LATEST NEWS

History
Current members
• James Hetfield - rhythm guitar, lead vocals (1981-present)
• Kirk Hammett - lead & rhythm guitars, backing vocals (1983-present)
• Robert Trujillo - bass, backing vocals (2003-present)
• Lars Ulrich - Drums (1981-present)
Former members
• Jason Newsted - bass, backing vocals (1986-2001)
• Cliff Burton - bass, backing vocals (1982-1986) [deceased]
• Dave Mustaine - lead & rhythm guitars, backing vocals (1981-1983)
• Ron McGovney - bass (1982)


Recent events, ninth studio album
On February 16, 2006, Metallica announced on their official website that after their 15+ year relationship, longtime producer Bob Rock was stepping down and would not be producing Metallica's next studio album. Rock had produced every Metallica album since 1991. Metallica is currently working on a studio album with producer Rick Rubin who has produced albums for other prominent rock and metal bands such as Slayer, System of a Down, Slipknot, Beastie Boys, Audioslave, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rage Against the Machine and Linkin Park.
Metallica debuted an untitled song nicknamed "The New Song" in Berlin, Germany on June 6, 2006 on the European leg of the Escape from the Studio '06 mini tour. On August 12, 2006, Metallica debuted another song in Tokyo, Japan on the Asian leg of the tour, nicknamed "The Other New Song". They have also supported the Summer Sonic tour in Tokyo and Osaka, along with Linkin Park.
The band has previously unveiled new songs prior to their release: Four songs from Ride the Lightning ("Fight Fire with Fire", "Ride the Lightning", "Creeping Death", and "The Call of Ktulu") were performed before the release of the album; Master of Puppets' "Disposable Heroes" was debuted on September 14 of 1985; not to mention "Sanitarium" performed at Roskilde 1985; ...And Justice for All's "Harvester of Sorrow" received its live debut in 1987, Load's "2x4" and Reload's "Devil's Dance" were played during the Escape from the Studio '95 mini-tour; and "Fuel" were played at various points during the Load tour 1996-97. ("The Memory Remains" and "Bad Seed" were teased numerous times at shows throughout 1996 and 1997).
It was during this time on tour that the band finally bowed to fan pressure and decided to make each of their albums available from the Tunes Store - though strictly in the U.S. and Canada until issues with their European label are resolved - allowing individual tracks to be legally downloaded for the first time. Exclusive tracks from the Seattle '89 shows were added to the band's first four albums.
On October 13, 2006 Metallica announced that they would release a DVD containing all their videos from 1989 to 2004. The DVD, The Videos 1989-2004, was released on December 4, 2006 worldwide and on December 5 in North America. The Videos 1989-2004 eventually became available on the iTunes Store.
Metallica also released a cover of "The Ecstasy of Gold", a song by Ennio Morricone in an album entitled We All Love Ennio Morricone released on February 20, 2007, in which other artists honor the composer. The Ecstasy of Gold has been the opener of Metallica live shows for over 20 years - but it has always been the original instrumentation and arrangement, played from a recording. This new version features the band itself performing it, giving a new guitar-based interpretation to the song.
On February 9, 2007 Metallica confirmed that pre-production on the new studio album had been completed, and recording of the new album would begin on March 12, 2007. The band also announced that a summer tour, later named "Sick of the Studio '07", was in the early planning stages.Eleven dates of this tour have been announced so far.
On Saturday, May 25th, 2007, Lars was a guest on The Opie and Anthony radio show and stated that they will play 3-4 new songs on this tour and the backing track of the new album had been finished the week before.
On June 15, 2007 Metallica returned to HQ after a short break to begin rehearsing for their "Sick Of The Studio" Tour. The winners from the METALLICA: THE VIDEOS 1989-2004 DVD radio and online contests were treated to the HQ VIP treatment with a BBQ, a few autographs, and an intimate performance from the band in the jam room.
Metallica's 2007 tour began in Lisbon, Portugal at the 13th edition of mega-rock festival Super Bock Super Rock in which they played "... And Justice for All" for the first time in 18 years. Metallica played to a crowd of more than 40,000 fans. The tour will run through July 2007. On July 7, 2007, Metallica performed at Wembley Stadium as part of Live Earth. At Live Earth Metallica played the songs 'Sad But True', 'Nothing Else Matters and 'Enter Sandman'. The BBC, who were broadcasting the event from the UK were flooded with complaints after they missed the beginning of 'Sad But True' and then cut off before 'Enter Sandman' during the set, to a pre-recorded Crowded House performance from the Sydney show. They peformed at Wembley Stadium the following day, as part of their tour; Sick of the studio 07'.

