Exodus and Slayer guitarist Gary Holt recently explained the challenges of learning Jeff Hanneman’s guitar parts. He shared insights about the mental approach required to master the late Slayer guitarist’s distinctive style. His comments were featured in an interview with Ultimate Guitar.
Holt discussed the specific difficulties he encountered when first learning Hanneman’s riffs. He also explained how his approach evolved over time.
“Learning Jeff Hanneman’s riffs, the hard part at first is learning how to think like he did in order to learn them correctly,” Holt said. “Because I’d learn riffs, I’d sit and practice at home, and Kerry would give me the songs to learn, and I’d learn them, but there’d be little things wrong. But that’s because I was thinking too much in terms of structured riffage and not chromatically enough.”
The guitarist explained how his understanding improved with experience and time.
“Then, as the years have gone by, it got easier because I was able to kind of put myself in his mindset, a little bit of how he wrote,” he continued. “So, you start identifying the things he did.”
Holt’s journey with Slayer began as a temporary arrangement that evolved into something much more significant. Blabbermouth reported that Holt initially joined the band as a short-term solution to help out old friends when Hanneman could no longer perform live due to health issues.
The decision to join Slayer wasn’t purely professional for Holt. Guitar World revealed that the guitarist said joining Slayer was “all about reconnecting with Kirk,” referring to Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, who was his best friend when they were in a band together. This personal connection added another layer to Holt’s motivation beyond simply filling in for Hanneman.
Holt’s transition into Slayer wasn’t without controversy within his own band. Loudwire noted that former Exodus singer Rob Dukes criticized Holt’s decision. Dukes claimed that the guitarist “abandoned” Exodus when he joined Slayer. This tension highlighted the challenges of balancing commitments between two major thrash metal bands.
Despite the initial difficulties and controversies, Holt has managed to maintain his role in both bands successfully. Vice documented that Holt has encountered minimal resistance from fans during his tenure with Slayer. He reported that he has only had to deal with “two genuine hecklers” since joining the band – one in Germany and one in Italy. This acceptance from the Slayer fanbase demonstrates how well he has adapted to filling Hanneman’s role.
Holt joined Slayer as a touring guitarist following Hanneman’s departure from live performances due to health issues. He eventually became a permanent member after Hanneman’s death in 2013.
