Kerry King's 'From Hell I Rise' - Album Review

I get the impression that Slayer's legendary guitarist Kerry King was not ready for the band to end when they called it a day in 2019 following a lengthy farewell tour. Despite a handful of large festival reunion shows scheduled for later this year, which will be Slayer's first gigs in five years, the reunion will not be a permanent one. I am sure that the metal world will enjoy the band's brief reunion, but following the death of guitarist Jeff Hanneman in 2013 and the fact that frontman Tom Araya wants to retire it is probably no bad thing that the iconic thrash band were laid to rest after such a successful final tour. I did not catch them on the tour, but I saw them in both 2015 in Plymouth and 2016 headlining Bloodstock Open Air and they impressed both times - with both shows coming in support of what turned out to be the final Slayer album: 2015's Repentless (which I reviewed here). I listened to Repentless a lot around that time and I think that it was a pretty decent release for the band to bow out on in retrospect. It essentially just sounded like classic Slayer, even without Hanneman's influence, and there are plenty of bands out there who would give a lot to sound as furious and vital at half of Slayer's age. I think that it is fair to say, though, that the album received mixed reviews. Slayer have one of those fanbases who often seem to hate the band more than they actually like them - and most of what has been put out since 1990's Seasons in the Abyss has generally been treated with suspicion. Given that Slayer have easily been one of the most consistent thrash bands sound-wise over the years I am not sure what the fanbase expected from Repentless, or any of the band's other releases outside of their first five for that matter, but, in my opinion, it was just Slayer doing what they do best. Production-wise, their latter albums were not always stellar - but style-wise I never found that much to complain about. It is a shame that the band never followed Repentless up, but a decade on we now have its spiritual successor: From Hell I Rise, the first album from King's new solo band. King has been pained to say that his new band is just that and not a solo project, despite the band being self-titled and the fact that he wrote all of the material on From Hell I Rise, but I think that it is fair to say that he has put together a great group of musicians for this latest venture - his first ever outside of Slayer. Carrying over from Slayer is drummer Paul Bostaph (Forbidden; Testament; Slayer; Exodus; From Hell), who arranged the material here with King, and joining the long-standing duo are frontman Mark Osegueda (Death Angel; Swarm), guitarist Phil Demmel (Vio-lence; Torque; Machine Head), and bassist Kyle Sanders (Piece Dogs; Hellyeah). Demmel also played live with Slayer in 2018 whilst Gary Holt had to take a leave of absence, so King has very much called on a mixture of friends and established thrash actors for From Hell I Rise - and the results are very solid indeed. With the exception of Osegueda's vocals, which differ from Araya's despite him sounding deeper than usual overall, this album sounds very much like Slayer. Given that King was one of Slayer's main songwriters, especially later in the band's career, these similarities should not come as a surprise.

As is to be expected, then, this album mixes fast-paced thrash anthems with more mid-paced tracks - and things kick off with the instrumental Diablo, which opens with a strident riff that is soon backed by some percussive drumming and some pounding bass from Sanders. It is perhaps less furious than might be expected, and it builds naturally around Bostaph's drums - before King launches into some wah-drenched guitar leads. Aside from some double bass drumming at times, Diablo is actually more classic rock-inspired than is typical of King - but it allows him to lay down some tasty guitar leads early on, before Where I Reign crashes in and the classic Slayer sound is very much re-established. The song's main riff could have easily sat on any of the most recent Slayer albums - but the overall difference is the clearer production. Bostaph's drums have a good amount of punch without sounding overly artificial, whilst Sanders' bass is very prominent in the mix. This gives the album plenty of depth and Josh Wilbur has done a great job here production-wise. Thankfully, then, the songwriting is also strong - with King's driving riff immediately upping the tempo of the album and Osegueda delivering from the off. He is likely one of the strongest voices left from the classic thrash era these days so his choice here was inspired. He definitely channels Araya's deeper style throughout, but he still sounds like himself - and he powers through the verses here, as well as unleashing some throat-shredding screams during a simple chorus. Whilst I imagine that King was responsible for all the riffing here, plenty of time is given to Demmel on the solo front. He takes the first solo here and his style is much more lyrical and melodic than King's - with the first solo here being more controlled, contrasting with King's later chaotic lead break. Residue slows the pace somewhat and goes for a much more mid-paced sound overall. This album is generally quite well-paced, mixing faster and slower songs nicely, and it is good to hear something more crushing early on - with a stuttering King riff feeling roomy initially before it is joined by the pulsing bass for a snaking verse which has more than a hint of Pantera about it. There are some faster moments, but generally these serve to accent the main portions of the song. The chorus does feel a little more intense, but again it is generally pretty reined in compared to the previous track - and there are some more groove metal-esque moments following Demmel's solo which have Lamb of God-esque string slides. Even when Bostaph lays into his double bass drums the song never really races away and the deliberateness of the arrangement is maintained throughout - which allows King to shake things up somewhat riff-wise.