AWARDS

History
Awards and recognition
Metallica has won seven Grammy Awards:
• 1990: Best Metal Performance - "One"
• 1991: Best Metal Performance - "Stone Cold Crazy"
• 1992: Best Metal Performance With Vocal - Metallica
• 1999: Best Metal Performance - "Better Than You"
• 2000: Best Hard Rock Performance - "Whiskey in the Jar"
• 2001: Best Rock Instrumental Performance - "The Call of Ktulu" with Michael Kamen and the San Francisco Symphony
• 2004: Best Metal Performance - "St. Anger"
MTV Video Music Awards:
• 1992: Best Metal Video - "Enter Sandman"
• 1996: Best Metal Video - "Until it Sleeps"
American Music Awards:
• 1996: Favorite Artist: Heavy Metal/Hard Rock: Metallica - Load
• 1996: Favorite Metal/Hard Rock Song - "Until it Sleeps"
Bammies:
• 1996: Outstanding Drummer: Lars Ulrich
• 1997: Outstanding Hard Rock Album: ReLoad
Billboard Music Awards:
• 1997: Billboard Rock and Roll Artist of the Year: Metallica (RIAA Diamond Award)
• 1999: Catalog Artist of the Year: Metallica
• 1999: Catalog Album of the Year: Metallica (The Black Album)
Kerrang! awards:
• 2003: Hall of Fame
Governor's Award:
• 2004: Governor's Award - Metallica
Metallica were ranked by MTV the 3rd "Greatest Heavy Metal Band in History", and is listed at #5 on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock". The band was ranked at #1 on VH1's "20 Greatest Metal Bands," in 2006, in Kerrang! magazine, Metallica achieved the place of the third most important band in the past twenty-five years, also in Kerrang! during 2006 three of Metallica's albums appeared in the "100 Greatest Rock Albums Ever" the albums were Ride the Lightning (#80), Metallica (album) (#15) and Master of Puppets (#2) they will be eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008.

ALBUMS

History

Kill 'Em All
In late spring 1983, the band travelled to Rochester, New York to record their first album,"Metal Up Your Ass." However, due to conflict with the record label regarding the title, the album was later renamed Kill 'Em All. The album was not an initial financial success, but it earned them a growing fanbase in the underground metal scene. Despite the animosity, Dave Mustaine, still has co-writing credits for "Jump in the Fire" (with different lyrics from earlier demos), "Phantom Lord", "Metal Militia" and "The Four Horsemen" (originally titled "The Mechanix", or alternately "Mechanics", and listed as such on early demo tapes, with the earlier demo version having entirely different lyrics. The 1989 re-release included fan favorites "Am I Evil?", from Diamond Head, and "Blitzkrieg" from the band Blitzkrieg, which were later included in their Garage album.

Ride the Lightning
A year later, Metallica released Ride the Lightning. The album's inclusion of a slower, more introspective song, "Fade to Black", set Metallica apart from other thrash bands. Despite some claims of selling out, classic fans note this album has many worthy numbers. In addition to the title track and "Fade to Black", it boasts "For Whom the Bell Tolls", "Creeping Death", and the 9-minute instrumental "The Call of Ktulu." Dave Mustaine still has credits recognized for "Ride the Lightning" and "The Call of Ktulu".

Master of Puppets
When Ride the Lightning caught the attention of major labels, Metallica signed with Elektra Records. Their first release with Elektra was 1986's Master of Puppets, which would serve as their breakthrough album. Despite the fact that no singles were released from the album, the band received minor airplay from album tracks "Master of Puppets" and "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)". Fans looking for an alternative to glam metal bands of the day relished in furious songs such as "Battery" and "Damage, Inc.". The band gained even more exposure when they were asked to open for Ozzy Osbourne, and Master of Puppets climbed to number 29 on the Billboard Top Album Charts. Some critics consider the album to be the "greatest heavy metal albums of all time".




...And Justice for All
...And Justice for All, the first studio album since Burton's death, was released in 1988. The album was a massive commercial success, reaching number 6 on The Billboard 200, their first album to reach the top 10.
On the album very little of Newsted's bass is audible. According to Newsted and the other band members, this is a result of the internal hazing and bullying toward Newsted for being the newest member and replacement for Cliff Burton. Ulrich has also stated his opinion that the lack of perceived bass resulted from Newsted exclusively mirroring Hetfield's rhythm tracks.
Although the song-writing was praised, the production of this album was heavily criticized as Lars Ulrich's drums clicked more than thudded and the guitars had a thin sound. The Damaged Justice tour followed to promote the new album. Fans again appreciated fast and furious tunes, as well as lengthy songs, such as on "...And Justice for All" (9:45) and "To Live Is to Die" (9:48). In fact, all the songs are over 5 minutes, with 7 of 9 songs over 6 minutes long.
Despite criticism, in 1989, Metallica received its first Grammy nomination for the album. The nomination was for the newly created Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrument categories. However, the award was given to Jethro Tull for the album Crest of a Knave. The result generated much controversy, as Metallica was widely expected to take home the award and was standing off-stage waiting to receive it after performing the song "One" for the telecast. Jethro Tull (who was considered by most to not even be a Hard Rock/Metal group) had not even bothered to attend the ceremony, assuming that their chance of winning would be a long-shot. Lars Ulrich even referred to the snub in accepting a Grammy for "Enter Sandman" three years later, stating, "We gotta thank Jethro Tull for not putting out an album this year".
Following Metallica's release of ...And Justice for All, they embraced the mainstream music world with their debut music video for the song "One". The band performed the song in an abandoned warehouse, and was then extensively "remixed" with footage of the film version of Johnny Got His Gun. Rather than organize an ongoing licensing deal, Metallica simply bought the rights to the film outright. This is why the film has not had a subsequent DVD pressing. The end result featured a coherent but shortened "mini-movie" version of "Johnny Got His Gun" with an intricate level of synchronization between the song and the film's dialogue, creating a singular narrative between the two.

