I woke this morning to a feed full of notifications that Slayer had announced its final tour. Like any lifelong fan of a band I was saddened by this news. Slayer has been a pillar of my musical world since I discovered them way back in 1989.
I was an awkward 13 year old trying to seperate myself from the Glam Rock scene, that would linger around for a for a few more years before completely dying off. My cousin Scott, 4 years my senior, had already introduced me to Metal in the form of the Metallica Garage Days, At the same time I had discovered the thrashy punk style of Suicidal tendencies. These two discoveries put me on a crash course trajectory towards the ever evolving thrash metal sound of Slayer.
South of Heaven was my introduction, and it created a lifelong fan. The slow build of the title track with its 40 second guitar hold as it moves into the uptempo Silent Scream culminating in the, now synonymous, Araya Scream during the midway point of Live Undead. I was fucking hooked. It spoke to me on so many levels and amplified the fuck off attitude that was needed to navigate the Skateboard world of that time, which I was also developing a livelong love for. Slayer would remain a mainstay on my speakers to this day. I had heard once, and whole heartedly believe, that there is no fairweather Slayer fans, you either love them or you fucking don’t!
After the initial sense of loss with this news I quickly focused and started to look for tour news, dates and ticket releases ect, ect, ect. At the time no dates were published that I could find (dates have since been released with advanced VIP currently on sale and GA to start on Friday), so instead I started reading articles and blogs to glean whatever info I could. Most of these articles were similar in that they all recapped interviews from recent years where Tom and the others have alluded, if not outright stated, that it was nearing the end. Who can blame them? They have been touring monsters over the past 3+ decades.
I found one article, however, written by Drew Salisbury of Spin Magazine that really struck a chord. I’ll link the article here for those that would like to read it. For those that don’t… The writer attempts to bring the, now ever present, taint of far left / anti trump rhetoric as the cause.
Mr Salisbry attempts to link the end of Slayer to an Instagram photo posted by Araya last January. The photo was a fan made group shot of the band and President Trump. Granted this post did create a lot of buzz both positive and negative but for Mr Salisbury to even attempt to say this is the reason for the band to call it quits is beyond ridiculous, and in my opinion small reflection of the damage that the media is doing to our society with its fake and far left bullshit news. Yes, you and I as Slayer fans wouldn’t believe this nonsense but what about all the other people that read his post, will they know enough to identify it as bullshit before they start spreading it out as truth?
Thankfully, the bands official statement doesn’t mention any rift due to politics, rather it credits the amazing amount of time, effort and energy they have put in so that we can all share our blood sweat and tears on the floor!
~ Smo
P.S. Here is the Official Statement with the dates. Click on the link to get your tickets and hopefully I’ll see you in the Pit.
After making some of the most brutal, breathtakingly aggressive, all-hell’s-a-breaking-loose music ever created, being one of the four bands that defined an entire musical genre and being the band that other heavy acts are measured against and aspire to…after nearly 37 years, releasing 12 studio albums, multiple live recordings, compilations, live video and two box sets, playing nearly 3000 concerts in all corners of the world, receiving countless awards including five Grammy nominations and two Grammy awards, Gold records and other accolades…having its own exhibit in the Smithsonian Institute, gracing hundreds of magazine covers, experiencing the devastating loss of a founding brother, and even appearing on “The Tonight Show,” the age of Slayer, one of the greatest thrash/metal/punk bands of this or any age, is coming to an end.
Slayer announces that it will do one last concert tour around the globe to thank their fans for all of their support over the years, for making the last three-and-a-half decades so packed with good times and unforgettable experiences, and will then move on.
Lamb of God, Anthrax, Behemoth and Testament will support Slayer on the first leg, North America, of its final world tour. Tickets go on sale to the public this Friday, January 26 at 10AM local time. Very limited Slayer onstage + meet & greet+ exclusive merchandise packages will be available. Log on to www.slayer.net/tour for this and all ticket purchasing info.
MAY
10 Valley View Casino Center, San Diego, CA
11 FivePoint Amphitheatre, Irvine, CA
13 Papa Murphy’s Park at Cal Expo, Sacramento, CA
16 PNE forum, Vancouver, BC
17 South Okanagan Events Centre, Penticton, BC
19 Big Four, Calgary, AL
20 Shaw Centre, Edmonton, AB
22 Bell MTS Place, Winnipeg, MB
24 The Armory, Minneapolis, MN
25 Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, Chicago, IL
27 Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre @ Freedom Hill, Detroit, MI
29 Budweiser Stage, Toronto, ON
30 Place Bell, Montreal, PQ
JUNE
1 Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT
2 PNC Banks Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ
4 Santander Arena, Reading, PA
6 Riverbend Music Center, Cincinnati, OH
7 Blossom Music Center, Cleveland, OH
9 KeyBank Pavilion, Pittsburgh, PA
10 Jiffy Lube Live, Bristow, VA
12 VUHL Amphitheatre, Virginia Beach, VA
14 PNC Music Pavilion, Charlotte, NC
15 Orlando Amphitheatre, Orlando, FL
17 Smart Financial Center, Houston, TX
19 The Bomb Factory, Dallas, TX
20 Austin 360 Amphitheatre, Austin, TX