One of life’s great mysteries occurs when people look better older. And when I saw Kirk Hammett at the winery some weeks back for the Pandemica filming, he continued to present that mystery in spades. Rude of health, positively radiant, and generally carrying an abundance of positive energy, Kirk Hammett was sparkling and ready for action. He had obviously gone through the same overall weirdness and emotions about COVID-19, as we all have. And being someone who reads a lot and keeps up with the news, he was aware of all the angles being projected with regards to where we are. Kirk, however, had seemingly made a commitment to himself to try to turn every moment since the last S&M2 show in September into a positive experience, seeking nourishment for soul and fretboard at every opportunity. Perhaps the biggest example of this was when he popped up at the London Palladium on February 25th to perform at Mick Fleetwood’s tribute to Peter Green, standing alongside giants such as David Gilmour, Pete Townshend, and Billy Gibbons. One thing Kirk can be is elusive, partially because he is always either busy surfing or busy playing, but I was finally able to grab him via phone back in Hawaii at the end of September.

Steffan Chirazi: Let’s talk about the Pandemica event first and foremost. Let me ask you just to go through the various feelings you had when it was brought to the table, how the experience was, and now in retrospect, how it felt.

Kirk Hammett: I thought it was a great idea, a brilliant idea, and it felt like it was in line with what I felt like we needed to do. You know, we needed to something. We just needed to do something, I don’t even know why it felt that way, it just felt that way. Maybe because I was bored, and if I was bored, there’s probably tons of other people out there who were just as bored as I was and needed something to relieve themselves of this boredom… a change of pace. So it made total sense to me in that regard. And just the fact that we had something planned and we were getting together; we hadn’t played for almost a year! I got super excited also because I just wanted to play with the other guys again. I play my guitar every day, still practice a ton, and I’m always trying to write music, always trying to improve my technique. So when it comes to situations like being able to play again with the band, I’m like yeah!! In my head I’m like, “Okay, I got this technique I want to try, maybe I’ll get inspired to write something really cool,” and I try to use it as a springboard for other things. So it was just a really great, amazing opportunity to come back together with the guys, play, and enjoy it. And I enjoyed literally every second of it. From getting together, talking about it, and rehearsals, to actually playing the show; I just enjoyed every fucking second of it. And you know, there was some talk about whether or not the band was in shape. Steffan… I knew that I was in shape. I’m always in shape! And so because of that, it wasn’t stressful for me whatsoever.

SC: That’s interesting because you’ve preempted my next question, which was whether there was any anxiety in coming back together for the event? Given the length of time since you had last physically been in the same creative space, let alone any space, and given the fact it was the first time you came together since James had been in rehab, given the fact there was COVID. I mean, all of it. Was there a little anxiety? 

KH: In terms of the whole health thing and COVID, yeah, it’s a lot of anxiety. How are we gonna do this in a safe fashion that protects the health of everyone involved? That was a major thing, and you know, fortunately we hooked up with a group of people, COVID-expert people, who were able to help us accomplish what we needed to do, which was be together as a band and be together with our crew in a way that made sense all the way around, health wise specifically.

SC: Yeah. And beyond that, let’s talk about the chemistry of the band coming together after a year. I’ll put you on the spot. You were never in doubt that the “click” was going to happen?

KH: I expect it. I expect that to happen. And I’d be hard pressed to show up and all of a sudden there was no “click.” The only reason, the only way that happens, is if we’re not playing together and we’re just talking instead of playing.

SC: Right. So again, in many ways Pandemica – as important as it was for everyone outside Metallica as a bit of a normalizer – was vital for you too? A reminder that life is gonna go on in some way. There’s a gig. There’ll be new stuff, and so on.

KH: It presented a path into the future through this weird situation that we all find ourselves in. It presented a path moving forward, and I think that was the most important thing. Because we were in a place of trepidation caused by all this, as everyone was, in terms of what’s the future gonna bring? How are we gonna do things in the future? I mean there is a real feeling of trepidation that everyone is experiencing right now.

SC: Interesting.

KH: And so being able to work through that and see a clear path moving forward, I think that was a huge, huge accomplishment and it was a huge relief. It was information that we needed to figure out for ourselves.

SC: It sounds to me like you’re effectively saying that Metallica’s best communication is always when they’re playing, which is how it should be for a band, come to think of it.

KH: Well, that’s what a band is! A band isn’t a band if we’re just getting together and fucking having coffee, talking around the table, you know? That is not what a band is. A band is putting our instruments together and making music. All four guys in one room playing, and it starts there. And it probably ends there too.

SC: Do you think, given the fact that you individually were probably playing the best you’ve played in 20 years in the last year of the WorldWired tour… have you personally found the pandemic to be immensely frustrating because you hit this fucking giant groove and then you just haven’t been able to get back out there?