Metallica (The Black Album)
In 1991, Metallica released their self-titled album, Metallica (popularly known as The Black Album by fans), which included such songs as "Nothing Else Matters", "Sad But True," "The Unforgiven," "Holier Than Thou," and "Wherever I May Roam." The record was co-produced with Bob Rock, whose resume included work with hard rock acts The Cult, Bon Jovi and Mötley Crüe. The album featured a black cover that had a very pale image of a snake in one of the corners, with the band's name in the opposite corner. The album art evoked humorous comparisons to fictional band Spinal Tap who in the spoof rockumentary This is Spinal Tap put out an album with an all black cover.
The majority of the making of the Metallica album and the following tour was documented in A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica. The recording sessions were a long and arduous process, lasting over a year due to infighting among the band's members and endless arguments with Rock about the album's direction, scope, and sound. The cost of recording the album was over $1 million (as stated on Behind the Music: Metallica). However, despite the battle to finish the album, it quickly became the band's most successful release, charting at number one on the Billboard charts.
The album's first single was "Enter Sandman", which showed off the new album's slowed-down style of music compared to Metallica's previous work. The Black Album is currently tied for the 26th spot of highest selling album of all time in America.
Due to the album's new style of sound, more charges of selling out would be aimed at Metallica throughout the 1990s, to which the band often joked that they did indeed sell out - each and every date of the tour . In 1992 during a hugely financially successful co-headlining GNR-Metallica Stadium Tour with Guns N' Roses, Hetfield suffered severe second and third degree burns to his left arm due to pyrotechnics during the opening of "Fade to Black", leaving him unable to play guitar for a portion of the tour. Former Metallica roadie and Metal Church guitarist John Marshall filled in for the rest of the tour on guitar while Hetfield continued to sing.


Load, ReLoad, Garage Inc., S&M
After almost three years of touring to support The Black Album, including a headlining performance at Woodstock 1994, Metallica went straight back into the studio to write and record their sixth studio album Load. They took a break in the summer of 1995 and played 3 outdoor shows which included Metallica organizing and headlining Donington Park UK supported by Slayer, Skid Row, Slash's Snakepit, Therapy? and Corrosion of Conformity. The Short Tour was entitled 'Escape from The studio Tour 1995'. On December 13 of that year, they recorded their rehearsal for Lemmy's 50th birthday party; four Motörhead covers which was entitled "Motörhead–ache" when it was released as part of the Hero of the Day singles collection. The band spent around a year writing and recording new songs, resulting in 1996's Load. During early production, Load was intended to be a double album. Ultimately, it was decided that it would be best to release half of the songs first, continue to work on the remaining songs, and release them the following year. This resulted in the follow up album, ReLoad.
By 1996, with the release of Load, all band members had cut their hair (although Hammett eventually grew it back), which was ridiculed by fans, including band friends Alice in Chains, whose edition of MTV's Unplugged featured, on Mike Inez's bass, the words "friends don't let friends get Friends haircuts"
These albums represented a significant musical change for Metallica. The band's breakneck metal tempos and layered guitar compositions had largely been replaced by bluesy guitar tones and slide guitar. Several songs include the use of new instruments including the use of the hurdy-gurdy and violin in "Low Man's Lyric". The changes on Load and ReLoad had been anticipated by earlier experiments (especially on The Black Album).
Sales of these albums were lower than sales of the previous three albums. Hetfield noted later in the documentary film Some Kind of Monster that the songs on these two albums were initially thought by the band to be of only average quality, and polished and reworked repeatedly until judged to be releasable. Hetfield also felt, however, that Metallica's changed image worked to the songs detriment, saying that " 'Bleeding Me', is, I think, some of my better lyrics of all time, and what are people talking about? Lars' fuzzy jacket."
In 1998, Metallica compiled a double CD called Garage Inc.. The first CD contained newly recorded covers ranging from Killing Joke, The Misfits, Thin Lizzy, Mercyful Fate, and Black Sabbath to more unexpected choices like Nick Cave and Bob Seger (the band's cover of Seger's "Turn the Page" garnered extensive radio airplay). The second CD gathered together previously released covers, including the original The $5.98 E.P.: Garage Days Re-Revisited, which had become a scarce collector's item. The CD also included B-side covers going as far back as 1984. Their cover of Queen's Stone Cold Crazy had won a Grammy for Best Heavy Metal Performance.
On March 7, 1999, Metallica was inducted into the San Francisco Walk of Fame. The mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown, proclaimed the day "Official Metallica Day" in San Francisco. A month later, on April 21-22, 1999, Metallica recorded two performances with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, then conducted by Michael Kamen. Kamen, who had previously worked with Bob Rock on "Nothing Else Matters", had approached the band eight years prior, just after The Black Album was released with the idea of pairing Metallica's music with a symphony orchestra. Kamen and his staff composed additional orchestral material for a number of Metallica songs and the concerts featured broad selection of songs dating as far back as Ride the Lightning. Metallica also wrote two brand new Kamen-scored songs for the event, "No Leaf Clover" and "−Human". The audio recording and concert footage were released later that year as the album/concert film S&M, in November 1999, on CD, VHS, VCD, and DVD.



