Slayer guitarist Jeff Hanneman has been forced to temporarily step down from the group in a live capacity for the immediate future after contracting necrotizing fasciitis on his right arm. The infection is thought to have originated from a spider bite with the guitarist having already undergone surgical treatment for it. In light of this, a live replacement will be brought onboard to replace Hanneman while he recovers with more word on that expected shortly.
In the meantime, band guitarist Kerry King offered the following:
“After everything that happened last year, we all agreed that we just can’t disappoint our fans again. Jeff is totally on board with this decision, so we will tour as planned. At this point, we can’t pinpoint exactly what day he’ll be back, but he’ll be back as soon as he possibly can, and we can’t wait for him to get his ass back out on the road.”
