After the retirement of SLAYER, guitarist Kerry King never made a secret to build his own solo project and he worked on that since 2019. With the first full-length release, he put together a “Who is Who” of US Thrash Metal with guitarist Phil Demmel (ex-MACHINE HEAD, ex-VIO-LENCE) and DEATH ANGEL frontman Mark Osegueda being the co-stars, while former SLAYER drummer Paul Bostaph and bassist Kyle Sanders complete the ambitious project. “From Hell I Rise” was produced, mixed, and mastered by Josh Wilbur (LAMB OF GOD; MEGADETH; TRIVIUM), and Kerry King was the executive producer. The album has a length of about 46 minutes, and it was released via US Power, Heavy, and Death Metal specialists Reigning Phoenix Music.

 The album starts with the two-minutes guitar-driven pre-lude “Diablo”, transitioning into the fast “Where I Reign”, and yes, it continues with the SLAYER sound everyone was expecting: tight and aggressive riffing as well as insane lead guitar solos, all kept together by the very distinct vocals of Mark Osegueda. In fact, the vocals are the main difference between the old SLAYER sound and the new Kerry King sound. “Residue” even sounds more familiar to the SLAYER sound of late. It is one of those steamroller tracks played at a measured tempo and headbanging rhythm with a few subtle twists in tempo along the way. The lead guitars follow clean patterns without any crazy twists and Mark Osegueda does not use his trademark highly pitched screams, in fact, his modulation sounds a bit different to that he uses for DEATH ANGEL. “Residue” is an early album highlight with all the aggression being transported to the listener. “Idle Hands” is a track constantly switching between the mid-tempo at the beginning of the verse parts and its continuation at crazy pace. Highlights of the track are the two contributing lead guitar solos during the break and at the end of the track. “Trophies Of The Tyrant” is another track at measured tempo and it follows the typical SLAYER patterns in the riffing, the lead guitars, the rhythm, and the vocals. 

 “Crucifixation” is one of the fastest tracks on the album with aggressive and flesh-ripping guitar riffs. The vocals are mainly around the medium end of the vocal range with only a few tonal shifts to higher pitched notes. The chorus parts are catchy with anthemic chorus vocal lines. The mid-tempo break sounds a bit lengthy and repetitive, before it eventually transitions into a crazy trademark lead guitar solo. Despite the break, “Crucifixation” is one of the best album tracks. “Tension” is, as the name suggests, a tension-building track over almost three minutes, driven by the guitars and the vocals. It builds up for most of the time and releases into the lead guitars after around two minutes and keeps building up again until the end of the track. After all, it cannot really keep up with most album songs. With “Everything I Hate About You” is an 80-seconds, aggressive, and fast track that brings exactly the message across. With “Toxic” comes another album highlight, which would be a highlight on any of the SLAYER albums of the last two decades. It is one of the mid-tempo tracks on the album with direct and aggressive riffing, but also catchiness during the chorus parts. The guitar melodies follow well-known patterns with which we are all familiar since “South Of Heaven”. Highlight for me are the drums and the fact that Paul Bostaph eventually utilizes the double-bass. “Toxic” has been released on video, and the YouTube link is provided below.

 “Two Fists” is a track with very direct, simple, and aggressive guitar riffing with a few Hardcore vibes. It is a slight change in sound, nothing that sounds unfamiliar, but surely it is an exception on this album. Most notably, lead guitars are completely absent here. “Rage” is another fast track with tight riffing and aggressive vocals. While verse and chorus parts have the same tempo and rhythm, the break introduces a few twists and turns in rhythm. Highlight is again the contributing lead guitar solo during the break. “Shrapnel” starts with a guitar-driven intro with grim melodies leading into the verse part at mid-tempo. It is a track switching between mid-tempo verse parts and measured tempo during the bridge and the chorus parts. The track is mainly driven by the guitar riffing and the relentless double-bass drumming, which gives the track an extra dimension. Lovers of lead guitar solos might be a bit disappointed as there is none, despite there were sufficient opportunities to add at least one. The album finishes fast with the title track. It is another of those tracks that would make their way onto any of the SLAYER albums. In fact, the title track is another album highlight and not only because of the trademark lead guitar solo. It is an excellent way to end the album.

 The debut album of Kerry King continues the successful Thrash Metal story that started during the early 80s with SLAYER. The man who co-invented the Thrash Metal wheel with that overly aggressive and fast sound, continues to spin it with excellence. The comparison with SLAYER is inevitable and die-hard fans might need some time to get used to the different vocals. However, this lineup looks very promising and could have a serious impact on the Thrash Metal world in the years to come. The album is very well produced. “From Hell I Rise” is not a reincarnation of SLAYER, it is a continuation and modernization of a sound that influenced generations of Metal musicians and fans all over the Globe.