St. Anger
In July, 2001, Hetfield entered rehab due to "alcoholism and other addictions". For nearly a year, Metallica ceased to function in any meaningful way. Ulrich and Hammett, for the first time, seriously considered the possibility that Metallica might be finished. Hetfield eventually returned to the band following his rehab hiatus and was required to work only four hours a day and spend the rest of his time with his family. Metallica continued slowly as a three-piece throughout the writing and recording of their next album. Longtime producer Bob Rock handled bass duties for the sessions. The making of the album was documented for the movie, "Some Kind of Monster". The film also exposed to fans that Metallica had sought the guidance of a therapist, Phil Towle, to deal with a vast amount of the band's inner turmoil.
Following the album's recording, Metallica held auditions for Newsted's permanent replacement in early 2003. Robert Trujillo formerly of Suicidal Tendencies, and Ozzy Osbourne's band, was chosen as the new bassist. Robert's resume also included Infectious Grooves as well as a stint with Black Label Society on their Boozed, Broozed, and Broken-Boned DVD. As Metallica moved on, Jason Newsted also found a new musical home joining Canadian thrash metal legends Voivod in 2002. In an interesting turn of events, Jason also became Robert's replacement in Ozzy's band during the 2003 Ozzfest tour (which included Voivod as part of the touring bill).
In June 2003, Metallica's eighth full-length recording, St. Anger, debuted at number one on the album charts. Being an intentionally raw and unpolished album, harsh criticism from fans followed. The record's under-produced sound, Hetfield's "flexible" sense of pitch, Ulrich's steely sounding snare, and the absence of any guitar solos received particular criticism. Despite this, the album won the best metal performance at the 2004 Grammys.
The song "St. Anger" was used as the official theme song for WWE's SummerSlam 2003.
Having toured extensively for two years in support of St. Anger on the Summer Sanitarium Tour 2003 in festivals featuring Mudvayne, Deftones, Linkin Park, and Limp Bizkit and then the lengthy Madly in Anger with the World tour with Godsmack (in which nearly every performance was professionally recorded and sold on livemetallica.com) Metallica took a break from performing and spent most of 2005 with friends and family; however for two historic shows on November 13, 2005 and November 15, 2005, the band opened for the Rolling Stones at AT&T park in San Francisco.

BIOGRAPHY

History
James Hetfield
Born: August 3, 1963
From: Los Angeles
Personal: Married, 3 Children
Instrument: Vocals, Guitar
Vitals: Blue eyes, blonde hair, 6'1"/1.85 meters tall
When it comes to defining Metallica, most people use James Hetfield as their guide. Why? When he threw his back out on the Summer Sanitarium 2000 tour, James ploughed his way through three weeks of intense physical therapy in four days, according to his physical therapist. And when the going got really tough, and James needed help in 2001, he sought it out, took it on and came back stronger than ever. It is precisely this sort of fierce, unbending dedication, devotion and spirit which has made James such an inspirational focal point through the years for millions of fans.

Ironically, the voice of Metallica (indeed, a defining voice of his rock'n'roll generation) very nearly wasn't a voice at all, simply because in the early days, James Hetfield didn't fancy being a lead vocalist. Metallica tried a few different vocal/guitar configurations. Some of the options considered included adding another
guitar player, having then-lead guitar player Dave Mustaine play the sole guitar and asking John Bush from Armored Saint to sing for the band. Of course common sense prevailed, James decided to fight harder to establish himself as a frontman and the results are, ahem, history.

To trace the roots of Hetfield's unflinching dedication and determination, you have to go back to a childhood that was often tough but laid a foundation, which underscores James today. Born to a truck driver and light opera singer on August 3rd, 1963, in Los Angeles, his family's Christian Science religious beliefs played a large part in the young Hetfield's life, and subsequently form a central point for many of Metallica's lyrics. He was 9 years old when he first took piano lessons before taking on brother David's drums and finally picking up a guitar in his pre-teens.

With the likes of Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Thin Lizzy providing inspiration, James quickly set about the task of becoming a rock star in his first band, Obsession. Made up of the
Veloz brothers on bass and drums, with Jim Arnold on guitar, plenty of time was spent in the Veloz's garage jamming with Ron McGoveny and Dave Marrs acting as roadies. McGovney subsequently stepped in alongside Marrs and Hetfield when the Veloz brothers incarnation ended.

After moving to Brea, California, James attended Brea Olinda High School and met up with drummer Jim Mulligan. The two jammed at lunch time scaring fellow guitarists with their loud and heavy sounds before a guy called Hugh Tanner was seen carrying around part of a flying V guitar at school. Phantom Lord was born with Hugh on guitar, Mulligan on drums and James singing plus playing guitar. The group went through a few bass players until graduation when James moved back to Downey.

Back in Downey, James moved into a house owned by Ron McGovney's parents that was slated for demolition due to an expressway expansion. It was the perfect place for James and Ron to crash, rehearse and jam. James talked Ron into taking up bass, Phantom Lord was no more and the third band under Hetfield's leadership.

Leather Charm, was born. The only difference between Charm and Lord, was James singing without guitar and Ron playing bass guitar, Hugh Tanner and Jim Mulligan retaining their former 'Lord positions. Leather Charm was a largely hard rock combo, playing some originals and covers such as Iron Maiden's 'Remember Tomorrow' amongst others. The band managed to perform at a few parties and recorded a demo, but then began to fall apart.

