Lombardo out of Slayer

scudzilla

What the actual fcuk!!

SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo has released the following statement:

"I want to personally apologize to all of our fans in Australia who have bought tickets for the tour expecting to see me in my usual place on the drums.

"So that you all know the truth, as of the end of the business day on February 14th, I was notified that I would not be drumming for the tour in Australia. I'm saddened, and to be honest I am shocked by the situation.

"Last year, I discovered 90% of SLAYER's tour income was being deducted as expenses, including the professional fees paid to management, costing the band millions of dollars and leaving 10% or less to split amongst the four of us. In my opinion, this is not the way a band's business should operate. I tried rectifying it by letting my bandmates know, and Tom [Araya, bass/vocals] and I hired auditors to figure out what happened, but I was denied access to detailed information and the necessary backup documents.

"I spent the Christmas and New Year holidays realizing I had toured all over the world in 2012, but yet had not been paid (except a small advance) or provided a proper accounting for a full year's sweat and blood. On top of this, I was told that I would not be paid until I signed a longform contract which gave me no written assurance of how much or on what basis management would deduct commissions, nor did it provide me access to the financial budgets or records for review. It also forbade me to do interviews or make statements having to do with the band, in effect a gagging order.

"Last Monday, I sat down with Kerry [King, guitar] and Tom to rehearse for Australia and to propose a new business model that I felt was the best way forward for SLAYER to confidently protect itself so we could do what we do best . . . play for the fans. Kerry made it clear he wasn't interested in making changes and said if I wanted to argue the point, he would find another drummer. On Thursday, I arrived at rehearsals at 1 p.m. as scheduled, but Kerry did not show. Rather, at 6:24 p.m. I received an email from the lawyers saying I was being replaced for the Australian dates.

"I remain hopeful that we can resolve our issues. But once again, I sincerely apologize to all of our fans in Australia who spent their money expecting to see the three of us original SLAYER members. I look forward to seeing you in the future."

Shortly into the tour for SLAYER's 1986 album "Reign In Blood", Lombardo left the group, citing financial concerns. Tony Scaglione of WHIPLASH was recruited to replace Lombardo; however, this lineup was short-lived, as Lombardo returned in 1987. In 1992, Lombardo left the group again due to friction with the other band members, particularly King. Paul Bostaph of FORBIDDEN took over as the band's drummer for 1994's "Divine Intervention" and 1996's "Undisputed Attitude", the latter being an LP of cover tunes. Following the recording of "Undisputed Attitude", Jon Dette replaced Bostaph, who left to concentrate on other projects. Dette was fired a year later and Bostaph returned to the fold. In 2001, Bostaph left SLAYER for good and was replaced by a returning Lombardo. Although this reunion was initally announced as temporary, Lombardo has remained with the band ever since.

SLAYER has spent the past two years touring without guitarist Jeff Hanneman, who is still recovering from necrotising fasciitis, a flesh-eating disease, which he is believed to have gotten from a spider bite. Hanneman is being temporarily replaced on the road by EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt.

Angron

Sounds like Kerry was being a bit of an ass. Still, this was unexpected, and a real shame. Hopefully they can get this sorted properly, so Lombardo can come back, assuming he'd want to.

slavetothegrind

very sad state of affairs, greed is a terrible thing.

Still if what he says is true he's better off away from them, it's not as if he would have trouble getting a gig!

Imagine working for a year, on a per deim, and at the end of it recieving nothing?

On the other hand there have been plenty of tours that cost more than they made but at this stage in slayer's career you would think they had been through all that and learned how to tour profitably?

Just Like Heaven

What a mess. Band members contacting each other through lawyers. Such nonsense.

Ash.J.Williams

more like 90% of the profits go to KK industries

slavetothegrind

quoting blabbermouth.net

According to Soundwave promoter AJ Maddah, SLAYER has tapped drummer Jon Dette (pictured below) to sit to sit behind the kit for the California thrash band's appearances on this year's festival tour, which is scheduled to kick off on Saturday, February 23 in Brisbane, Australia.

