At the beginning of this week, we reported that Slayer guitarist Jeff Hanneman will be sitting out of the band’s next few performances while he recovers from an arm infection surgery. At the time it was unclear who Slayer would bring in to fill in. However, this morning it has been confirmed that none other than Gary Holt, guitarist from Exodus, will be filling in for Hanneman during Slayer’s upcoming appearances at the Australian Soundwave Festival. It is currently unclear if his talents will be used for shows following that Soundwave Festival, or whether they will even be needed (depending if Hanneman has fully recovered).
Slayer could have easily brought in a guitar tech to handle the guitar duties, especially if it’s just for a few dates. However, it’s pretty awesome that Slayer will be playing with a fellow San Fran thrash veteran such as Holt. If it wasn’t a sure thing that YouTube videos of Holt playing with Slayer will hit the web shortly after the performances, I’d be jealous that this is likely only happening in Australia. But who knows, maybe this favor Holt’s doing for them will ensure a future tour with Slayer and Exodus (a band many claim deserve to be amongst the Big Four). We’ll keep you posted if anything new is updated.
