Baker's Dozen

Artists discuss the 13 records that shaped their lives

2. SlayerReign In Blood

I’ve always love that type of extreme music. I think that Slayer sort of condensed the music coming from the thrash scene – whether it was Exodus or Testament or even the early Metallica – and made it into this sick, almost evil type of menacing [thing], which really put them on top of their game in terms of that style. ‘Angel Of Death’ is one of my all-time favourite Slayer tracks. It’s just a great roaring cacophony, but there are some really strong hooks and melodies in there, which is really difficult to do with that type of music. They do it so well and I’m a massive fan.

Later in their career they covered one of our songs, ‘Dissident Aggressor’, which was a big surprise. We had a great release a while back where bands were all covering Priest tracks, and a lot of our friends in the rock & roll world were willing to take part. It’d be great to do something like that, though, I think it’s always a cool thing to do to show your ability as musicians and step out of your comfort zone. It’s quite a good idea actually, bringing in some of that speed. Maybe the next release will have a sort of Priest-do-Slayer vibe.

Selected in other Baker’s Dozens: Scott Ian of Anthrax
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