Asked by a fan via Twitter if SLAYER was pulling out Soundwave after drummer Dave Lombardo revealed that he was not going to be joining his bandmates on this year's trek, Maddah said, "No. Dette is already here and knows SLAYER songs well."

Dette joined SLAYER in 1996 when Paul Bostaph left to work on his side project, THE TRUTH ABOUT SEAFOOD. Dette performed with SLAYER at the 1996 Ozzfest to promote the band's covers album, "Undisputed Attitude".

Prior to joining SLAYER, Dette appeared on TESTAMENT's "Live At The Fillmore" album, which came out in 1995.

Dette is currently playing with ANTHRAX as a temporary replacement for the band's longtime drummer Charlie Benante, who "is dealing with personal issues right now and can't leave" the U.S., according to ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian.

Lombardo released a statement last night indicating that he was being replaced for SLAYER's Australian dates after he requested access to detailed information and the necessary backup documents regarding how the band's tour income was being distributed. According to the drummer, 90% of SLAYER's tour revenue is "being deducted as expenses, including the professional fees paid to management, costing the band millions of dollars and leaving 10% or less to split amongst the four of us."

SLAYER has spent the past two years touring without guitarist Jeff Hanneman, who is still recovering from necrotising fasciitis, a flesh-eating disease, which he is believed to have gotten from a spider bite. Hanneman is being temporarily replaced on the road by EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt.

Dan_Solo

So can we guess from "90% going to management" that King is part of said "management"?

Ash.J.Williams

slavetothegrind wrote: »

very sad state of affairs, greed is a terrible thing.

Still if what he says is true he's better off away from them, it's not as if he would have trouble getting a gig!

Imagine working for a year, on a per deim, and at the end of it recieving nothing?

On the other hand there have been plenty of tours that cost more than they made but at this stage in slayer's career you would think they had been through all that and learned how to tour profitably?

that's the problem! Kerry does know how to tour profitably!! By paying the rest feck all!!

Mental Mickey

scudzilla wrote: »

What the actual fcuk!!

SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo has released the following statement:

"I want to personally apologize to all of our fans in Australia who have bought tickets for the tour expecting to see me in my usual place on the drums.

"So that you all know the truth, as of the end of the business day on February 14th, I was notified that I would not be drumming for the tour in Australia. I'm saddened, and to be honest I am shocked by the situation.

"Last year, I discovered 90% of SLAYER's tour income was being deducted as expenses, including the professional fees paid to management, costing the band millions of dollars and leaving 10% or less to split amongst the four of us. In my opinion, this is not the way a band's business should operate. I tried rectifying it by letting my bandmates know, and Tom [Araya, bass/vocals] and I hired auditors to figure out what happened, but I was denied access to detailed information and the necessary backup documents.

"I spent the Christmas and New Year holidays realizing I had toured all over the world in 2012, but yet had not been paid (except a small advance) or provided a proper accounting for a full year's sweat and blood. On top of this, I was told that I would not be paid until I signed a longform contract which gave me no written assurance of how much or on what basis management would deduct commissions, nor did it provide me access to the financial budgets or records for review. It also forbade me to do interviews or make statements having to do with the band, in effect a gagging order.

"Last Monday, I sat down with Kerry [King, guitar] and Tom to rehearse for Australia and to propose a new business model that I felt was the best way forward for SLAYER to confidently protect itself so we could do what we do best . . . play for the fans. Kerry made it clear he wasn't interested in making changes and said if I wanted to argue the point, he would find another drummer. On Thursday, I arrived at rehearsals at 1 p.m. as scheduled, but Kerry did not show. Rather, at 6:24 p.m. I received an email from the lawyers saying I was being replaced for the Australian dates.

"I remain hopeful that we can resolve our issues. But once again, I sincerely apologize to all of our fans in Australia who spent their money expecting to see the three of us original SLAYER members. I look forward to seeing you in the future."

