Slayer Guitarist Kerry King Names the ‘Perfect’ Riff He’s Written
In a recent interview with Metal Hammer Germany, Slayer guitarist Kerry King revealed what he considers the ‘perfect’ riff from his extensive catalog. King, now 60, highlighted the song “Crucifixation” from his new solo album From Hell I Rise as his top choice.
King described the riff’s appeal, stating, “It’s got a lot of harmony going on. It elevates from just the riff to one harmony to the next harmony to the next harmony. It’s also got a bunch of drum-fill breaks, which I was very happy to present to Paul [Bostaph, Slayer and Kerry King drummer] when I made that song up.”
Super-trashy song
“I said, ‘Hey, dude, I’ve got a song that’s got recurring drum fills. Man, I need you to do your best Bill Ward [Black Sabbath drummer].’ And I think we did that. And I’ll pick that riff for now because it’s a big part of a super-thrashy song, but it’s very heavy and slow and very Sabbath-influenced.” (source).
King’s solo band, which includes vocalist Mark Osegueda (Death Angel), drummer Paul Bostaph, guitarist Phil Demmel (ex-Machine Head), and bassist Kyle Sanders (ex-Hellyeah), is currently on tour in Europe to promote the album. The tour kicks off tonight in Tilburg, Netherlands, and will continue across North America later this summer.
Reunion
Slayer, who recently announced their reunion after a five-year hiatus, will perform their first comeback show at Riot Fest in Chicago from September 20 to 22, followed by dates at Louder Than Life in Louisville on September 27 and Aftershock in Sacramento on October 10 (source).
