{"id":371864,"date":"2026-03-29T20:02:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-29T20:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/371864\/"},"modified":"2026-03-29T20:02:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T20:02:16","slug":"how-the-clash-of-the-titans-tour-put-thrash-metal-in-arenas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/371864\/","title":{"rendered":"How the Clash Of The Titans tour put thrash metal in arenas"},"content":{"rendered":"

By the end of the 1980s, four bands had emerged as kings of the burgeoning thrash metal<\/a> scene: Metallica<\/a>, Slayer<\/a>, Megadeth<\/a> and Anthrax<\/a>. Though not yet the \u2018Big 4\u2019, they\u2019d each released landmark albums and were heralded as indicators of the genre\u2019s enormous potential. But Metallica were quickly pulling ahead, as 1989\u2019s \u2026And Justice For All<\/a> had broken the Top 10 on the US Billboard 200.<\/p>\n

\u201cMetallica were in a league of their own \u2013 they didn\u2019t need anything from anybody. They chose their own path. I think it was like, \u2018We\u2019ve done all that [thrash] stuff\u2019, and so they aimed higher,\u201d says Slayer guitarist Kerry King.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Their peers weren\u2019t about to miss their own shot at the big time, however. A plan was hatched: to bring Slayer and Megadeth together for a tour that would see them reach the arena-headlining level of Metallica.<\/p>\n

Article continues below <\/p>\n

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Package tours weren\u2019t new. A decade earlier, the Metal For Muthas tour \u2013 Mot\u00f6rhead, Samson and Saxon each playing on different dates, supported by a range of young bands \u2013 had helped popularise NWOBHM<\/a>, thrash\u2019s direct progenitor. But Clash Of The Titans was something different: a coalition of greats who could achieve more together than alone. This is the story of how Clash Of The Titans revolutionised touring, took thrash into the big leagues and cemented the concept of the Big 4.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Members\n<\/p>\n

Anthrax\u2019s Dan Spitz and Scott Ian, Slayer\u2019s Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King, and Megadeth\u2019s Dave Mustaine and Marty Friedman backstage at the Clash Of The Titans tour (Image credit: Gene Ambo\/IconicPix)<\/p>\n

It began in Europe. Co-headlined by Slayer and Megadeth, the bill was designed to cross the enormous gap between the venues they had been headlining (2-5,000 capacity) to full arenas (average capacity: 16,000). There were logistical challenges: getting two of thrash\u2019s biggest names together came with the mammoth task of ironing out every detail to ensure both bands were equally represented on the bill. The clash had begun\u2026<\/p>\n

John Jackson (Founder of K2 Agency): \u201cWe already had a tour approved by Slayer\u2019s manager, Rick Sales. Megadeth were also looking to tour around the same time, so I thought, \u2018Wouldn\u2019t it be brilliant if we could put them together?\u2019 On the face of it, it wasn\u2019t necessarily a slam dunk, but that was one of the reasons we had pulled it together \u2013 we felt together those bands could do better than either would on their own.\u201d<\/p>\n

David Ellefson (Megadeth): \u201cThe thinking was, if we could combine forces, Megadeth and Slayer \u2013 later Anthrax too \u2013 we figured we could achieve the same level of success as a band like Metallica. We\u2019d already worked together a few times by that point anyway \u2013 Kerry was even in Megadeth at the start.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n

\"Slayer\n<\/p>\n

Slayer in 1991 (Image credit: Goedefroit Music\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Kerry King (Slayer): \u201c[Playing with Megadeth] was killer! The only reason I considered it is because I was such a big Mustaine fan \u2013 I saw him play with Metallica when they were still a southern California band. It blew me away that he\u2019d be up there ripping on guitar, not even looking at what he was doing. I played the first five shows and it was a good time; I was just honoured that he wanted me to help him out.\u201d<\/p>\n

We\u2019d have to put our egos aside. That was probably the biggest clash of the titans \u2013 not with the outside world, but internally..<\/p>\n

Dave Mustaine<\/p>\n

John Jackson: \u201cWe settled on the name Clash Of The Titans because a) it\u2019s a great name, and b) it says exactly what it is!\u201d<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cIt\u2019d be a team effort where we\u2019d have to put our egos aside. That was probably the biggest clash of the titans \u2013 not with the outside world, but internally! Who closes the show, who gets the right set time\u2026 these were discussions that turned into finer negotiations behind the scenes. In Europe, the line-up was fixed: Slayer would close and Megadeth were in third position, which I always maintain is the best position as the fans still have loads of energy and the beer\u2019s still working!\u201d<\/p>\n

What to read next<\/p>\n

Kerry King: \u201cI would always rather close. I don\u2019t care who plays before us, we\u2019re gonna smoke \u2019em.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alice In Chains – Man in the Box (Official Video) – YouTube
\n\"Alice<\/p>\n

