Slayer – Heavy as hell, vicious as the Beelzebub, evil as a tattooed monster

Slayer look mean, play brutally fast and have a reputation of being badass metallists. Sure, they are all that but talking with them you discover near-40 year olds who can try to intimidate but you soon discover they are cool and reasonable. Few weeks before dark thoughts clouded our living – the band’s eight album ‘God Hates As All’ was released in the States on the WTC was destroyed – we sat down with guitarist Kerry King to talk about things that life make.

He, with his tattooed head, ‘illustrated’ arms, body of a wrestler and eyes hidden behind dark shades, looks fairly menacing, unfriendly, like a man you wouldn’t like to have a difference of opinion with. Yet, that is a public image behind which we find an intelligent being that can argue and make observations on a logical level, rather than attempting to cause commotion like Marilyn Manson or Slipknot.

After twenty years in music, can they still harbour any ambition at all?

“Of course you can but it is nothing major,” Kerry attempts a smile. “Just being around for 20 years is amazing when careers last only few, and if there is any ambition left… I don’t know, maybe… We’ve had a Gold album and it would be nice to get a Platinum one (for 1 million sales). And yet, it is not something we’re dying to achieve. What is important is that we continue to make music on our terms, never having to compromise. And, I feel, it is something our audiences appreciate in a big way.”

Avant-gloomy

‘God Hates Us All’ is a huge statement that, one hopes, is used in a figurative sense to pinpoint the human folly of religion being nothing more than an inflexible fiction?

“For a while now we’ve been feeling,” the guitarist states firmly, “that God has given up on us and to demonstrate that we had this great artwork which contained different panels showing different aspects of God. There was God’s vice, showing a priest shooting up, God’s symbol, God’s servants… But, it was considered to be too over-the-top and the record label vetoed it. Well, we thought it was too good to waste and you can find it on our website, for downloads.”

“As far as God goes,” Kerry continues, “well, let’s try to look at the world objectively… Some people might have a problem with me because I’m not religious and can’t be objective but the point we’re making is that when you look at the world you see that it is not an ideal place, it is not a great place people make it out to be, especially America. There are so many problems, poverty, diseases, gangs, wars… I love living, I like my life but it is in a world that is not a happy place.”

Dystopian vision indeed that might be attributed to the band being taken to court over a killing of a girl by three Slayer fans; her parents tried to sue the band claiming that the band embedded secret instructions in the lyrics.

“True but the judge told them they had no case,” Kerry shakes his shiny head incredulously. “I don’t get involved in that and certainly don’t believe it. I feel it is really stupid to simplify social problems and blame them on music; I think that many American problems are rooted much deeper, in dysfunctional families, failing education and mounting social problems. Pointing your finger at music is like trying to wash your hands off. While some kids are plotting mass murders, making nailbombs in the garage and have access to their fathers’ guns, where are the parents?”

The altar’s empty

Too busy stoned on AmEx?

“Most probably or simply getting drunk on their benefit (unemployment) cheques. There are so many families where kids are left on their own, being brought up on MTV and Jerry Springer (chat-show for public to air their darkest secrets, Europeans wouldn’t even tell a head-shrink if they believed in the profession) and then you wonder why they are fucked-up. There is no morality there, it is all warped and it appears that everything is acceptable. If parents, school and entertainment industry don’t tell kids that it isn’t, how can you expect them to know any different?”

Music Slayer make, and Heavy Metal in general, is supposed to liberate/spend such negative energy at concerts and thus prevent mass-student shoot-outs like Columbine. Still, HM gets blamed regularly although a lot of musicians refuse to accept responsibility but can it really be guiltless?

“It is true you can’t be responsible for its influence but at the same time it can’t be guiltless. You are right, it should prevent tragedies like Columbine but it doesn’t appear to… We get a lot of letters about it but I don’t really bother with it any more. I used to in the early days; Tom (Araya, bassist/vocalist) pays much more attention to it but I know that we get letters from jail telling us ‘If it weren’t for you guys, I’d be dead by now’.”

Slayer’s entire career has constantly been challenged by newer, and often better selling acts; do they understand what is going on?

“You mean bands like Slipknot, Papa Roach and Linkin Park? Yeah, I do and I really love Slipknot; I think that Corey (Taylor, No.8) is the greatest singer in Metal right now! But, Papa Roach and Linkin Park, they are bands that lead to us. If you are a kid and these bands are targeted at you and you adore them, one day you ask yourself – is this it? Isn’t there something heavier and then you go and discover Slayer. The same with Korn, they’ve helped us without realising it. People wanting something heavy, after getting tired of their half-assed sound, discover us!”

Never too late, that’s for sure. They still slayer the best possible way-er!