First Tanner left the band (replaced by Troy James), then Mulligan left for a more progressive, Rush-like band. And with no drummer, the band was forced to call it quits. Although it was Mulligan's departure that led to James searching for a new drummer, we can safely say that Hugh Tanner was responsible for the catalytic moment which would change the course of
James Hetfield's life and out him on the path to achieving his childhood ambition. How? Simple...Tanner introduced James to Lars Ulrich. The rest, as you'll read elsewhere, is a long, illustrious (occasionally curious) and still-evolving history...

James is the main songwriter in Metallica, co-creating the framework and structure for most Metallimaterial. When he's not writing, singing or playing, James enjoys a variety of outdoor activities including hunting, snowboarding, water and jet-skiing, sketching, annoying neighbors with guns and loud pipes on his chopper "The Saga", watching his favorite Oakland Raiders and going to hot-rod shows. He also collects older guitars (particularly those from 1963) and enjoys working on old cars. Amongst his favorites are a '55 Chevy BelAir (which he helped built and restore himself), and 'The Beast', a fearsome all-terrain 4-wheel drive Blazer that is designed to survive everything from earthquakes to nuclear holocausts. Aside from these pursuits, James is often happiest spending time with his wife Francesca and three children, Cali, Castor, and Marcella.




Lars Ulrich
Born: December 26, 1963
From: Gentofte, Denmark
Personal: 3 Children
Instrument: Drums
Vitals: Green eyes, blonde/brown hair, 5'7"/1.7 meters tall
The oft-seen and heard dynamo of Metallica, when it comes to arranging all matters from songs to business, Lars is always at the epicenter. Indeed, constant activity has been a hallmark of Ulrich's life. As a child he saw his father Torben run a small jazz club in Copenhagen (sax player Dexter Gordon is Lars' Godfather) before following the family on the professional tennis circuit where Torben became an established figure.

Lars was nearly 10 when the sounds of Richie Blackmore and Deep Purple blew his little socks off at one of the first gigs he ever attended. It began a theme which has been recurrent in his life -obsession with a band- and having bought the 'Fireball' album, he began a Deep Purple love affair which continues to this day. At 13 his grandmother bought him his first drum kit, yet percussion vyed with tennis for priority. When the family moved to Newport Beach, CA in the late '70's, the seeds of priority scattered themselves in his field: girls, rock'n'roll and the occasional funny cigarette were all keys in turning Lars from the wooden raquet to full metal racket. He got so excited about metal music that he jammed a bit with a young lad called James Hetfield before taking a teenage trip to England during June of 1981 to see his newly beloved Diamond Head. He thus managed to finagle living with them for a while before returning to So Cal and the tape-trading he enjoyed with the likes of Metal Blade Records Brian Slagel.

Slagel was looking for bands to record cuts for an album he would release on the label (their first release). Lars got a slot but had no band. Remembering the less-than-awesome yet energetic jams with young Hetfield, Lars called him up and told him about the album. James listened. And thus was Metallica conceived.

These days, some 80-odd million albums worldwide later, Metallica might have undergone enormous collective and individual changes, but the essence of Ulrich remains. He is at once a loyal, attentive and determined person, one who locks in for the long-haul and one who's skin can achieve great thickness. He's also, in recent years, become even more comfortable saying exactly what he believes in regardless of the consequences (as evidenced by his willingness to be the band spokesperson on the Napster issue).

Music now shares the front seat with Lars' three sons Myles, Layne, and Bryce as well as his thriving interests in art and film. Busy? Of course. But would Lars have it any other way? The proof is there for all to see...







Kirk Hammett
Born: November 18, 1962
From: San Francisco
Personal: Married, 1 child
Instrument: Guitar, background vocals
Vitals: Brown eyes, brown hair, 5'8"/1.75 meters tall
Kirk Hammett, never without a grin or a curious thought, is the true Bay Area band-member. Born in San Francisco, and raised in the East Bay town of El Sobrante, he gained an interest in music from his brother Rick's extensive record collection, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and UFO. It all led to him properly picking up the guitar when he was 15, his first being a wholly unglamorous Montgomery Ward catalog special accompanied by a shoe box with 4 inch speaker for an amp.

After picking up a 1978 Fender Stratocaster, Kirk experimented by mixing and matching guitar parts to find his perfect sound before falling for a 1974 Gibson Flying V. In a determined (and successful) effort to upgrade his equipment, Kirk even took a shift at Burger King to get the cash together for his first Marshall amp. Around that time, Kirk also co-founded Exodus with Paul Baloff, and the East Bay thrashers crossed paths with Metallica twice, in late '82 and early '83, as a support act.

In April 1983, Kirk received a phone call from Metallica in New York. They were in the process of firing guitarist Dave Mustaine and wanted Kirk to fly out and audition. Kirk got the money together for the flight, left California for the first time and arrived in the late afternoon to find three guys who were still waking up. Immediately he, and they, knew the fit was right despite the fact nobody ever formally invited him to join.

A keen student of his instrument even today, Hammett followed his first 'Kill 'Em All' tour by taking lessons from Joe Satriani, and embarked upon a passage of guitar self-education that took in jazz, blues and classical styles. Indeed, education has always been Kirk's answer to potential burnout. After the marathon 'Black' album tour ended in 1993, he immediately went to the City College of San Francisco where he took classes, something he credits as the reason behind his reinvention as a guitarist on the 'Load' and 'Re-load' albums.

