In a brand new interview with Germany’s Metallic.de, EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt confirmed that the band’s traditional debut album, 1985’s “Bonded By Blood” remains to be his favourite EXODUS LP. Requested if meaning he thinks EXODUS “by no means topped” “Bonded By Blood” with one thing else, Gary stated (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “No. By no means topped it. That is blasphemous to even say. ‘Bonded By Blood’ is the album that began all of it. So, it is my youth, it is my highschool yearbook. It is the explanation I am nonetheless right here. So it is all the time gonna be primary. And [late EXODUS frontman] Paul Baloff, regardless of solely singing on one album, is all the time the voice of EXODUS. That is no insult to [later EXODUS singers] Zetro [Steve Souza] or Rob [Dukes]. It is simply Paul began it.”
Requested if he and his EXODUS bandmates have considered a doable retirement or if they’re simply too “stuffed with vitality” proper now to name it quits, Holt responded: “No, I am not stuffed with vitality. I am fucking drained. However we’re gonna do that as arduous as we will, as heavy as we will till we won’t. And that is why we recorded a lot music [for the next EXODUS album]. We figured, do it now whereas we’re nonetheless in a position to. Who is aware of? I’ve had elbow issues, hand issues, shoulder issues now. Perhaps in 5 years age will catch up and the arthritis will get unhealthy and I am unable to do it. I do not know.”
Relating to what he would possibly do all day if he needed to cease touring and recording with EXODUS, Gary stated: “I don’t know. I do not know. Flip to a lifetime of crime, possibly. I do not know. I have never discovered a technique to become profitable being charming, so I do not know what I am gonna do.”
When the interviewer famous that Gary has discovered a technique to make some more money by promoting merchandise by way of his Holt Awaits on-line retailer, the guitarist concurred. “Yeah, it helps,” he stated. “Individuals assume, ‘Oh, you are a wealthy rock star.’ No. I promote shirts, and I promote them outta my fucking closet. All proper. Pack this one up, label it, ship it off. However no, that simply helps. It does not pay the payments. It helps to maintain pay the payments. It helped actually lots within the pandemic. However I do not know. If I truthfully retired, I would most likely do extra producing. I would keep in music. However typically I daydream about not leaving the home. ‘Trigger I hate leaving — I hate getting on the airplane to depart — however as quickly as I arrive, I’ve enjoyable.”
Holt was additionally requested about EXODUS bassist Jack Gibson‘s current remark that he and his bandmates are “touring t-shirt salesmen”. Gary stated: “[Selling shirts is] the place we make our cash. We’re fortunate… If you happen to’re in a band the place the cash you are paid to play covers your bills and the t-shirt cash is yours, you are doing rather well. As a result of every little thing, particularly for the reason that pandemic — tour buses value means extra money. Every thing prices extra. Airfare prices extra. It is fucking arduous. We do okay, we do fairly good. However then whenever you come house and you do not work for 2 months, that cash you made has to cowl, stretch out over all of it. So it isn’t what folks assume.”
In a July 2024 interview with Danielle Bloom, Gibson was requested what recommendation he would give to musicians who’re simply beginning out, in addition to to these musicians who possibly are just a little jaded at this level of their profession. He responded: “I do not know what to inform younger musicians as we speak as a result of I am jaded. And it is not that I am simply jaded, it is that there is no music enterprise anymore.
“Once I was younger, there was a path, there have been steps to take,” he defined. “You bought your band collectively, you set your music collectively, you began in search of exhibits, and when you may draw folks to your exhibits, then the following step was that label folks would have an interest. Then you definitely needed to get your promotional pack collectively to offer to the labels that had been . And then you definately tried to get signed and then you definately tried to make data and promote data And people steps do not exist in any respect anymore. Now the step is make a band — or not even make a band. Let’s simply go viral. I do not know to try this. Do not ask me the best way to fucking do this. I am in my fifties. I do not know the way to try this shit. It’s very a thriller to me. I do not know the way issues get common now, different than simply complete luck. So I do not know.
“Right here in Nashville [where I live now], younger musicians, they ask me that on a regular basis,” he continued. “And I form of really feel like a dick after I’m answering, as a result of I am, like, ‘Guys, I do not know.’ I do not know what makes issues tick. The bands which might be actual common, I do not know why these bands are common. And I am not saying that they don’t seem to be good; I simply do not know why these ones are those that stand out from the opposite ones proper now. All of it form of sounds the identical to me. I assume it is most likely as a result of I am simply outdated. However I do not know what course to offer anyone.”
When Bloom famous out that “we live in several occasions” proper now, Gibson concurred. “There isn’t any enterprise,” he stated. “As soon as they began giving the music away, there is no enterprise. We do not promote shit for data. If we do not exit and promote t-shirts, we do not become profitable. I am a t-shirt salesman. I am not a musician. I am actually a touring tchotchke vendor. That is what we do. We play music to attempt to get folks to the shop and promote them our fuckin’ stuff with stuff printed on it. That is the enterprise. If you cannot replenish a room, 50,000 items moved on the Web, then they do not wanna discuss to you. And any day now, we’re all gonna lose our jobs to those fuckin’ robots. As soon as the A.I. figures out the best way to truly make music that individuals get pleasure from, they don’t seem to be gonna pay us to do shit.”
After Bloom expressed her perception that individuals will all the time be occupied with seeing reside music being carried out by people, Jack stated: “Nicely, that is true. However at this cut-off date, a lot of the music enterprise is not that; most of it’s licensing and business jingles and music enhancing and music recording. All that is gonna simply disappear. There’s gonna be 50 folks on the market who make music that persons are occupied with that may’t be reproduced. After which the remainder of it… Like, who’s gonna pay someone to put in writing music for a film? Or pay an orchestra, pay 60 folks to come back in and carry out it when one man can simply go [punch a few commands into a computer] and it comes out. And we’re not gonna know the fucking distinction. Issues are altering so quick that I do not actually know what to say.”
Souza joined EXODUS in 1986 after beforehand fronting the band LEGACY (which later turned TESTAMENT). He remained within the band till their hiatus in 1993, however rejoined them for 2 years from 2002 to 2004. Dukes had joined EXODUS in 2005 (following Souza‘s departure) and remained till 2014, when Souza rejoined.
Dukes beforehand joined EXODUS in January 2005 and appeared on 4 of the band’s studio albums — “Shovel Headed Kill Machine” (2005),“The Atrocity Exhibition… Exhibit A” (2007),“Let There Be Blood” (2008, a re-recording of EXODUS‘s traditional 1985 LP, “Bonded By Blood”) and “Exhibit B: The Human Situation” (2010).
EXODUS‘s third stint with Souza led to January, with Dukes being welcomed again on the similar time.
EXODUS performed its first live performance with Dukes in practically 11 years on April 5 on the Decibel Journal Metallic & Beer Fest: Philly on the Fillmore in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Though EXODUS not often will get talked about alongside the so-called “Large 4” of Nineteen Eighties thrash steel — METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX — the aforementioned “Bonded By Blood” LP impressed the likes of TESTAMENT, DEATH ANGEL, VIO-LENCE and plenty of others to launch their careers and is taken into account one of the crucial influential thrash steel albums of all time.