Shortly into the tour for SLAYER's 1986 album "Reign In Blood", Lombardo left the group, citing financial concerns. Tony Scaglione of WHIPLASH was recruited to replace Lombardo; however, this lineup was short-lived, as Lombardo returned in 1987. In 1992, Lombardo left the group again due to friction with the other band members, particularly King. Paul Bostaph of FORBIDDEN took over as the band's drummer for 1994's "Divine Intervention" and 1996's "Undisputed Attitude", the latter being an LP of cover tunes. Following the recording of "Undisputed Attitude", Jon Dette replaced Bostaph, who left to concentrate on other projects. Dette was fired a year later and Bostaph returned to the fold. In 2001, Bostaph left SLAYER for good and was replaced by a returning Lombardo. Although this reunion was initally announced as temporary, Lombardo has remained with the band ever since.

SLAYER has spent the past two years touring without guitarist Jeff Hanneman, who is still recovering from necrotising fasciitis, a flesh-eating disease, which he is believed to have gotten from a spider bite. Hanneman is being temporarily replaced on the road by EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt.

Sounds a bit like the Sabbath/Bill Ward s**t.

scudzilla

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

that's the problem! Kerry does know how to tour profitably!! By paying the rest feck all!!

Tom and Dave got auditors in, so appears Tom isn't happy with the situation either.

slavetothegrind

i would say there is a bit of a scramble on to secure Mr Lombardo's exceptional services in the near future!

Please Kill Me

Dan_Solo wrote: »

So can we guess from "90% going to management" that King is part of said "management"?

Given his reaction, I'd say that was more than likely. Why else would he not "be willing to make changes"

Ash.J.Williams

The sad thing is Slayer is Tom, Kerry, dave and jeff and time is running out and there was a good chance they could have retired slayer "together" instead of this way.

Dan_Solo

So to kick the hornet's nest, long term it looks like King should get the boot... much as I love him I'd rather a new guitarist than Slayer disintegrate.

slavetothegrind

or are we going to see a queensryche type situation?

dave and tom tour as slayer and KK and hired help also?

ush

$layer

Dan_Solo

ush wrote: »

$layer

$la¥€r

Mental Mickey

Dan_Solo wrote: »

So to kick the hornet's nest, long term it looks like King should get the boot... much as I love him I'd rather a new guitarist than Slayer disintegrate.

Not a chance. He formed the band.

Degag

Hope it's sorted out. If the man didn't get paid for his work last year then thats the least he deserved. If one of us weren't paid, we wouldn't be long kicking up stink!

I fear this isn't going to end well though. KK has made his stand and is too proud to change his mind IMO.

seachto7

Didn't know it happened in the 80s . It's like breaking up and getting back together with someone a few times. There's a reason you broke up in the first place!! Pity though...

Angron

seachto7 wrote: »

Didn't know it happened in the 80s . It's like breaking up and getting back together with someone a few times. There's a reason you broke up in the first place!! Pity though...

But maybe it'll be better this time

666irishguy

It's amazing how often this happens in bands and I think a lot of it is down to the fact that there are usually one or two guys who found the group and everybody else is considered along for the ride and in their eternal gratitude. It's unbelievable they would screw him like this. It happened in the 80's, but considering the sums of money that must be involved this time and on top of the previous screwing, I doubt he will be back. If I was to bet who is the greedy one in Slayer, I'd say KK without a doubt. He has merchandised himself to death. I'd say he has a management or logistics company in his name that caters for slayer touring and the "expenses" are going to that. Begs the question though; "How the f**k could Lombardo have let himself be screwed like this?" Surely he must have an accountant or adviser to ensure his interests are looked after, especially after the last time...coming to a courthouse near you in 2013.

Sugarlumps

Sad state of affairs, it not exactly a walk in the park playing drums for Slayer.

happyoutscan

I know it's Kerrys band but Lombardo offers more live. Obviously it's a dog eat dog world as far as Kerry is concerned (if Dave's statement is factual).

