SLAYER guitarist Gary Holt has been presented with a guitar painted in his own blood – and he’s planning to use it during the band’s upcoming tour.

He agreed to allow surrealist artist Vincent Castiglia to draw some of his blood after a SLAYER concert in New York last year. Castiglia used it to decorate a Gary Holt Signature ESP instrument, which he handed over to the axeman at the NAMM exhibition this week.

It’s the first time Castiglia has used blood on a guitar, although he’s well-known for using it on other materials. He says: “I pushed it as far as was physically possible in terms of detail – the subject matter, look and feel, and functionality of the piece are all in perfect line with my work.

“It's a functional piece of fine art that memorialises Gary’s life's work with his lifeblood. It was an honour to work so intimately with Gary and ESP on this project – which was literally bonded by blood.”

Holt says: “The blood guitar is painted with 18 vials of my own blood. To say I was stoked is an understatement! I’m looking forward to taking this one-of-a-kind piece of dark art out on tour in February.”

SLAYER’s US world tour leg in support of 11th album Repentless begins on February 19.