Kerry King announces UK headline debut with tiny London show

Kerry King
(Image credit: Martin Hausler)

Slayer guitarist Kerry King has announced his solo band's first headline performance in the UK. 

On Tuesday June 18, his band will headline the 1500 capacity Electric Ballroom in Camden, two days after the band's UK debut performance at this year's Download Festival. 

King has been alluding to his post-Slayer solo project for several years, but finally started releasing music in February 2024 when the band's debut single Idle Hands was released, alongside the announcement that his band's debut album From Hell I Rise would be released May 17 via Reigning Phoenix. 

Currently, King's solo band are set to make their live debut with a similarly intimate appearance at Reggie's Rock Club in Chicago on May 7, two days before they appear at the 2024 edition of Welcome To Rockville.  

The band are then set to fly over to Europe for a string of headline performances and festival appearances, before returning to the US to support Lamb Of God and Mastodon on their co-headline tour which also features UK metalcore troupe Malevolence. 

Speaking to Full Metal Jackie, Lamb Of God frontman Randy Blythe recently admitted that he had heard King's new music, and was "stoked" to have the band joining them on the road.  

"We have a long-term friendship with Kerry and the Slayer guys," Blythe says. "We're friends with everyone in his band and it's pretty cool, I think, that he's gonna be coming out[...] We've played all over the world with Kerry when he was in Slayer. So, for us, it's pretty special to have him out on the road with us on his first run."

Of course, while King is focusing on his solo project in the immediate future, there's also the matter of the surprise Slayer reunion set to take place later this year, with festival appearances lined up at Riot Fest, Louder Than Life and Aftershock. 

Whether the thrash metal legends will ever make it out of the US again remains to be seen, but in the meantime we can whet our appetites for infernal riffs with King's latest single, Residue which was released last week

Watch the video below.

Kerry King's From Hell I Rise is due for release on May 17 via Reigning Phoenix. For the full list of upcoming tour dates, visit his official website.

Rich Hobson

Staff writer for Metal Hammer, Rich has never met a feature he didn't fancy, which is just as well when it comes to covering everything rock, punk and metal for both print and online, be it legendary events like Rock In Rio or Clash Of The Titans or seeking out exciting new bands like Nine Treasures, Jinjer and Sleep Token.