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EXODUS/SLAYER Guitarist GARY HOLT: The PREMIER GUITAR Rig Rundown (Video)

June 6, 2015

Premier Guitar 's Perry Bean recently met up with thrash-metal pioneer Gary Holt for a look at the gear that power the SLAYER and EXODUS guitarist's brutal riffs during the latter band's tour in support of their latest album, "Blood In Blood Out". Check out the report below.

During an appearance at this past January's NAMM show in Anaheim, California, Holt unveiled his new signature model based on the ESP Eclipse. The Gary Holt signature models come in a high-end ESP version (ESP Gary Holt) and two LTD versions, the GH-600 and GH-200. All come with Floyd Rose tremolo system and dual humbucker pickups.

METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett, an early bandmate and decades-long friend of Holt, commented, "Gary has influenced a whole generation of metal guitarists with his wicked riffs and leads in EXODUS. I'm happy that he's jumped on for the ESP ride!"

In a June 2012 interview with Full Metal Jackie's nationally syndicated radio show, SLAYER's Kerry King stated about Holt: "I always regard Gary as the Glenn Tipton of our era — really good, really polished and nobody talks about him. To this day, nobody really references [JUDAS] PRIEST and Tipton that much as guitar players and I feel the same way about Gary. EXODUS have a huge following but a little more overlooked than METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER, ANTHRAX — the 'Big Four,' so to speak, so [it is great] to be able to bring him to the forefront and shove him down people's throats and say, 'Hey, this motherfucker kicks ass. Pay attention.'"

Holt joined EXODUS in 1981 shortly after their formation, and has been the band's main songwriter ever since. Holt has performed on every EXODUS album, and is considered highly influential in the world of thrash metal. In 2011, he began filling in for SLAYER guitarist Jeff Hanneman at live shows, and became the band's full-time co-guitarist as of 2013, while remaining a member of EXODUS. In October 2014, EXODUS released its tenth studio album, "Blood In Blood Out", on the Nuclear Blast label.

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