Watch On <\/a><\/p>\n

Clash Of The Titans kicked off in Belgium on September 22, 1990. It soon became the hottest ticket going, and city after city sold out as the tour rampaged through Switzerland, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark and the UK. The bill was rounded out by the addition of Bay Area contemporaries Testament and Suicidal Tendencies \u2013 the LA crossover thrashers who represented a new breed of thrash. This was the genre\u2019s commercial and critical peak, and each band had just released \u2013 or were on the verge of releasing \u2013 game-changing records.<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cSlayer were just about to drop Seasons In The Abyss and we were working up to Rust In Peace. The tour took us into arenas, so it was big news, you know? Testament had got Souls Of Black coming around that time too, so it was a really special time for heavy metal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kerry King: \u201cThat kind of thing never happens for a two-band bill let alone four. Bands with big albums just don\u2019t tour together and here we were with four bands with huge albums. I mean, Suicidal were coming off of Lights, Camera\u2026 what a great album!\u201d<\/p>\n

Chuck Billy (Testament): \u201cClash Of The Titans was a big opportunity \u2013 it was a chance to play some real shows in places we\u2019d otherwise only visit for festivals. We\u2019d never even played shows indoors at some of these places! Soon we realised that shit, there was a caveat that we needed a new record out to get on the tour. Cool \u2013 let\u2019s go to the studio and drink some beers and play some songs!\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Megadeth\n<\/p>\n

Megadeth in 1991 (Image credit: Vinnie Zuffante\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cDave [Mustaine] and I saw Megadeth as an arena band right from the off \u2013 you have to remember it was a conception before it was a reality. I remember sitting in the apartment in Sycamore Avenue [in Hollywood] discussing everything, down to our names \u2013 how do you have a band with two Daves in it? It was all about the vision of what we could be and the band formed to fill that vision.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chuck Billy: \u201cThat tour launched us as a headliner in Europe. We\u2019d been working hard on our music for four years and really wanted to prove that we belonged there. The other guys were so cool and down to earth, so we could all just go out and put on a great performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anthrax – In My World – YouTube
\n\"Anthrax<\/p>\n

Watch On <\/a><\/p>\n

The tour wasn\u2019t without hitches, however. At the time, we asked Suicidal Tendencies frontman Mike Muir how it was going. \u201cWe haven\u2019t had any problems with Slayer, they\u2019re really cool. The same applies to the crew,\u201d he said. And Megadeth? \u201cWe don\u2019t see them and I\u2019m very pleased about that,\u201d he replied. Additionally, the Megadeth Daves were freshly on the wagon after battling addictions.<\/p>\n

Metallica were in a league of their own \u2013 they didn\u2019t need anything from anybody. They chose their own path.<\/p>\n

Kerry King<\/p>\n

Chuck Billy: \u201cA couple years before, we\u2019d toured with Megadeth and Dave [Mustaine] was smoking, drinking and everything, which meant the guy we toured with a couple years later was a completely different person, telling us not to smoke in the building! We were young, like, \u2018That\u2019s your problem not ours\u2019, but it must\u2019ve been tough being on their own. We were too immature to realise what was at stake.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kerry King: \u201cIt\u2019s difficult sometimes to sift through the years because me and Dave [Mustaine] can be on edge for decades at a time, but then completely cool with each other for decades too. Mustaine and I were on the rocks at that point, but we made it work. It\u2019s funny \u2013when we did The Big 4 shows together later he took me aside and said, \u2018You know, you and me are the only guys who have played in two of the Big 4!\u2019 But back around Clash we were all peaking, but we also had a chip on our shoulders about proving ourselves and that made every show special for fans.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Alice\n<\/p>\n

Alice In Chains in 1991 (Image credit: Al Seib\/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cBecause we were clean, we couldn\u2019t go hang out where the parties were. Ron Laffitte was a terrific manager for us in that regard. His icon was Pat Riley of the Lakers, so he was all about team and focusing on how you could channel all this talent so we\u2019d be marching in the same direction. He pulled us together, got us sobered up and made sure we\u2019d have band meetings, sobriety meetings\u2026 everything to keep going the right way and harness the greatness that was developing in the band at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chuck Billy: \u201cThere was definitely some butting of heads \u2013 between Kerry and Dave Mustaine, myself and Dave Mustaine\u2026 Dave Mustaine and Dave Mustaine\u2026 ha ha! In the end we all worked through it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Megadeth&lsquo;s\n<\/p>\n

Megadeth\u2019s Dave Mustaine during the Clash Of The Titans tour (Image credit: Goedefroit Music\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Interpersonal conflict or no, \u2018greatness\u2019 was certainly attained. Clash Of The Titans\u2019 initial run ended with an enormous show at Wembley Arena on October 14, 1990 \u2013 Slayer would use footage from it for their War Ensemble video. The bands couldn\u2019t rest on their laurels though, and it wasn\u2019t long before a sequel took shape. Anthrax were added as a third headliner and the bands agreed to rotate positions on the bill each night. The opening spot was filled by a wild card: Alice In Chains.<\/p>\n

