During a recent interview with St Vincent, Metallica lead guitarist Kirk Hammett has shared a little-known details about the songwriting process of Metallica.
He said that his songs and riffs were not used recent Metallica albums because of the ‘tone police’ of the band. As we all know, he’s aiming Lars Ulrich, who’s the leader and drummer of the band.
Here’s what Kirk said about his songwriting skills:
“It’s crazy – because I’m so curious about music in general. I can play a lot of different stuff. I’ll play some jazz, bossa nova, blues, gypsy jazz, fucking Eastern European ballads. I play all that stuff. But no one knows I can play this stuff. It’s so crazy.
He continued:
“I’m always trying to sneak in jazz voicings and chords, little techniques here and there in Metallica.”
Then, he mentioned about the ‘tone police’ which he’s always struggling with, and said:
“All the time. ‘That sounds too bluesy.’ And I’m, like, ‘Fucking hell, it’s just a slide. Alright, whatever, tone police.’ But you need tone police. Tone is super important.”
Click here for the source of the statement.