Kirk continues to bring not only a dazzling array of lead guitar parts to Metallica's music but also some savage rifferey, having started sharing 6-string duties with James during the 'Load' era. He is happily married to Lani, and lives in San Francisco along with a large collection of old Hollywood movie memorabilia, his two dogs Darla and Hoku, plus cats.......Oh, and for the record, Kirk plays his guitar at least 361 days a year.
Robert Trujillo
Born: October 23, 1964
From: Santa Monica, California
Personal: Married, 2 Children
Instrument: Bass, Background Vocals
Vitals: Brown eyes, dark hair, 5'9"/1.75 meters tall
He's got rhythm, and he's most certainly got music. Now Robert Trujillo's also got the job of being Metallica's new bassist and family member...one that will doubtless fit this most righteous and cheerful of Southern Californians like a glove.

Although he sometimes does use a pick, Trujillo is best known as a baaaad motherplucker, a finger-playin' bass monster who's dexterity, tones and attitude have seen him grace the bass of Suicidal Tendencies, Infectious Grooves and Ozzy Osbourne's band since his first professional work with Suicidal in 1989. It all stems back to a childhood filled with variety and spice.

Growing up in Venice Beach "Dog Town", Trujillo heard everything, from Led Zeppelin to Motown with a chunk of funk in between. Joined with a young love of surfing, Trujillo developed a rhythm and a vibe that saw him play with a variety of local bands through his early 20s until he met Mike Muir of Suicidal Tendencies via his High School buddy, Suicidal guitarist Rocky George. the two got on infamously well, and thus began a rich and fruitful relationship which saw Rob establish himself as one of the most exciting bass talents in the rock world.

In the early '90s, he and Muir formed the experimental funk-rockers Infectious Grooves, and then in the mid-'90s Trujillo joined up with Ozzy Osbourne. Together with drummer Mike Bordin, Trujillo formed one of rock music's most soild and reliable rhythm units.

Rob's name first floated by the Metallicamp during Suicidal's supporting role on the Summer Shed tour of '94, when all the band noted his enthusiastic style and performances. Thus when it was time to consider who could step up and take the bass full-time in Metallica, Rob's name was an obvious choice.

By all accounts, Trujillo's audition dared the band NOT to give him the job, and even producer Bob Rock was heard saying how complete and unequivocally whole the band sounded with Rob playing.

And so it was that on Thursday, February 24th 2003, Robert Trujillo walked in to the HQ and saw Ulrich, Hammett and Hetfield immediately start applauding him. Again, Rob is the perfect fit, a calm, even-keeled man with experience and full bass props...and genuinely one of the nicest guys around. It all adds up to the 4th member, an equal part of the Metallica family and an exciting new stage in Metallihistory.

HISTORY

History
Biography
Albums
Awards
Latest News


Part 1
It's the sort of story that scriptwriters would get laughed out of conference rooms for entering. The sort of story that illustrates perfect synchronicity between hunger, passion and time. The sort of story that only happens every 30-odd years. And the sort of story that would approximately 500 pages to do it true justice.

Metallica. A household name. The 7th biggest selling act in American history.

Who'd have thought it when, on October 28th, 1981, drummer Lars Ulrich made guitar player/singer James Hetfield an offer he couldn't refuse: "I’ve got a track saved for my band on Brian Slagel's new Metal Blade label."

The truth is, Lars didn't have a band at that time, but he did that day when James joined him. The two recorded their first track on a cheap recorder with James performing singing duties, rhythm guitar duties and bass guitar duties. Lars dutifully pounded the drums, helped with musical arrangements and acted as manager. Hetfield's friend and housemate Ron McGovney was eventually talked into taking up bass and Dave Mustaine took lead guitar duties.

The band adopted the moniker Metallica after a suggestion from Bay Area friend Ron Quintana, and they quickly began gigging in the Los Angeles area opening for bands like Saxon. Eventually recording a fully-fledged demo called No Life Til Leather, Metallica quickly saw the tape whistle around the metal tape-trading underground and become a hot commodity, with San Francisco and New York particularly receptive.

Metallica performed 2 shows in San Francisco and found the crowds friendlier and more honest than LA's "there to be seen" mob. They also caught up-and-coming band Trauma, and most importantly their bass player, Cliff Burton. Cliff refused to move to Southern California: it was enough to convince Metallica to relocate to the Bay Area, and Cliff subsequently joined Metallica.

In New York, a copy of No Life Til Leather made its way to Jon Zazula's record shop, the aptly named Metal Heaven. Zazula quickly recruited Metallica to come out east to play some shows and record an album. The band made it to New York in a stolen U-Haul. Dave Mustaine, at that point the band's guitarist, was proving to be more problematic than even these loose young chaps could handle. Thus a few weeks after arrival, Mustaine was sent packing, roadie Mark Whitakker suggesting Kirk Hammett from Bay Area thrashers Exodus. Two phone calls and one flight later, on April 1, 1983 Kirk Hammett joined Metallica.

Metallica's first album, Kill 'Em All, was released in late 1983 and some ferocious touring which saw the band's reputation soar both in the US and Europe. In 1984 they went to work with producer Flemming Rassmussen in Copenhagen at Sweet Silence Studios on their second album. 'Ride The Lightning' proved that Metallica were not some thrash-in-the-pan one trick pony, the writing and sound illustrating a growth, maturity and intensity which saw them immediately targeted by major management in QPrime, and a major label in Elektra. Both deals were done by the fall of '84 and their reputation continued to grow worldwide.