KH: Well, I think my playing is improved, it’s continuing to improve over the last three years, it’s on an upward trajectory. Then, you know, when everything stopped, I didn’t let COVID stop me whatsoever. I kept on working every single fucking day. I wrote tons of music. That’s why I have so much fucking music, you know? It’s like a year ago when James said he had to get back to rehab, I just buckled down and I wrote so much fucking music. I got together with Rob Trujillo and wrote more music. And then I got together with Edwin Outwater, the conductor for S&M2, and I wrote two horror themed instrumentals that were supposed to be played with the Vancouver Symphony next month.

SC: Amazing.

KH: Yeah, and you know, I recorded those tracks with Edwin, a small chamber orchestra and some other musicians. So I have not really stopped. I’ve been working this whole time within the confines of how I can work, which is at home, doing a ton of recording and getting it all together.

SC: You played at the London Palladium with probably the finest collection of living rock guitarists that you could put together for the Peter Green Tribute show… I mean… Mick Fleetwood, Pete Townshend, David Gilmour… David. Gilmour. Talk about how that feels. Is it validation? Not that you need it, but these are legends.

KH: It’s validation from a bunch of musicians who were the first part of my inspiration. When I first started playing guitar, I listened to Jimi Hendrix, I listened to Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Joe Perry, Brad Whitford, Ritchie Blackmore, and so I was aware of the blues. And because I was aware of the blues, I was into B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Albert King, Freddie King. So in that first two or three years of my guitar playing, I was just totally into British blues based hard rock. And I learned how to play the blues; blues has always been a part of my technique. I played blues licks and heavy metal songs. The guitar solo on “Hardwired” is just the culmination of Robert Johnson licks played fast and with distortion. So I show up at this thing, Mick Fleetwood invited me, and Mick is just the sweetest man you can ever meet. I’m sitting there with people like Billy Gibbons and Dave Gilmour. Then all of a sudden John Mayall walks into the room. Bill Wyman is there, then Steven Tyler walks in. And you know, I’m sitting there thinking, “Okay, all these people are gonna watch me rehearse “The Green Manalishi” with the core band. You talk about pressure and feeling eyeballs on you? That was probably one of the most hair-raising experiences I ever had, but at the same time, incredibly inspiring as well. And on top of that, a real vindication. The funny thing is I was, like, “the heavy metal guy,” right? I show up and the guys who really didn’t know me were a little hesitant, and so you know what I started doing? I started playing a bunch of blues licks. I started playing Stevie Ray Vaughan stuff. I started playing a bunch of songs off the John Mayall’s Blues Breakers album, and two or three minutes after they see that I knew the blues, all of a sudden it was like I was a beautiful woman or something! They all came toward me, they started talking to me, asking me questions, and it was a totally unexpected icebreaker, bro. It was totally, totally unexpected, and all of a sudden, they warmed up to me in a fashion that I could not believe. And then I hear over the next couple days, “Oh, yeah, he’s a blues guy, he can play the blues, he knows what he’s doing.” It was amazing. I could not believe it.

Photo Credit: Ross Halfin

SC: It’s very cool because it dovetails perfectly off what you were just saying about how playing is the best communication. It sounds to me like if you’d sat down and started talking to these guys first and foremost, they wouldn’t really have got it nearly as quickly. It’s like you spoke with the guitar.

KH: Exactly.

SC: And Gilmour. I mean how is David Gilmour?

KH: He was a very gracious guy, a gentleman. I saw him the next day and he goes, “Hey, how you doing, Kirk?” And that in itself was like, “Alright, he actually acknowledged me two days in a row!”

SC: Yeah. I always imagine that if I met someone like David Gilmour, I’d end up saying something stupid like, “Wow, the spaces you leave in the songs and solos are really great.” You didn’t say anything awkward, did you?

KH: No. You know, my safe thing, my safe approach to exactly that, is I’ll start talking about equipment and gear.

SC: Good man.

KH: And so I started talking to him about his amp, you know? And what was amazing was that every time he played, it went from playing a Fleetwood Mac song to all of a sudden Pink Floyd. Holy shit! Pink Floyd is in the room. Every time he played that guitar man, it was as if we were in 1974 on the Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon tour. It was crazy. His guitar sound is so distinctive that everything it touches, you know, it’s reminiscent of Pink Floyd.

SC: That is great…

KH: One more other story, bro.

SC: Please.