Mr. CooL ICE

666irishguy wrote: »

It's amazing how often this happens in bands and I think a lot of it is down to the fact that there are usually one or two guys who found the group and everybody else is considered along for the ride and in their eternal gratitude.

Similar thing happened to Deicide recently. I can't find the specific link due to being in work, but this is a quote from Eric Hoffman (via his facebook page):

"Reason for DEICIDE split, Earache records sends all royalties and publishing to c/o Glen Benton. He has now taken all royalties, publishing and merch for nine years from Scars of the Crucifix, that went silver. He did not write one song on Scars. The only song he ever wrote in his career was part of Trifixtion. I arranged all DEICIDE songs. Glen you bitch, I wrote all of Torment in Hell to get off Roadrunner in 5 days, and I did not take all the royalties. We were a team no matter who wrote what. It was split 4 ways. You were hired and fired numerous times in DEICIDE. I played the bass on Pentecostal, just one of my songs on Scars. I also purchased/gave him a BEAST bass to play on Scars, pathetic scumbag. Steve Ashaimed claimed to the IRS he sent us $4000 each on a tax statement for Scars. Which we did not receive. Clearly fraud, you scumbag. You will get what is comming, mother ****ers. If you see Glen live please spit in his mouth for me, thank you."

666irishguy

LordChessington wrote: »

Similar thing happened to Deicide recently. I can't find the specific link due to being in work, but this is a quote from Eric Hoffman (via his facebook page):

"Reason for DEICIDE split, Earache records sends all royalties and publishing to c/o Glen Benton. He has now taken all royalties, publishing and merch for nine years from Scars of the Crucifix, that went silver. He did not write one song on Scars. The only song he ever wrote in his career was part of Trifixtion. I arranged all DEICIDE songs. Glen you bitch, I wrote all of Torment in Hell to get off Roadrunner in 5 days, and I did not take all the royalties. We were a team no matter who wrote what. It was split 4 ways. You were hired and fired numerous times in DEICIDE. I played the bass on Pentecostal, just one of my songs on Scars. I also purchased/gave him a BEAST bass to play on Scars, pathetic scumbag. Steve Ashaimed claimed to the IRS he sent us $4000 each on a tax statement for Scars. Which we did not receive. Clearly fraud, you scumbag. You will get what is comming, mother ****ers. If you see Glen live please spit in his mouth for me, thank you."

Sounds all too familiar. Poor bastard wouldn't have been a millionaire from recording and touring with DEICIDE either. Looks like Glen knew they were on the other-side of the hill and decided to get himself optimum profit. I'd say King senses the same and just wants to have full control of the nostalgia territory they will soon be crossing into.

Dan_Solo

If it comes to the nuclear option, I'm going with Tomdavejeffslayer every time before Kerryslayer.

Angron

Is Jeff back yet? Not really the central issue here, I just haven't heard much of him since he got that flesh eating thing...

happyoutscan

Denny M wrote: »

Is Jeff back yet? Not really the central issue here, I just haven't heard much of him since he got that flesh eating thing...

Nope, Gary Holt still on axe details. Not sure what the story is with Jeff and his recuperation.

lord lucan

happyoutscan wrote: »

Nope, Gary Holt still on axe details. Not sure what the story is with Jeff and his recuperation.

Probably a gagging order on him too,hasn't been a word from him in ages.

Lombardo is a major part of the Slayer sound and it's just not Slayer without him. Throw in Hannemanns absence and you're left with Slayer-lite. This has Kings grubby hands all over it. He's always been quick to mouth off about other bands and slag off anyone who has anything to say about Slayer.

I love the band but i'd love nothing more than to see Araya walk away from it. Sounds like they've all been screwed over by King. Pity the spider didn't bite King instead of Hannemann.

BlaasForRafa

lord lucan wrote: »

Probably a gagging order on him too,hasn't been a word from him in ages.

