Kerry King: Ex-Slayer Bandmate Dave Lombardo Is “Dead to Me”

Heavy Consequence Staff
·3 min read
1
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

The post Kerry King: Ex-Slayer Bandmate Dave Lombardo Is “Dead to Me” appeared first on Consequence.

Kerry King just unveiled full details of his eponymous solo project, including the band lineup, the debut album, and the first single. At the same time, the guitarist also gave a brutally honest interview to Rolling Stone, declaring that fellow Slayer founder Dave Lombardo “is dead to me.”

When asked if he’s spoken with the drummer since Slayer fired him in 2013, King bluntly stated, “No. Lombardo is dead to me.” He went on to bring up the financial squabble that led to Lombardo’s sacking from the legendary thrash band.

“He went on that tirade when we were on a flight to Australia, and he knew we couldn’t retort for 14 hours, and he threw me under the bus,” said King. “I was the only one keeping him in the band. Tom [Araya] wanted him out before that, and [the late] Jeff [Hanneman] had just gotten the spider bite, so he wasn’t playing with us much. I said, ‘We need [Dave]. The fans won’t get it if we replace him right now.’ And then the Australia thing came up. He threw me under the bus, and I’m like, ‘I’m the guy that kept you here.’ So I thought, ‘Fuck that guy.’”

King continued, “He’s super impressionable. He was listening to this woman that was his attorney at the time, and she thought we had Metallica money, which we’ve never had fucking Metallica money. So she’s just blowing shit in his ear, and he thinks he should be getting more than he should be getting. It’s like, talk to somebody that actually knows the situation and isn’t just blowing sunshine up your ass to make money in your commission.”

In the same interview, King also revealed that Pantera’s Philip Anselmo, who had been rumored as the singer of King’s solo band, was indeed being considered before the Slayer guitarist ultimately went with Death Angel’s Mark Osegueda.

“It was considered,” remarked King. “My management, my promoter, my record label all wanted Phil. Phil’s a good friend of mine, but I always thought he’s not the right guy. That has nothing to do with his ability; I just knew he wasn’t the right guy. When you hear Mark on this record, you know that’s the guy.”

Pantera’s eventual reunion also put an end to the possibility of Anselmo handling vocals. King explained, “I had to do due diligence, because at the end of the day, had Philip been the guy, we’d be in arenas immediately because we could play new stuff, we could play Pantera, we could play Slayer, and fans would’ve been happy. It ended when the Pantera thing came up.”

As for Slayer singer-bassist Tom Araya, King said he hasn’t spoken to him since the band’s last show in November 2019. “Not even a text. Not even an email,” revealed King. “I’ve talked to everybody else from the band on the phone, text, or email. If Tom hit me up, I’d probably respond. It probably depends on what he hit me up for, but I don’t wish him dead at this moment.”

It was Araya’s decision to stop performing that ultimately led to the end of Slayer. If it was up to King, the band likely would’ve kept going.

As reported earlier today (February 5th), King’s solo band features Osegueda on vocals, along with drummer Paul Bostaph (Slayer), bassist Kyle Sanders (Hellyeah), and guitarist Phil Demmel (ex-Machine Head). His debut solo album, From Hell I Rise, will arrive on May 17th. Hear the first single, “Idle Hands,” below.

Kerry King: Ex-Slayer Bandmate Dave Lombardo Is “Dead to Me”
Heavy Consequence Staff

Popular Posts

Subscribe to Consequence’s email digest and get the latest breaking news in music, film, and television, tour updates, access to exclusive giveaways, and more straight to your inbox.