Kerry King Altered New Song Lyrics Due to Ukraine War

While the world awaits the first musical output from Kerry King in his post-Slayer career, the guitarist revealed to Metal Hammer that while writing for his new solo album, there was something in his songwriting that gave him reason for pause. For instance, one major current world event made him rethink the lyrics he was writing, opting instead to alter his approach for a more broad interpretation..

"I had war entries in my song titles and lyrics," explained King. "But after I finished those, the Ukraine war broke out, so I made a point to go back to them and take out anything I felt was insensitive to the Ukraine situation."

He added, "I like to get the idea of the song across without being too close to home."

In a 2009 interview with Guitar World (as shared by Blabbermouth), King and fellow guitarist Jeff Hanneman were asked about approaching taboo subjects in their music. At the time, Hanneman suggested the only thing he might avoid would be writing about rape, while King offered, "I don't think there are any areas I wouldn't explore. I mean, Jesus Christ, Jeff can write about the holocaust, but he can't write about rape? That's bizarre."

So, over time, it appears as though King has given more consideration concerning the subject matter of his lyrical content.

The new interview also served as a bit of an update as King has already targeted 2024 for his musical return. When asked if the new music was an extension of his work in Slayer, he commented, 'I really have no desire to do anything different. If I wasn’t in Slayer, I would be a Slayer fan. So yes, I think it’s an extension of Slayer, and I think a lot of people will think it might have been the next record. I guess maybe 80 percent of it would have been, maybe it would have been exactly what I’m putting on this one. In my eyes, I think it’s a definite extension, a follow-up to Repentless for sure.”

He described the music of a mix of heavy stuff with "Herculean speeds," punky stuff and doomy stuff, noting, "Pretty much any aspect of any kind of music we’ve done in our history, I think you’ll find on this record.”

READ MORE: Kerry King Felt 'Anger' Over Slayer's Premature Retirement

In addition, King ruled out guest appearances on his solo debut primarily because he wants to be able to take all his music to the stage without anything holding them back. And he added that he expects that the musicians playing on the record will also be part of his live band.

The Slayer guitarist started teasing his return in early November, with a photo teaser that stated, "Coming in 2024." Not long after, he was announced as part of the lineup for Welcome to Rockville 2024, which would be his first confirmed solo performance. Stay tuned as more dates and info on his solo debut are expected to come shortly.