Lombardo is a major part of the Slayer sound and it's just not Slayer without him. Throw in Hannemanns absence and you're left with Slayer-lite. This has Kings grubby hands all over it. He's always been quick to mouth off about other bands and slag off anyone who has anything to say about Slayer.

I love the band but i'd love nothing more than to see Araya walk away from it. Sounds like they've all been screwed over by King. Pity the spider didn't bite King instead of Hannemann.

Abso-feckin-lutely! hannemann is a far better soloist than King ever was, King just repeats the same s--t over and over the whole time. Plus Hannemann has written far more great songs than King has.

You couldn't have Slayer without Araya's vocals and Slayer was never the same with drummers other than Lombardo. In contrast Slayer could lose King and not lose as much as is lost by any of the other 3 being missing.

DrumSteve

Kinda like the whole Lars thing with Metallica; know you're replaceable musically so make yourself irreplaceable in other areas.

Dave is my musical hero and it saddens me to see him and Tom get screwed over like this. I hope they work it out as its not really slayer without him.

Also, Bostaph and Dette are great drummers but they arent on the same level as Dave.

Testament1

BlaasForRafa wrote: »

In contrast Slayer could lose King and not lose as much as is lost by any of the other 3 being missing.

If anything the music would probably improve. Hanneman has always been the superior song writer and I'd love to see what him and Gary Holt would come up with together for a Slayer album! Im hoping to catch their Sydney show on Monday so it'll be interesting to see how they fare out on stage after this.

bd2012

What a pity. A fantastic drummer. Oh well more fantomas please

Just Like Heaven

Slayer confirms that Jon Dette (Testament) will drum for the band on its Australian tour that starts this Saturday, February 23 in Brisbane. As regards Dave Lombardo’s Facebook post, Slayer does not agree with Mr. Lombardo’s substance or the timeline of the events, except to acknowledge that Mr. Lombardo came to the band less than a week before their scheduled departure for Australia to present an entirely new set of terms for his engagement that were contrary to those that had been previously agreed upon.

“The band was unable to reach an agreement on these new demands in the short amount of time available prior to leaving for Australia. There is more to the account than what Mr. Lombardo has offered, but out of respect to him, Slayer will not be commenting further. Slayer is grateful to its Australian fans for their understanding of this unfortunate last-minute change, and very much looks forward to seeing them at these shows.”

Dave Lombardo revealed yesterday that he was notified by lawyers that his services would not be needed while Slayer were in Australia, with Jon Dette being revealed as his replacement mere hours later.

Having already toured with Slayer once before, Jon Dette is no stranger to the band’s material and seems to be an appropriate last-minute choice. When Paul Bostaph left the band in 1996 to pursue other projects, Dette stepped in to help them out on that year’s US Ozzfest festival tour as they promoted their covers album Undisputed Attitude. He was ousted by a returning Bostaph less than 12 months later. Interestingly, Dette is also currently playing with Anthrax, standing in for Charlie Benante who, according to guitarist Scott Ian, is still attending to “personal issues” back in the US. The revitalised New Yorkers are also taking part in the Soundwave festival this year alongside Slayer.

Wonder if he'll be back for Bloodstock?

blastman

“The band was unable to reach an agreement on these new demands in the short amount of time available prior to leaving for Australia. There is more to the account than what Mr. Lombardo has offered, but out of respect to him, Slayer will not be commenting further. Slayer is grateful to its Australian fans for their understanding of this unfortunate last-minute change, and very much looks forward to seeing them at these shows.”

To me, that sounds like "What Mr. Lombardo said is pretty accurate, otherwise we would be in court already"

It's a shame to see this happen, Slayer are still on my bucket list, looks like at best I'll only get to see half the real Slayer if/when it happens.

scudzilla

fewtinsoffroth wrote: »

Wonder if he'll be back for Bloodstock?

Not a chance

Dan_Solo

blastman wrote: »

“There is more to the account than what Mr. Lombardo has offered"

Maybe he's being screwed even more than he realises...

