Update: Slayer has announced a second show and who's in the band. The original story is as follows.
Original story: Louder Than Life will take place between September 26 and 29 at the Highland Festival Grounds At Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, KY. The festival will be headlined by Slayer and a bunch of other bands that aren't the surprise reunion of Slayer like Mötley Crüe, Slipknot, and Korn. I guess Kerry King and Tom Araya were speaking a little more than King originally let on?
Slayer's reunion (if it's even a reunion and not just some festivals) has really strange timing too, considering Kerry King just announced his long awaited solo album. Doubly so as King's main lament on Slayer's demise was that he had no vehicle to play live anymore – an opportunity that is quite literally coming up with his solo band. But it's 2024 and I guess at this point everyone should never expect a "final show" from any band to be an actually final show.
Though I guess we should've at least considered this a possibility, as their manager Rick Sales said in a 2019 interview "I totally get that they made a decision to stop touring. That doesn't mean the end of the band. It's just the end of touring." Touring, not shows.
And no – we don't know who's in Slayer 2024 right now. The full lineup of Louder Than Life is:
- Slayer
- Mötley Crüe
- Slipknot
- Korn
- Disturbed
- Judas Priest
- Five Finger Death Punch
- Evanescence
- Falling in Reverse
- Breaking Benjamin
- The Offspring
- Staind
- Till Lindemann
- In This Moment
- Chevelle
- Dropkick Murphys
- Halestorm
- Gojira
- Sum 41
- Seether
- Tom Morello
- Anthrax
- Mastodon
- Architects
- Skillet
- Clutch
- Highly Suspect
- Lorna Shore
- Body Count
- Spiritbox
- Grandson
- Nothing More
- Sevendust
- Jinjer
- Poppy
- Badflower
- Starset
- Sleeping With Sirens
- Filter
- Eagles of Death Metal
- Juliette Lewis and the Licks
- Marky Ramone Plays the Ramones Classics
- Black Stone Cherry
- PUP
- Three 6 Mafia
- P.O.D.
- Fozzy
- Fugitive
- Saosin
- L.S. Dunes
- Biohazard
- Polaris
- From Ashes To New
- LIT
- Show Me The Body
- Joey Valence & Brae
- Set It Off
- Drug Church
- Militarie Gun
- The Armed
- Narrow Head
- Brutus
- Bob Vylan
- Fit For A King
- The Warning
- Whitechapel
- Better Lovers
- New Years Day
- Health
- GEL
- Lilith Czar
- Tim Montana
- Point North
- Holding Absence
- Holy Fawn
- Drowning Pool
- Helmet
- Saliva
- Alien Ant Farm
- Nonpoint
- Finger Eleven
- Powerman 5000
- Local H
- ORGY
- Taproot
- Tantric
- Sponge
- Trapt
- Red
- Adema
- D.R.U.G.S.
- Ho99o9
- The Chisel
- Slothrust
- High Vis
- Soul Glo
- Winona Fighter
- Des Rocs
- Veil of Maya
- Oxymorrons
- HED PE
- Ill Niño
- Damnage
- Citizen Soldier
- Alien Weaponry
- CKY
- Dead Poet Society
- Kneecap
- Teen Mortgage
- Touché Amoré
- Jeris Johnson
- Jager Bonham
- The Funeral Portrait
- Nerv
- Any Given Sin
- Like A Storm
- Deadlands
- Mike’s Dead
- Reach NYC
- Self Deception
- Lø Spirit
- Jigsaw Youth
- Royale Lynn
- Descartes A Kant
- Lowlives
- Blame My Youth
- Caskets
- Silly Goose
- Gozu
- Black Map
- Hemorage
- Budderside
- Project MishraM
"We're thrilled to announce that Slayer will be reuniting for an earth-shattering performance at Louder Than Life," said Danny Wimmer of Danny Wimmer Presents. "I was at their last show at The Forum in 2019 and have been working since then to bring them back to the Louder stage! With over 140 bands on five stages, we’re celebrating our 10th Louder Than Life with the biggest lineup yet! P.S., come out and celebrate with us at TAJ this Saturday and we’ll buy your first drink."
"On the heels of an incredible lineup announcement for Bourbon & Beyond, Louder Than Life solidifies why the Kentucky Exposition Center is the number one place to travel to in September," added David S. Beck, President and CEO of Kentucky Venues. "We anticipate festival-goers from around the world to come for the music and fall in love with all the things that make Kentucky such a great state."
