve been turning down offers to play shows for at least three years. So, one came up that, I guess, enticed Tom to the point where he wanted to roll the dice and try a couple.
I don’t know, but that’s all it is.” In the same interview, King expressed his opinion that the death of fellow co-founding Slayer guitarist Jeff Hanneman contributed to Araya’s dissatisfaction in the band and his desire for them to split five years ago. “If Jeff was still here, would there be another Slayer record? Who knows?” says King.
“I mean, Jeff weighed on Tom a lot, and I think Jeff not being around had a lot to do with Tom leaving Slayer. “But, you know, if that fucking dumb-ass Jeff was still here, he’d be wanting us to play. I know .