Kerry King , guitarist for Slayer, commented on his relationship with bassist Tom Araya following the death of the band's founding guitarist, Jeff Hanneman, in 2013.
In an interview with Cucamonga , Kerry King said [transcribed via Blabbermouth ]: “I think Jeff’s death weighed more heavily on Tom than on me. And I don’t say that from any perspective of friendship. It’s just that my acceptance wasn’t as bad as his. Of course, it was awful, and nobody wanted it to happen, but it really weighed on Tom. I think that’s what led him to want to retire before me, because I think he felt the band was different. But then, out of nowhere, Tom decided he wanted to play some shows last year, and I said, ‘Well, I never wanted to stop doing shows. So, yeah, let’s try.’”
Kerry continued: “Just like in the early years of Slayer, Tom and I don’t talk on the phone. We rarely text each other. And that’s because when you’re together for 40 years, he becomes a very different person. He’s not the guy I started the band with. Not personally, he’s just a different person. Basically, I’ve remained very much like who I was in my early twenties. And I like Tom. We’re cool. We got together to rehearse for the reunion shows and he was super happy.”
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