KH: Okay, so about a year ago I got heavily into The Who. I’d never really been a fan, but something happened, and I became the biggest Who fan. Last year, I called up Rob [Trujillo] and I said, “Hey, I’m the biggest Who fan now!” He said, “That’s great because they’re playing this Friday at the Hollywood Bowl.” I was here in Hawaii and I was like, “Okay, I’m there.” The next day I got on a plane, flew to LA, hooked up with Rex King [former Metallica tour manager] because he’s their tour manager now, and went to go see The Who. It was at the Hollywood Bowl and it was with an orchestra, so I was just fucking so thrilled, and I got to meet Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey for the very first time. And you know, I was just shocked at how friendly they were. I’m always shocked at how friendly anyone is. So that was great. But then, fast forward four or five months to February 2020, we’re in rehearsal for the show, then Pete Townshend walks in; I forgot that he was a late addition to the whole event. And he walked right up to me and goes, “Good to see you again.” I said “Likewise.” And he said, “I didn’t expect to see you so soon.” I said, “Likewise.” Then he played the song that he was gonna play, a song called “Station Man,” and seriously, he positioned himself about five or six feet in front of me and played the whole song in front of me. And I was so blown away, bro. I got the complete Pete Townshend in that five minutes. By the end of the song, he even did a couple windmills, and I thought, “He’s not doing that windmill thing for show. That’s actually a part of his technique,” you know?

SC: That’s very cool.

KH: I was blown away in a very quiet fashion. And then came the show, where I was super nervous and played “The Green Manalishi.” I thought I played okay. Literally right afterwards, I felt someone grab my shoulder, I turned around and it was Pete! And Pete said, “Man, that was really great, that sounded really, really great!” And I said “Thanks, Pete!”

SC: Fucking hell!

KH: Yeah, exactly, that’s what I thought, fucking hell!!! And it was amazing, because I always thought that he was a somewhat extroverted character, but you know, the entire time he was very, very quiet, and just kinda sat in the corner, and was actually much more introverted than I expected him to be. Which I was able to relate to because that’s how I am.

SC: But of course you did secretly go back to your hotel room later that night, look in the mirror, and just say, “YES! Pete Townshend is my bro.” Right?

KH: Right!

SC: Tremendous. Okay, let’s finally take a look back at the S&M2 concerts, and that time period in general, from your perspective. How do you feel the shows went down? Were those performances as intense and as much of a fulcrum point of everything WorldWired had been for three years as they came across? By the time of those shows, WorldWired was such a huge, successful tour and things had definitely picked up pace.

KH: I have so much reverence for the shows that we did 21 years ago. I thought they were really great. They were real fun to do, and we got a really, really great album out of it with the orchestra. And so when it came around a second time I was ecstatic, because my attitude was “it’s gonna be so much better because we had set a precedent,” so it wasn’t like we were just stumbling in the dark. We had an experience to fall back on and were familiar with the general procedures, and so I was looking forward to it, you know? And I didn’t feel any stress personally. I just got ready for that show the same way I would get ready for anything that was particularly different or special. Two weeks out, I always look and say, “What can I do to prepare myself in the best possible way for this situation?” And then I do it. That’s what I did with this.

SC: What did you think that Edwin brought to the process?

KH: Edwin has great energy. He does everything with so much of that energy. Things need to be done, and he pulls it off. His level of musicianship, and I know because I’ve worked with him closely, is so great. You can suggest something to him, he knows exactly what you’re talking about, and then you suggest for example, “Let’s go from minor to diminished,” and he’s like, “Right, got it!” And the next thing you know, the movement will go from minor to diminished. It’s great also in that he started off as a rock musician. He didn’t start off as a classical musician, which is the case with a lot of these guys. So he has an inherent feel for this kinda stuff. He feels it the way it’s supposed to be felt, because he grew up in the rock world. So he is a great bridge, just as much as Michael Kamen was a great bridge between the band and then the orchestra. Another thing about Edwin is he’s able to call out something that is not working immediately. During some of the rehearsals with the orchestra, he’d stop everyone and go, “Okay. Everyone take out your pens and bar 62, that E flat note is supposed to be A flat, not E flat.” He’d even be able to pick out a bad note amongst thousands in real time. So his musicianship is great, and I aspire to have that kind of ability, you know? When I’m working with him, I feel totally confident in that whatever we need to do, we can do. We have the musical capability to do it, the musical knowledge, and the musical know-how, and I just love that. I love having the ability to steer things in certain ways by discussing it, and then pulling it off.

SC: Yeah. I mean that’s gotta be a massive part of it as well. Good, well, I mean it sounds like it’s a very positive thing. Finally, I don’t think it’s any great secret that we will probably hear some new Metallica music before COVID-19 is over. Would you say that’s a fair comment?

KH: Yeah, absolutely. Also, you know I’ve been doing this instrumental thing [Kirk has “scored” the last two It‘s Alive exhibits – ED], so I’ve done these two tracks with Edwin that I mentioned earlier, which feel like the best fucking things I’ve ever done. One of them is called “High Plains Drifter” and the other one’s called “The Incantation.” They’re not done yet, still in the rough mix stages, I mean I have to get the rough mixes, but I have four tracks now. And the four tracks are like four different movies, man. They’re not movie soundtracks, they’re like movies. They tell a story! So I’m very excited about all the creative things in my life right now, from playing [on my own] to Metallica to this stuff, and I’m just going to keep working every day.