Idle Hands ups the pace somewhat, and it does morph into a break-neck thrash anthem, but the first riff feels like a bit of a throwback to the NWOBHM style of Slayer's debut album Show No Mercy from 1983. This riff resurfaces throughout to inject a moment of relative groove and something of a classic rock strut, but generally this song speeds off with plenty of busy drumming from Bostaph and some classic buzzsaw guitar riffing from King. One of my favourite riffs kicks in just before Demmel's solo, which is much more shredding than his more controlled effort in the previous song, whilst a final reprise of the song's shouted chorus heralds some trademark tortured leads from King to close things out. Trophies of the Tyrant is more of a mid-paced headbanger overall - faster than Residue but certainly not as fast as the previous track. Songs like this showcase King's love of classic heavy metal, with the main riff chug and some of the harmony guitar licks channelling Judas Priest in a big way. Osegueda's performance is suitably aggressive, though, and there is no danger of mistaking him for a classic heavy metal singer. He very much barks his way through the song despite the more old-school crunch on display - but this helps the song to fit in with the album's core sound. The drumming is less busy overall, too, despite a few chaotic fills, and this is a track which very much relies on its grooves and headbanging rhythms to get by. It was not a song which stood out to me early on, but repeated listens to the album have made it feel stronger - and it contains two pretty lengthy and powerful solos from King, too. Crucifixation is the album's longest song and one of only two here to be longer than five minutes. Generally King keeps his songwriting on the tight side, so this is a relative epic for him - and it is a more dynamic piece overall which largely focuses on classic thrash speeds but also slows things down somewhat to allow for a groovier approach. For the most part, though, this song really puts its foot down. King's classic buzzing guitar tone sounds as good as ever here and the verses feel suitably nasty as a result - with Osegueda's voice perfectly sitting above this cacophony of riffing. It is also great that Sanders' bass is generally audible in the mix on this album. All to often the bass is lost when it comes to thrash but this album feels fat as a result of Wilbur's production and mix - and there is plenty of depth thanks to Sanders. Given the length of the piece, too, there is a bit more space for instrumental workouts and the pace slows down part way through to allow for some dual guitar leads and riffs which evolve slightly over time - before both King and Demmel get to solo.

