Slayer Cover Artist Larry Carroll Dead At 65

Larry Carroll, the painter and graphic artist who designed Slayer's most infamous album covers, passed away yesterday morning. He was 65.

While Larry's work was featured in dozens of galleries and magazines, metal fans will know him for the four album covers he designed for thrash metal titans Slayer -- 1986's Reign In Blood, 1988's South Of Heaven, 1990's Seasons In The Abyss, and later, in a return to form, 2006's Christ Illusion. His style, featuring a mixture of psychological morbidity, war-born filth, and a Boschian sense of demonic overkill, helped define the band's aesthetic for their entire career.

Larry's passing was announced this morning by Karsten Greve, the Cologne gallery that has represented the artist since 1999. No cause of death has been revealed.

In a statement on his Facebook page, artist Jason Holley honored Carroll, saying, "Lawrence Carroll was a friend and mentor, and one of the most important illustrators of the 20th century. Its hard to imagine what my career would have been without his influence. If you only know his paintings and sculptures, please look up his commercial work where he helped re-define the boundaries of editorial illustration (in the Progressive and Ray Gun) or the album covers he produced for Slayer, which stand to this day as some of the best metal covers of all time. He was a giant, and I hate the idea of a world without him in it."

Our hearts go out to Larry's family, friends, fans, and loved ones during what we're sure is a difficult time.

Slayer are wrapping up the current leg of their U.S. tour this week, so if you'd like to see them live, you can do so at one of the following dates:

May 22 - Ottawa, Ontario @ Canadian Tire Centre
May 24 - Camden, N.J.@ BB&T Pavilion
May 25 - Mansfield, Mass. @ Xfinity Center

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