The Tragic Real-Life Story Of Slayer

September 2024 ยท 2 minute read

There's no doubt that Dave Lombardo is one of the greatest metal drummers to ever pick up a pair of sticks and blast away on the skins. But he wasn't the man behind the drum kit when Slayer played its farewell tour, and when he was fired in February 2013 and replaced by Paul Bostaph, it was far from the first time he exited the band, per Blabbermouth

As quoted by Loudwire, Lombardo blamed his firing on unfair business practices that Kerry King was apparently okay with. "Last year, I discovered 90% of Slayer's tour income was being deducted as expenses, including the professional fees paid to management, costing the band millions of dollars and leaving 10% or less to split amongst the four of us," he alleged in a Facebook post. "Kerry made it clear he wasn't interested in making changes and said if I wanted to argue the point, he would find another drummer."

Explaining his side of the story, Tom Araya told Steppin' Out (also via Loudwire) that Lombardo had no right to complain because he wasn't a partner, despite the fact he'd been back with Slayer for over a decade at that point. While he was vague about why Slayer had "ongoing issues" with their longtime on-and-off drummer, the singer-bassist stressed that it was "wrong" and "upsetting" for Lombardo to make claims about legally binding matters, some of which supposedly weren't true.

Six years later, Lombardo didn't seem publicly salty, but he made it clear to Detroit radio station WRIF (via Metal Injection) that he wouldn't be able to attend Slayer's final show due to multiple onstage commitments.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7qL7Up56eZpOkunCAlW5ubW1fqbWmedOrmKChk2K%2Fpq3LZqOinpViwLW70bJkqJ5dqLmixcSrZg%3D%3D