Modern fandom can certainly be toxic. We’ve all seen Swifties, The BTS Army and more ganging up on music critics over a middling review, punishing other artists for any perceived slight on their faves or just generally being a bit weird about their heroes. But in terms of sheer manic intensity, no other fandom can hold a candle to Slayer’s. It's a fact perfectly encapsulated by one frightening night in LA that saw police called to one of the thrash legends’ concerts and left them banned from one of the city’s most prestigious venues for a quarter of a century.Having established themselves as the fastest, most aggressive and most intense band on the planet with 1986’s Reign in Blood, Slayer began to attract an obsessively devoted fanbase. Their shows became infamously wild, a dangerous place for casual observers and, particularly, for support bands that had committed the cardinal sin of not being Slayer.
I used to hate to watch friends just get pummelled
Kerry King
