Exodus

Exodus: JAM Magazine Speaks With Thrash Drummer Tom Hunting On Tour With Metal Heavy Weights Slayer

By Mike DiQuinzio

Exodus are one of the originators of the Bay Area thrash scene. Their debut album, Bonded by Blood, is a genre classic and although the band would be criminally eclipsed by the Big 4, they continue to release top-notch thrash metal to this day. Their newest CD, Blood In, Blood Out, is a career highlight and easily among their best. They are currently on tour with Slayer and I had the privilege of sitting down with drummer Tom Hunting before their set for an awesome lesson in violence.

Exodus is an American thrash metal band formed in 1980 in Richmond, California. Spanning a career of 34 years, Exodus has gone through numerous lineup changes, two extended hiatuses, and the deaths of two former band members. Their current lineup consists of vocalist Steve Souza, guitarists Gary Holt and Lee Altus, bassist Jack Gibson and drummer Tom Hunting. Hunting is one of the original members, and departed from Exodus twice, in 1989 and 2004, but rejoined in 2007. Holt joined the band shortly after its formation, and is the only member of Exodus to appear on all their releases.

Since its formation, Exodus has released ten studio albums, two live albums and two compilations. Along with Testament and Metallica, whose longtime lead guitarist Kirk Hammett was an original member of Exodus, they are often credited as pioneers of the Bay Area thrash metal scene, and have sold over 5 million albums worldwide as of 2013. Exodus had particular success in the mid-to-late 1980s with their first three studio albums―Bonded by Blood, Pleasures of the Flesh and Fabulous Disaster. The critical praise given to Fabulous Disaster garnered attention from major labels, including Capitol Records, with whom Exodus would eventually sign in 1989. Exodus released two more studio albums (Impact Is Imminent and Force of Habit) before disbanding in 1993. After a temporary reunion in 1997-1998, Exodus reformed once again in 2001, and since then, they have released five more studio albums, the most recent being 2014's Blood In, Blood Out.

Current Members
Tom Hunting
Gary Holt
Steve Souza
Jack Gibson
Lee Altus