We all know how terrible 2016 has been for the rock and metal community and, aside from the losses of notable musicians like David Bowie, Prince, Rainbow’s Jimmy Bain, the Eagles’ Glenn Frey or former Megadeth drummer Nick Menza, there’s also other aspect that many other artists are facing, and that’s retirement.
As hasbeen the case with some bands breaking up after the passing of a key member like Motorhead did with Lemmy, some of our metal heroes are inevitably getting older and eventually have to contemplate on the idea of retiring from the rock & roll life and focus on their families or just a much calmer life. Bands like Motley Crue or The Dillinger Escape Plan have taken the higher road and calling it a day after a long and successful career and that has reached to bigger bands like AC/DC to contemplate the idea. Now, there are other big names considering the subject and those are Slayer and Megadeth.
In a recent interview with EMP Rock Invasion, Slayer’s Kerry King discussed about frontman’s Tom Araya future plans for the band, stating that he’s been on the fence about it:
“He’s very unclear. That’s just how he is. I don’t know if he likes holding his cards in his pocket or what.
“I mean, I don’t have an answer. I’m holding off a lot of things I wanna do at home, just ’cause I don’t know if I’m gonna be working in two years. I’m gonna be working, hopefully in Slayer. Yeah, dude. What else am I gonna do? I came out of high school and fucking went on tour.”
He also declared that he still has more to give and that “he’ll take another record or two.” The idea shouldn’t really come as a surprise to anyone, considering Slayer has been active nonstop for 35 years and we are witnesses of that time passing. It’s uncertain for how long Slayer will continue but it should be clear that Araya isn’t making plans for the far-future and that should give us the hint that the end is neigh.
Meanwhile, at Megadeth’s camp, a hopeful fan twitted Dave Mustaine asked if Megadeth will still be playing for the next six years, to which he replied that “he will be, but not much more after that.” That triggered someone to ask him directly about his plans for retirement and how many albums he expects to make, replying:
At this rate I hope two more. https://t.co/JUhZPAFO72
— Dave Mustaine (@DaveMustaine) August 5, 2016
It is a sad realization to think we are the generation who will see the end of an era in metal and rock & roll after all our idols decide to hang it up. At the same time, we should all appreciate every single one of them and support them while they’re still around in hopes that they will continue to push for as long as they can in return.
[via Metalsucks.net]