We all went out to buy paintball guns, and it\u2019d turn into a daily war where we\u2019d be blasting each other.<\/p>\n

Scott Ian<\/p>\n

Scott Ian (Anthrax): \u201cOur record had just gone Gold in the States and we were sat in a dressing room playing alongside our heroes, Iron Maiden. But here was an offer to come out and do those same venues just a few months later. Our reaction was, \u2018Why do we need this? We can do it ourselves\u2019, so we initially said no. By the time we got offstage that night there was another fax and this one was loooong, explaining all the reasons it made sense for us to do it!\u201d<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cGod bless Alice In Chains, they were definitely the odd band out on the bill. [While touring Europe in early 1991] we were at the Volkshaus, Z\u00fcrich to see The Almighty and Marty [Friedman, guitarist] and I saw Alice In Chains\u2019 name on the day schedule, like, \u2018How goofy are these guys?\u2019 figuring they were some local band. All four of us [in Megadeth] decided to go up and see them play, and we were blown away. We phoned Ron and told him this was the band we had to take out with us for the tour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Megadeth – Holy Wars…The Punishment Due – YouTube
\n\"Megadeth<\/p>\n

Watch On <\/a><\/p>\n

Kerry King: \u201cAt first I fucking hated it! They were the Man In The Box band and I never needed to hear that song again. It was all I knew because that\u2019s all MTV played. But we\u2019d watch them, hang out and watch the [other bands\u2019] sets. Layne [Staley] was probably the best singer of our generation \u2013 a superstar with pipes like nobody you\u2019d ever seen before.\u201d<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cIf there\u2019s one thing we know about thrash metal fans it\u2019s if you\u2019re not thrash, YOU\u2019RE OUT! At the same time, after Clash AIC went out to play with Van Halen and became superstars, so that\u2019s their story! I always commend them on their work ethic, for jumping in the trenches and taking their bullets but still going on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Alice\n<\/p>\n

Alice In Chains performing live on the Clash Of The Titans tour (Image credit: Frank White)<\/p>\n

The US leg began in Dallas on May 16, 1991. On June 28, an MTV Headbanger\u2019s Ball special was set up to celebrate the arrival of metal\u2019s newest stars when they played New York\u2019s Madison Square Garden. It was a watershed moment for thrash in the US, laced with a sense of anarchy; some of the crowd\u2019s 19,000 fans got unruly and began throwing things towards the stage \u2013 as a pissed-off Tom Araya would recount to MTV\u2019s cameras after the band\u2019s set. It even gave hometown heroes Anthrax pause, as they worried about how the crowd would react to a special surprise they had planned for their headline set.<\/p>\n

I would always rather close. I don\u2019t care who plays before us, we\u2019re gonna smoke \u2019em.<\/p>\n

Scott Ian<\/p>\n

Scott Ian: \u201cWe brought out Chuck D and [Flavor] Flav [of Public Enemy] to do Bring The Noise. It was so crazy, because we had no idea how the crowd on that tour was going to react. A fuckin\u2019 Slayer crowd! There was worry as to whether people were going to dig it or scream, \u2018Fuck you, don\u2019t mix your rap with our metal!\u2019 But the moment Chuck and Flavor stepped out onto that stage, there was an energy I\u2019d never felt until that point; it was fucking insane!\u201d<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cIt was Anthrax\u2019s hometown and I felt very proud for them as it was their day. Playing Madison Square Garden is huge and a lot of those amphitheatres were great. We did this thing with Riki Rachtman of Headbanger\u2019s Ball. We were MTV darlings, all because we were a thrash band, not a hair metal band. By that point hair metal was moving out, so bands like Metallica and Queensr\u00ffche were holding the top spots. We could see Seattle coming up behind us. It was a world in transition, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scott Ian: \u201cSome of these places had never done shows without seats on the floor \u2013 Madison Square Garden was a big one for that. Straight away I could see that being a big problem, because promoters and venues didn\u2019t know about mosh pits yet. About half the venues didn\u2019t want to remove their seating. They had this attitude of, \u2018We\u2019ve been doing shows for 40 years, don\u2019t tell us how to do our job\u2019, only to see 10,000 seats get destroyed in one show. After that tour, all venues would do festival seating for metal shows.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Anthrax\n<\/p>\n

