According to Kerrang!,Primus frontman Les Claypool has revealed that his band will be joining Slayer as part of their final world tour. In an interview with comedian Bill Burr he stated: “There’s another thing too that’s kind of a secret but maybe I can tell you now,” Claypool then went into detail: “So, it looks like we’re confirmed, we’re gonna play the last, the very last run supporting Slayer’s very last tour — Primus is. It’s starting at Madison Square Garden and ending at The Forum, that’s the rumour.”
It would seem that Claypool has leaked this information early. However, it is an addition to a bill that has included Lamb of God and Anthrax, who have been on the whole tour. Other bands who have been on other legs include Napalm Death, Behemoth and Testament.
The next leg will see Slayer trek across North America with support from Lamb of God, Amon Amarth and Cannibal Corpse. It starts May 2nd in Pheonix, Arizona and ends on May 25th in Mansfield, Massachusetts. After that they will be heading to Europe playing both their own shows and festival dates. Find information on all shows here.
Slayer are one of what is considered the “big four” of thrash metal along with Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax from Huntington Park, California. They were formed in 1981 by vocalist and bassist Tom Araya and guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Haneman.
They have always stood out from the rest of the big four due to their style of playing with has always been much more fast and aggressive than the others. Their current line-up is Araya, King, guitarist Gary Holt and drummer Paul Bostaph. Dave Lomabardo and John Dette have both previously been drummers.
When the original line-up was together Araya, King and Haneman were all responsible for the lyrics while King and Haneman wrote all of the music. The bands lyrics and imagery have always covered controversial subjects such as serial killers, necrophilia, torture, genocide, human experimentation, Satanism, hate crime, terrorism, blasphemy, Nazism and war which has resulted in them facing pressure from religious and censorship groups. Despite this they have been highly influential with their third album “Reign in Blood” being considered to be one of the greatest metal albums of all time.
They have released twelve studio albums, two live albums, a box set, six music videos, two extended plays and a covers album. Four of their albums have been certified gold in the US. They have also been nominated for a grammy four times, winning it twice for the songs “Eyes of the Insane” and “Final Six” both of 2006’s “Christ Illusion.” In total, they have sold over five million albums. They announced their decision to split in January 2018.
Tour Dates:
2 – Phoenix, Ariz. @ Ak-Chin Amphitheatre
3 – Albuquerque, N.M.@ Isleta Amphitheatre,
5 – El Paso, Texas @ UTEP/Don Haskins Center
7 – Edinburg, Texas @ Bert Ogden Arena
8 – Dallas, Texas @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
10 – Tampa, Fla. @ MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre
11 – West Palm Beach, Fla. @ Coral Sky Amphitheatre
13 – Huntington, W.V.@ Big Sandy Superstore Arena
14 – Columbia, Md. @ Merriweasther Post Pavilion
16 – Noblesville, Ind. @ Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center
17 – Bonner Springs, Kansas @ Providence Medical Center Amphitheater
19 – Clarkston, Mich. @ DTE Energy Music Center
20 – Youngstown, Ohio @ Covel Centre
22 – Ottawa, Ontario @ Canadian Tire Centre
24 – Camden, N.J.@ BB&T Pavilion
25 – Mansfield, Mass. @ Xfinity Center
