Slayer guitarist, Kerry King, will release his debut solo album, From Hell I Rise, on May 17 via Reigning Phoenix Music. And before the album lands, King already has plans for its follow-up.

Asked how excited he is to get back onstage in a new interview with The Aquarian, Kerry reveals, "I’m very into playing. It’s not the travel. I love going to cities, of course, but getting to cities is a pain in the ass. I would love if I never traveled again; I’m cool with that, but I’m put here to perform and I enjoy performing. I’m looking forward to performing and the more we rehearsed and the more polished we got this stuff, and the more songs we have for the future, so I’m just getting stoked."

"I said to (drummer) Paul (Bostaph), 'I want to go immediately into the studio and bang out record two afterward.' When you’re fresh off the tour and sharp, you can do a super quick performance because we’ll all be rehearsed on it. That’s the plan. I’ve got everything in place to make that happen now. We’re going to be on tour and I can work on lyrics for pieces that aren’t finished yet. Hopefully everything will be done by the time the tour’s done."

Read more at The Aquarian.

With enough new material for two full albums, all written by King, if it hadn’t been for the COVID pandemic, his long-awaited solo project would likely have emerged in 2020. For his debut album, From Hell I Rise, King on guitar, enlisted drummer Paul Bostaph (Slayer), bassist Kyle Sanders (Hellyeah), Phil Demmel (formerly of Machine Head) on guitar, and vocalist Mark Osegueda (Death Angel). Working with producer Josh Wilbur (Korn, Lamb of God, Avenged Sevenfold, Bad Religion), the vast bulk of King’s solo album was recorded at Henson Studios in Los Angeles in about two weeks and was finished last June.

“I didn’t know what to think, you know, it’s Kerry King from Slayer, who I’ve heard a million times,” said Wilbur. “He’s a very strong presence. I wouldn’t say that Kerry has an ego, but he has confidence in himself, which is a good thing. That’s what you want in your rock stars and in your band. He never comes off as a jerk or mean guy. But he does know exactly what he wants. He doesn’t beat around the bush. He’s like, ‘I don’t want to do that, but I want to do this.’ Very direct, but it comes from a place of confidence, and not from a place of anything else. I really enjoyed working with Kerry.”

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!”

From Hell I Rise tracklisting:

"Diablo"
"Where I Reign"
"Residue"
"Idle Hands"
"Trophies Of The Tyrant"
"Crucifixation"
"Tension"
"Everything I Hate About You"
"Toxic"
"Two Fists"
"Rage"
"Shrapnel"
"From Hell I Rise"

"Residue" video:

"Idle Hands" visualizer:

King and his solo band performed their debut concert on Tuesday, May 7 at Reggies in Chicago, Illinois. The set featured 11 songs from King's upcoming solo album, as well as six Slayer tracks. Check out some fan-filmed video below.

Setlist:

"Where I Reign"
"Toxic"
"Rage"
"Repentless" (Slayer song)
"Two Fists"
"Residue"
"Hate Worldwide" (Slayer song)
"Idle Hands"
"Trophies of the Tyrant"
"Chemical Warfare" (Slayer song)
"Everything I Hate About You"
"Disciple" (Slayer song)
"Shrapnel"
"Crucifixation"
"Raining Blood" (Slayer song)
"Black Magic" (Slayer song)
"From Hell I Rise"

Kerry King's next concert is scheduled for tonight, Thursday, May 9, at Welcome To Rockville 2024 in Daytona Beach, Florida. Find his live itinerary here.

(Photo - Jim Louvau)