Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett was recently interviewed by the Telegraph where he talked at length about his relationship with his bandmates. He talked about being the “peacekeeper” of the group, but admitted: “I have to say, I do have a temper. And I can butt heads with people. I butt heads with James and Lars occasionally,” he said.
When asked what they disagree on, Hammett said: “Oh, everything. It’s just part of being in a band and being with someone for 40-plus years. When I joined the band, I was right in there talking sh*t and doing crazy stuff, just as much as James and Lars and Cliff were. Sometimes prickly people turn on other people around them.”
Hammett also addressed the band’s attitude in their early days saying they were all “basket cases.” The guitarist said: “We were like a gang of youths and just looking for somewhere to belong. I came from a broken home, James came from a broken home, Lars came from a broken home. The most well-adjusted person was Cliff Burton. We were all basket cases. But we created this thing called Metallica that’s been our refuge. It’s been the one constant in our lives.”
“My dad was a full-blooded Irishman who liked to drink and liked to scrap,” he added. “He was always fighting people, even fighting his friends. He would get together with my uncles and it was just one big f*cking toxic soup of masculinity, and that’s what I came out of.”
Hammett then explained why he could never leave the band even if their internal relationships were more contentious. “Leaving Metallica is not an option,” he explained. “If I ever left Metallica, everyone in the world would remind me that I used to be in Metallica.”