Anthrax on the Clash Of The Titans tour (Image credit: Ron Galella, Ltd.\/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Much of the interpersonal drama that had popped up in the press during the European run had fizzled out, and the bands were having a good time. They were young and conquering arenas, in what David Ellefson refers to as \u201cthe summer of heavy metal love\u201d.<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cThere was actually a little feud starting between Megadeth and Slayer at the time, especially because our lifestyles had become very different. I think that\u2019s how the food fight started \u2013 a flick of bread suddenly turned into a whole turkey flying across the room. Fuckin\u2019 Anthrax always had the best catering. A full Thanksgiving turkey spread, and we\u2019re there asking for raisins as a treat! Ha ha ha!\u201d<\/p>\n

Scott Ian: \u201cWe all had the same rider! As for the food fight\u2026 I don\u2019t think it\u2019s true! I think Tom [Araya] was fucking around, but Charlie [Benante] did end up with fish on his shoulder. I remember something like Tom shouting \u2018SWORDFISH AGAIN\u2019 and flinging his plate over his shoulder, and the fish flew and landed squarely on Charlie\u2019s shoulder. Nobody was upset, though \u2013 we laughed so hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kerry King: \u201c[My favourite thing was] probably getting the groups together \u2013 it\u2019s not easy co-ordinating with other bands, especially ones with any kind of fame or career. Being able to do that any time is great \u2013 it felt great to all come together and show everybody that thrash is rad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slayer – War Ensemble – YouTube
\n\"Slayer<\/p>\n

Watch On <\/a><\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cIt was the summer of heavy metal love. There were people throwing beer, chicks pulling their shirts up\u2026 all the rock\u2019n\u2019roll cliches you\u2019d never usually get at a thrash show. I remember having a great conversation with [Slayer guitarist] Jeff Hanneman in a hotel bar. He was there having a few beers and we chatted for ages. That was my real takeaway fond memory of Jeff; despite these hellish songs he could write, he was a kind, sweet guy and I had great admiration for his integrity. There he was, kicking back alone and just making his own entertainment.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Big 4 started to be talked about after the Clash Of The Titans. It\u2019s
\na pretty special thing that we started it and lived to tell the tale.\n<\/p>\n

David Ellefson<\/p>\n

Scott Ian: \u201cJeff and Kerry managed to get paintball guns, so their crew guys got paintball guns too. They thought it was hilarious to shoot at us by bursting out of a room as we were walking down a hallway. We all went out to buy paintball guns, and so it\u2019d turn into a daily war where we\u2019d be blasting each other. At a Hilton in Indiana, somebody\u2019s room opened up onto the roof, so we made the adult decision to go out and shoot the giant, giant Hilton sign outside the hotel until it was repainted in 40 different colours! There was a $10,000 cleaning cost! Luckily, we all pitched in to cover it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Slayer&rsquo;s\n<\/p>\n

Slayer\u2019s Jeff Hanneman on the Clash Of The Titans tour (Image credit: Goedefroit Music\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

The Stateside dates of Clash Of The Titans did more for Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax than make them into rock stars. It was an apotheosis that led to the idea of the Big 4. When someone asks, \u2018Why aren\u2019t \u2018x\u2019 in the Big 4?\u2019 the answer is simple: who else has played a tour so important to the metal landscape \u2013 a tour that changed the model for bands and made the mainstream take notice?<\/p>\n

John Jackson: \u201cClash Of The Titans helped set us up for future package tours too, not least the Unholy Alliance runs Slayer did [first with Slipknot\/Mastodon\/Hatebreed in 2004, then Lamb Of God\/Children Of Bodom\/Mastodon\/Thine Eyes Bleed in 2006 and finally Trivium\/Mastodon\/Amon Amarth in 2008].\u201d<\/p>\n

Kerry King: \u201cEach of those tours was just us moving forwards \u2013 even when moving forwards wasn\u2019t going to be
a thing for us anymore. But the end of the 80s was thrash\u2019s peak, because afterwards grunge came in and kicked the shit out of everything. Music changed and we basically had to wait before we could really become big again around God Hates Us All.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scott Ian: \u201cI don\u2019t remember people calling us the Big 4 at that point \u2013 I don\u2019t think it was used yet. Metallica were a giant band in their own right, so it makes sense that this term to describe us would originate from this giant, sold-out tour of the States.\u201d<\/p>\n

David Ellefson: \u201cIt\u2019s kinda rumoured that [music journalist and longtime Hammer scribe] Malcolm Dome came up with the idea of the Big 4. I don\u2019t know if even he knows for sure, but it definitely started to be talked about after the Clash Of The Titans. It\u2019s
a pretty special thing that we started
it and lived to tell the tale.\u201d<\/p>\n

Originally published in Metal Hammer issue 349 (May 2021)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By the end of the 1980s, four bands had emerged as kings of the burgeoning thrash metal scene:…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":371865,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[93,61,60,278],"class_list":{"0":"post-371864","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-ie","10":"tag-ireland","11":"tag-music"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=371864"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371864\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/371865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=371864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=371864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=371864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}