Lamb of God vocalist Randy Blythe may perform gutturals for one of his generation’s definitive metal bands, but that doesn’t mean he’s a metalhead. Though Blythe grew up on punk and hardcore, Slayer broke a teenage Randy’s narrow listening habits, adding thrash and extreme metal to his turntable’s rotation.

Decades after first being recommended Reign in Blood at a record store, Blythe and Lamb of God are one of the support acts for Slayer’s 2018 farewell tour. “It’s really an honor,” Blythe says. “We didn’t know this was going to be their final tour until the day they announced it … They’re legends; I’ve been a fan of theirs since high school. They’re one of those bands that cut across all different areas of the underground.”

Randy recalls the kid who kept raving about Slayer, eventually getting the future metal vocalist to give the thrashers a shot. “[I thought], ‘They’re gonna suck, I don’t like heavy metal.’ The first [‘Angel of Death’] vocal, ‘Ahhhhhhh!’ I was like, ‘Okay, that’s whacky. He’s been huffing helium or whatever,’ but the rest of it is just so aggressive and edgy and weird historical commentary.”

Speaking of his bond with the Slayer guys, Blythe explains, “When we first started touring with them, there was more of a kinship over Jagermeister, I think, with Kerry King (laughs). Then I stopped drinking, but I still keep up with Kerry. I went to his house a few months ago with Dez Fefara and had some lovely cheese.”

Watch Blythe’s full testimony about Slayer in the clip above. To check out Slayer’s full run of 2018 North American tour dates, click here.

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