Returning to the same studios in 1985, the group recorded 'Master Of Puppets', mixing in LA with Michael Wagner and releasing in early 1986. They quickly secured a tour with Ozzy Osbourne, and that stint (plus a top 30 album chart position) saw their fan base and name take a quantum leap. What had seemed so unlikely was nearer than ever to coming true; world domination.

Part 2
On September 27th, 1986, that dream was given the most shattering of blows. Somewhere in Sweden on an overnight drive, the bands' tour bus skidded out of control and flipped, killing Cliff Burton. His influence on the musical growth of the band was enormous. Burton combined the DIY philosophies of jamming and experimenting with an acute knowledge of musical theory, and Hetfield in particular found a lot in his playing and personality. It was impossible to imagine Metallica without him. Yet Cliff would equally not have cared for people throwing in the towel because he wasn't around. And so it was that after a brief yet intense mourning period, Lars, James and Kirk decided to fight on. Jason Newsted was chosen from over 40 auditions to be the new bassist, the Michigan-born four-stringer leaving Arizona based Flotsam & Jetsam to take on the chance of a lifetime. The quartet immediately jumped into a tour, and then quickly recorded an EP of cover tunes titled Garage Days Re-Revisited (the band literally did the dirty work in Lars' garage!).

With Jason fully established, the band went back to record their fourth full-length album, ...And Justice For All, released in August 1988. The explosion that had been threatening for sometime finally happened. It reached #6 on the US charts, received a Grammy nomination for Best Metal/Hard Rock album, the band blew headliners Van Halen off-stage during the Monsters Of Rock tour and subsequently embarked upon an enormous worldwide tour. It was even the moment they finally delved into video territory, although the footage for 'One' was most certainly the most 'anti' video video of it's era.

The band took the show back out on the road and toured extensively to all parts of the world. ...And Justice For All produced two US singles and the band's very first venture into music video for the song One.

In 1991 Metallica released the self-titled 'Black' album, and saw their popularity soar to stratospheric heights. With new producer Bob Rock, this album was a subtle departure from the previous album with shorter songs, a fuller sound and simpler arrangements. It went straight to number one all over the world, stayed there for several weeks and ended up selling in excess of 15 million copies worldwide, spawned several legitimate singles as well as earning a Grammy and MTV/ American Music Awards. The band toured for close to three years, playing a solo arena tour in 'An Evening With Metallica', with Guns N' Roses on the duos' joint-headline stadium tour, and as headliner at many festivals. It meant that by the time the fall of 1993 rolled around, the four members were shattered both physically and mentally. Save for some Summer Shed action, there was little major activity as the band allowed their real lives to catch up with their rock lives.

Nearly four years would pass before the next Metallica album saw the light. Called Load, and recorded at The Plant in Sausalito California, it was the longest Metallica album to date with 14 songs, and signaled some significant changes for the band. Produced by Bob Rock, the material was loose, powerful and eclectic, the sound thick and punchy and the image one which screamed out change and freedom from enslavement to the Black album era. So many songs came from the sessions, that a second album titled ReLoad, followed in 1997. The Load tour was spectacular, encompassing cutting-edge technology, stuntmen, two-stages and an epic two-plus hours of performance. What ever doubts people might have had were swiftly blown away, and whilst Load could never match the heights of the Black album sales wise, it became a phenomenally successful album in it's own right.

In 1998, they re-packaged all the old B-sides, covers and the two previous Garage Days sessions and ran into The Plant to slam down 11 new covers. Electric, exciting and raw, the double-disc Garage Inc. was great reminder that for all the success, Metallica's heart still lay in the music. This point was further proven in 1999, when with conductor/composer Michael Kamen, Metallica embarked upon collaboration with the San Francisco Symphony to bring new dimension to classic material. Any potential skepticism of the project was blown away by two nights in April at the Berkeley Community Theater which proved to be epic milestones in the group's history. Far from their material being compromised, the arrangements of songs such as 'Master Of Puppets' gave symphonic instruments the chance to explode into the spaces and fill them with greater, heavier power than ever before. Having recorded and filmed the shows on the off-chance it might turn out alright on the night, Metallica released the S&M double-disc and DVD in late '99, marking yet another significant chapter in a Hall Of Fame - like history.

Part 3
In the summer of 2000, Metallica took yet fresher steps towards establishing freedom from convention, proving that it was possible to assemble, and headline, your own stadium tour without promoting a record. Summer Sanitarium, Hetfield's back not withstanding, was a huge success, and anticipation grew as to when the band would hit the studio again.

The anticipation was replaced by fear at the turn of 2001 when, after several rumors, Jason Newsted departed the band. No one reason can be fairly the cause, more several long-standing issues that silently grew beyond their initial molehills. Of course many assumed that this would precipitate the break-up of the band, when of course it merely provided a conduit to newer levels of creativity and understanding.

The band realized there was much work to be done on both their personal and creative relationships, and spent the first part of 2001 investigating spontaneous avenues of discovery both in and out of the studio. They set up shop at an old ex-Army barracks called The Presidio, jammed together at length and made a decision not to rush the process of finding a new band member, opting instead to have producer Bob Rock do all bass parts.

