“It was a quality instrument to learn on. Without my dad, who knows what kind of tree trunk I would’ve had”: You’ll never guess what guitar thrash metal pioneer Kerry King learned to play on

Kerry King is perhaps best associated with the Dean and B.C. Rich electric guitars he has brandished throughout his career. However, this wasn’t always the case. He actually kickstarted his guitar journey by playing his dad’s Gibson ES-175, a hollow body guitar known as the workhorse of jazz guitars.

“It was a fat Ted Nugent guitar,” King reveals in the latest issue of Total Guitar. “It was a big guitar for me as a teenager, but looking back now after playing guitar for so many years, it was fun.

“My dad also had a couple of ES-335s. There was a Tobacco Sunburst one that was nice. The ES-175 was in a Blonde finish. It had the f-holes and worked nicely as an acoustic when not plugged in. It was a quality instrument to learn on. Without my dad, who knows what kind of tree trunk I would’ve had.”

In addition to these Gibson ES guitars, King also used a Strat during these formative years. “My dad had a 1963 L-Series Strat, which apparently is a big deal. I’m not a big collector, but from what I understand that would be an expensive guitar these days. I played that enough for me realise I was definitely not a single-coil guy. I immediately knew I preferred humbuckers.”

His upcoming album takes a page out of his jazz guitar roots, with tracks like Trophies Of The Tyrant seemingly following their own rules in an almost jazz-like manner. “I’m very good at not following rules, especially as I don’t know what all the rules are! That song definitely has some wide-open notes that cascade down the neck. I was picking out notes that worked with the chords behind them.”

From Hell I Rise, Kerry King’s newest album, drops on May 17. It comes amid Slayer’s announcement of their upcoming reunion shows, just five years after the band played the last concert of what was supposed to be their farewell tour.

Elsewhere in this interview, King clarifies where he and the band stand, “We’ve been turning down gigs ever since we stopped. This one came and I thought, ‘If we’re ever going to do one, this could be cool because it’s the five-year anniversary of our final tour.’ We’re not going to record anymore.”

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For more Kerry King – including his tips on how to emulate his speed riffing style – plus new interviews with Slash and St. Vincent, pick up issue 384 of Total Guitar at Magazines Direct.

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