SLAYER guitarist Kerry King debuted live with his solo band on Tuesday night (May 7) at Reggies in Chicago, Illinois. Their setlist, comprising 17 songs, featured six tracks from SLAYER alongside 11 out of 13 songs from King‘s forthcoming solo album, From Hell I Rise, scheduled for release on May 17 through Reigning Phoenix Music.
Setlist was as follows, according to Setlist.fm:
01. Where I Reign (live debut)
02. Toxic (live debut)
03. Rage (live debut)
04. Repentless (SLAYER song)
05. Two Fists (live debut)
06. Residue (live debut)
07. Hate Worldwide (SLAYER song)
08. Idle Hands (live debut)
09. Trophies Of The Tyrant (live debut)
10. Chemical Warfare (SLAYER song)
11. Everything I Hate About You (live debut)
12. Disciple (SLAYER song)
13. Shrapnel (live debut)
14. Crucifixation (live debut)
15. Raining Blood (SLAYER song)
16. Black Magic (SLAYER song)
17. From Hell I Rise (live debut)
In a recent Metal Hammer Q&A, King emphasized his disinterest in performing tracks solely penned by Jeff Hanneman to avoid any perception of exploiting SLAYER‘s legacy for profit.
He said: “For this coming summer in Europe we’re gonna do like nine or 10 tracks from the album and depending on set length fill it with stuff I’ve done – something I wrote in SLAYER or co-wrote.
“So nobody can say ‘he’s playing Jeff songs!’ because although I love Jeff songs and he was such a big part of my life, I don’t want to rely on it this year, this album cycle. At some point, I will play ‘Angel Of Death’ but there’s so many f**king faceless haters on the internet I don’t want to give them ammunition.”
King will release his debut solo album, From Hell I Rise, on May 17. In addition to King, the album features DEATH ANGEL vocalist Mark Osegueda, longtime SLAYER drummer Paul Bostaph, former HELLYEAH bassist Kyle Sanders, and ex–MACHINE HEAD and ex-VIO-LENCE guitarist Phil Demmel.
According to King, the new music consists of “various religious topics, some war entries, heavy stuff, punky stuff, doomy stuff, and spooky stuff, with Herculean speeds achieved. If you’ve ever liked any SLAYER throughout any part of our history,” he adds, “there’s something on this record that you’ll get into, be it classic punk, fast punk, thrash, or just plain heavy metal!”
As King admits, “Even with a record in the can, I’ve still got so many songs that need to be finished. This is what I know how to do…number one being music, number two being metal. It’s been a part of my life for 40 years, and I’m nowhere near being done.”
