Blog•October 31, 2013 2:26 PM ET

Slayer frontman Tom Araya explains why drummer Dave Lombardo was kicked out

In a new interview with Brian Aberback of Steppin' Out magazine, Slayer vocalist/bassist Tom Araya was asked about the removal of drummer Dave Lombardo from the band's lineup this past February. Araya had the following to say:

"That whole issue came down to this: Dave had been jamming with us for a while, as a working member of the band, but he wasn't a partner. Like all things like that, you have to have agreements, so nobody feels cheated. We had ongoing issues and finally he put us in a position where we had to find someone to replace him. He wasn't happy, so he decided to have his Facebook rant and told the world about a lot of issues going on within the band that are legally binding and private. I thought that was wrong and it was upsetting. A lot of the claims he made were untrue. Part of the agreement is you don't do that. Kerry [King], Jeff [Hanneman] and I got on the phone and made a collective decision and we let Dave go and gave Paul [Bostaph] a call. Paul said he'd be happy to come back. He has brought some life back into our live performances. He's in hyper drive and kicking ass, which makes us play faster. People have commented on how energetic we've been lately. We're playing faster than we would have. It's good injection of adrenaline."

Given the current situation, I wouldn't expect Lombardo to rejoin the group anytime soon, if ever. Oh well, without Hanneman it's not really Slayer anyway.
Tags: Tom ArayaDave LombardoSlayer

6 comments

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anonymous 10/31/2013 11:54:20 AM

It most definitely is Slayer with Paul Bostaph. And Jeff as a songwriter may be irreplaceable, but I feel this new lineup (provided King doesn't write everything) will kick ass for a while

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anonymous 10/31/2013 1:33:17 PM

Slayer is dead. Long live Slayer. Er, uh, Dragonslayer - for we fossils.

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RicardoDeJaneiro 11/1/2013 6:04:04 AM

Alright, let's cool it ladies.

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RickRock 11/1/2013 8:00:55 AM

"as a working member of the band, but he wasn't a partner" - He's a co-founder of the band, not just hired help, you fcking chump. Drown in your Scrooge McDuck vault, jerk.

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i_talk_shit 11/1/2013 1:17:34 PM

co-founder of the band doesn't mean shit. Dave quit once before and I am sure gave up his share of the band financial interests back then. He was then hired back into the band at a much smaller share of what he was worth before quitting. Simple business, which is what a band like Slayer is.

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DaveTech 11/4/2013 4:45:03 AM

No, regardless of quiting or not, to think that they've been using Dave like part of their Road Crew is amazing. They used Lombardo and his name to gain lost reverence and I distinctly remember Kerry saying that when Dave came back into the fold, he was a big contributor to "writing crazy shit". This comes down to Greed and the three Members not wanting to come off royalties and % to a new and or reinstated full time member. F(&* you Tom and f(&* Slayer.

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