Ash.J.Williams

Testament1 wrote: »

If anything the music would probably improve. Hanneman has always been the superior song writer and I'd love to see what him and Gary Holt would come up with together for a Slayer album! Im hoping to catch their Sydney show on Monday so it'll be interesting to see how they fare out on stage after this.

Kerry always likes to point out how he doesn't regard diablous as an album because jeff wrote most of it!

buck65

Kerry King is an embarassment, always was, always looked like a tool and acted like one.
Araya,Lombardo and Hanneman were always the standard bearers in Slayer, King was like Bez from the Happy Mondays or that bitch from Frankie Goes To Hollywood who danced.

Ash.J.Williams

buck65 wrote: »

Kerry King is an embarassment, always was, always looked like a tool and acted like one.
Araya,Lombardo and Hanneman were always the standard bearers in Slayer, King was like Bez from the Happy Mondays or that bitch from Frankie Goes To Hollywood who danced.

KK is the reason Slayer are still going in fairness..he's the business man/brand manager that drives it...in fact I doubt anyone in slayer does anything slayer related until they get the call from kk.

devildriver

It's pretty sad to see it played out in public like this but it's a sign of the times. Everybody airs their dirty laundry on the interwebs these days.

I always thought Slayer deserved respect for keeping their original line up for a large chunk of their career (even though Lombardo was out for quite few years). In comparison to the other Big Four bands - Anthrax and Megadeth in particular.

It's probably time for them to call it a day anyway but it's sad to see it happen like this.

Degag

In some ways i think that if Araya left, it'd be a bigger loss than Dave - not downplaying his departure in anyway, is and always will be my favourite drummer - but without Araya, i think Slayer might as well give up, i don't think it would survive with a different vocalist.

scudzilla

Who writes the bulk of the albums? Cos that's where most of the cash will go, on royalties.

Kess73

Said this in the Anthrax thread. I reckon Lombardo will be drumming with Anthrax for their upcoming Australian tour as Benante has pulled out for personal reasons.

Benante pulled out of an Anthrax tour a year or so ago as well and it was Lombardo that came in to cover.

BlaasForRafa

scudzilla wrote: »

Who writes the bulk of the albums? Cos that's where most of the cash will go, on royalties.

About 60% Hannemann, 30% King, 10% Araya. Which is probably why King is ripping everyone else off for the touring money.

Testament1

Kess73 wrote: »

Said this in the Anthrax thread. I reckon Lombardo will be drumming with Anthrax for their upcoming Australian tour as Benante has pulled out for personal reasons.

Benante pulled out of an Anthrax tour a year or so ago as well and it was Lombardo that came in to cover.

Jon Dette is filling in for Benante and he's going filling in for Lombardo aswell. The Australian dates are starting today so its a bit late for Lombardo to be coming to potentially join up with Anthrax.

Ash.J.Williams

Would be hilarious if Dave ended up with anthrax, "look tom I got paid tonight, where's your pay?"

shed head

i know the this particular band don't hang out and only get together for business i.e. recording/touring. Kerry is a serious dude, passionate but from what i hear he won't welcome Hanneman back unless he can play 100%. something unlikable about King in general, bit of a prick maybe!

Ash.J.Williams

shed head wrote: »

i know the this particular band don't hang out and only get together for business i.e. recording/touring. Kerry is a serious dude, passionate but from what i hear he won't welcome Hanneman back unless he can play 100%. something unlikable about King in general, bit of a prick maybe!

Yeah Jeff was photographed out drinkin and Mottin and apparently the boss wasnt happy!

DrumSteve

Kess73 wrote: »

Said this in the Anthrax thread. I reckon Lombardo will be drumming with Anthrax for their upcoming Australian tour as Benante has pulled out for personal reasons.

Benante pulled out of an Anthrax tour a year or so ago as well and it was Lombardo that came in to cover.

Interesting... Would like to hear Dave pay caught in a mosh. Charlie is a fantastic drummer, pity to see him out.