The band follow the album's longest song up with its two shortest, not counting the instrumental intro, with Tension up first at just under three minutes. Given its short length the fact it opens slowly is a surprise. Something punky would generally be expected I think, but instead the song is much more murky than anything else on the album up to this point - with some harrowing vocals from Osegueda set against some creepy guitar melodies and percussive drumming from Bostaph. Mercyful Fate's influence on King's songwriting can certainly be heard here and the song never really launches, either, despite a King solo coming later on. The punk song which may have been expected before comes next, though, in the form of Everything I Hate About You - which is just over a minute long and extremely furious. There is no time for soloing or standing on any sort of ceremony here and the song is a hark back to some of the balls to the wall pieces found on Slayer's Reign in Blood from 1986. Punk was always a big influence on Slayer, as can be seen via their covers album Undisputed Attitude from 1996, and that has carried over into King's new band. This is not an overly punky album, but Everything I Hate About You allows everyone a chance to let their hair down for a minute or so - and it provides something of a mid-album burst of energy. Returning to something more typical, Toxic is very reminiscent of the album's core sound and how it opened with Where I Reign. There are moments of fast-paced thrash here but there are also some crunchy, headbanging riffs throughout - with a few more groovy moments during the early riff-bonanza which open things up. Despite the crunch found during parts of the song, the overall feel of the song is one of a faster pace. There is a real kinetic energy throughout the song and it feels really upbeat despite there being faster songs here. The riffing here is a bit more varied, too, compared to other songs of a similar lengthy in any case. There are a couple of memorable riffs which resurface a few of times throughout and they help the song to stand out - and I really like how Osegueda sounds here. He perhaps sounds at his strongest on this album during the more mid-paced and slightly faster pieces, rather than during the much more intense songs. He sounds great in all contexts, but Toxic really sees him shining in my opinion - and he was certainly the right singer for this material. Two Fists is somewhat similar overall and it is another song which mixes faster sections and more of a mid-paced crunch - with the latter perhaps dominating this time. It is hard to describe it, but the main verse riff here is quite different from anything else which King has written before. It feels perhaps a bit more heroic than is typical for him - and there, again, is something of a classic rock strut during the song thanks to this less intense and more overt riff. There are busier moments, too, of course, and the song does feel heavier and more technical as it moves along. There are no solos here, so the song is very much a riff-focused piece - with Osegueda also getting plenty of time in the spotlight. His barks here sit nicely over King's varied riffing - and the song ends up being something a bit different for the album as a result.

Rage is much more typical, though, and it returns to a full-on thrash sound which never really lets up throughout. The main riffing here is busy and in-your-face, and it is telling that King handles all of the song's solos. Generally Demmel adds a more melodic edge with his soloing, but this intense song clearly needed King's energy throughout. He has never been considered one of the genre's best soloists, despite his riff and songwriting prowess, but his style always suited Slayer nicely and his solos throughout this album are also very much in-keeping. His cutting tone has not changed that much throughout the years and he adds a big edge to this song with his main solo part way through - with the song also closing out on a flurry of notes from him. This is King's writing at his most typical and it is a song which is sure to please any long-time Slayer fan with its energy. The album's penultimate piece Shrapnel is the other relatively lengthy song at just over five minutes - and it builds slowly from a hooky opening guitar line and drum pattern. A semi-whispered initial vocal-led section adds a creepy vibe, but once the verse gets underway proper the song settles into a more typical sound - with Bostaph's double bass drumming keeping the pace going alongside some raspy vocals from Osegueda. The chorus slows the pace down a bit, and again goes for something of a Pantera-esque sound, with the song chopping back and forth between this groovy sound and something more intense. Perhaps given the song's somewhat more dynamic arrangement, King revisits the wah-drenched guitar sound from the album's intro for his solo here. This means his solo feels more controlled and melodic than usual - but given the more mid-paced vibe overall this sound works well. It is a strong solo within a creeping and varied song - and it is another which stretches out somewhat instrumentally, too, with a lengthy closing guitar riff which gradually slows down to a crawl and an atmospheric fade out. Closing the album is its title track and, unsurprisingly, the song is a fast-paced thrasher which feels like a real bookend to the meat of the album alongside Where I Reign. The opening riff is classic King and it could have easily sat on any Slayer album whilst the rest of the track is a pretty intense and snarling piece. The aforementioned riff forms the basis of the chorus, whilst the verses are a bit more snaking despite a faster pace being maintained. The energy never lets up here and Demmel launches into an early solo after the first chorus to remind everyone how up-tempo this piece is. King shreds following the second chorus - whilst a bridge section later gives way to another solo section which sees both King and Demmel soloing together to give the track a brief moment of discordant creepiness. This plethora of soloing really suits the song's overall pace and it helps it to be a standout closing piece - even if the song overall is essentially another fast-paced thrash track, which there have been plenty of examples of here. The album ends strongly, then, and given that it has been nine years since we have heard anything new from King I think it is fair to say that From Hell I Rise is a really enjoyable piece of work. It does not break any new ground for the veteran guitarist but the songwriting is tight and the big production allows the songs to sound fresh and exciting. Assembling a strong band of known faces helped, too, and if this is to be the first of a series of albums from this line-up then I am looking forward to what is to follow.

The album was released on 17th May 2024 via Reigning Phoenix Music. Below is the band's promotional video for Residue.