My, oh my is this exciting. Slayer have had some time off recently, so why not start working on new material? The group have a slot on the mega-huge Rockstar Mayhem Festival this Summer, a perfect time to release a new album, and it looks like the band is looking to make that deadline. Kerry King recently spoke to Metal Hammer magazine revealing just how much progress the band had made:

“Currently, we’re taking a break, but I am very excited by the way it’s all turning out so far. I've worked up three songs with Dave [Lombardo], and they’re sounding really refreshing and energetic,” King says. “I’m certain that I’ll have three more ready to go when we return to action. And then there’s the stuff that Jeff [Hanneman] will also bring to the table.” Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

Three songs in the bag? That's basically a third of the record. If Hanneman has the same amount of songs written, that's two thirds of the record! Good to hear that Hanneman is writing as well. Hanneman is currently recovering from a vicious spider bite, which King gave an update on:

"We could go onstage with him right now and do ‘Mandatory Suicide'. If that was the only song in our set, Jeff would be fine. But he’s slowly getting himself back to full fitness and by the time we’re ready to tour he’ll be right back onstage with us."

As for who they're working with in the studio, the band hope to recruit Greg Fidelman, who sat behind the desk for 2009's World Painted Blood, along with Rick Rubin.

“That’s the idea, anyway,” Kerry said. “But it all depends on his availability…I don’t think we’ll spend long in the studio this time, either. We’re gonna do it old-school style and get things done fast. In fact, we are already ahead of schedule. The album will be ready for a summer release. But whether it’s put out at that time is down to the record label [American]. They might have other plans. But we want it with the fans during the summer.”

New SLAYER this year! The same year there is new MESHUGGAH. My head may just explode. Hopefully, there will be a lot of Tom Araya's signature scream on the album.