Slayer frontman Tom Araya’s Irish jig on mandolin

Slayer frontman Tom Araya was recently caught on video as he tried playing an Irish jig on mandolin.

The thrash icon took the opportunity of the band’s tour stop in Dublin to visit the city’s Music Minds store, where he jammed along to a bodhran beat.

The shop owner said: “I think you can agree he’s found his true calling in music – irish jigs will never sound the same to us again. The man’s a legend.”

Chilean-born Araya, who was brought up on a diet of latin music, has an interest in all kinds of traditional music.

• Iron Maiden ex Paul Di'Anno opens up on cancer scare
• Opinion: Why Izzy Stradlin was the heart of Guns N' Roses
• Iron Maiden - Legacy of the Beast First Impressions
• Steven Adler guests with Guns N’ Roses

He told The Quietus in 2012: “I really enjoy country blues, country folk, like Hank Williams. Paul Simon’s Graceland album, you know, musically and lyrically it’s just a really good album. The Robert Johnson tapes, I find them really fascinating.

“I’m not embarrassed – that’s something I would tell anyone who asked. It doesn’t really matter where it’s from, as long as it has a folk orientation to it.”

Slayer’s European tour continues. They return to the UK for this year’s Bloodstock Open Air in Derbyshire on August 14.

Tour Dates

Slayer show puppy love at animal rescue centre