In the middle of 2001, James Hetfield reached a place in his life where he felt rehabilitation, rest and re-focus were necessary for him to not only continue but also flourish. It meant that for many months, the members of Metallica embarked upon various levels of deeper discovery about themselves, the band and their lives both as a band and human beings. The results were to manifest themselves two-fold: when they came together again in the Spring of 2002 there was a deeper respect and appreciation for each other than ever before. And they were finally ready to make a new album, free of outside expectations, free of inner expectations and independent of anyone.

Settling into their new HQ, the band set about making 'St Anger' with Bob Rock. Those early Presidio sessions had certainly helped shape the freeform thinking and expression that was to come, but no-one, least of all the guys themselves, could've known just how fierce, raw and passionate the 'St Anger' material would turn out to be. With Rock always offering prompt and support, lyrics were written by everyone, writing was shared and performance was off the cuff, spontaneous and a 180 degree turn from the months of cut-and-paste which had become a part of the Metallirecording process in the past.

This Metallica was proud, confident, appreciative, humble, hungry, edgy, angry and also happy. Nervous? Sure, a little bit, but that too was good, yet another driver to new places and creative achievements that Metallica were enjoying.

It was in the Fall of 2002 that the band decided it was time to search for a new bassist, and after some closed auditions with personal invitees over a few months, ex-Suicidal Tendencies/Ozzy Osbourne bass player Robert Trujillo was chosen to be the new member of Metallica. Note, member. Not bassist or hired gun or replacement. But a band member. His whole demeanor, happy, relaxed, warm, enthusiastic blended with over 15 years of experience and a ferocious finger-picking style made Robert the only natural choice.

And so it is that as you read this, 'St Anger' has been completed, expectations are reaching heights that even the band cannot believe and there is the excitement of the first proper tour since Summer Sanitarium 2000. Looking at them, listening to them and seeing them, Lars, Kirk, Robert and James look like excited, eager children, men who cannot wait to be let out of then house to go and wreak aural havoc. Why? Because they can't! Metallica are about to hit a whole new level...and this is a story that will most DEFINITELY be continued...

Part 4
…the “St.Anger” era kicked off on April 30th/May 1st with the small matter of a video shoot at San Quentin prison for the same-titled track, and continued in earnest with an MTV Icons tribute show a week later, where peers such as Korn and Limp Bizkit lined up to pay tribute to the chaps. The guys also performed live, marking the first ‘official’ live appearance of Robert Trujillo (and the last in which he wore long trousers!) as well as James Hetfield’s first public performance since his stint in rehab.

Then came the small matter of rehearsals…which Metallica chose to do in front of their loyal fan club members over 4 nights at the historic Fillmore Theatre in San Francisco…and then it was off to Europe in June for the start of what would end up being 19 months of touring, with the festival circuit taking the early brunt, Metallica successfully playing to multiple 60,000-plus crowds. “St.Anger” saw it’s release on June 5th, a raw, feral, unrestrained slab of molten Metallica stuffed with abrasion, aggression and the overspill of four years excitement, anger, frustration and ultimate fruition. For those who thought it would signal a radio-hohned band, “St.Anger” was a big, fat slap in the face. Indeed, it was actually too heavy for some! Oh, and as if to prove that this ‘new’ Metallica were not a bunch of ginger-snap panty-waists, the boys played three shows in three different Parisian clubs in one day during mid-June, each venue harboring a temperature of not less than 100 degrees.

In the US, Summer Sanitarium followed, with Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit amongst the support acts on another series of stadium sell-outs. In the meanwhile, the fervor was slowly building for ‘Some Kind Of Monster’, the documentary film by Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky about the world of Metallica between 2001 and 2003. Ostensibly slated to be about the making of an album, the filmmakers found a whole new project developing when James went into rehab, and thus having been projected as a marketing tool, the end product ended up being an incredibly revealing 2 hour 20 minute documentary.

As the Mighty Metallica continued ploughing on through the world (going back to Europe, Japan and then onto Australia in January), SKOM was debuted to enormous critical acclaim at the 2004 Sundance Independent Film Festival in Utah during January.

And the year continued in the way that you’d imagine a Metalli-year does, deciding to play (seemingly) every single town capable of hosting a major arena gig in North America (some 80-plus dates) with Godsmack in support. Result? Oh well, the usual sell-outs you’d expect for this ‘in-the-round’ two hour thirty minute set which saw no song off limits and many a fan favorite raised from retirement for a gleeful airing. (p.s….there was another Grammy in February for Best Metal Performance – ‘St.Anger’).

July saw the theatrical debut of ‘Some Kind Of Monster’ which opened to enormous critical acclaim and went on to hold it’s own in North American theaters for three months before going through Europe. And August also saw the release of the first official Metallica book, “So What! The Good, the Mad, and the Ugly”, an edited compilation of the band’s fan club magazine spanning 10 years from 1994 to 2004.

And still the ‘Madly In Anger With The World’ tour continued, selling out venues right through to it’s final date in San Jose, California on November 29, 2004…

A busy spell? By many’s standards most certainly.

By Metallica’s?

Business as usual.

They did publicly state that the majority of 2005 would be spent re-charging those creative and mental batteries, and true to their word it was a quiet year, except for two little hometown gigs with the Rolling Stones at SBC Park in November. We all knew an entire year would not pass without at least a sighting of the guys!

With batteries re-charged after the two shows with the Stones, the guys hit the studio in early 2006 to start writing a new album and were excited to announce that they would be working with a new producer, Rick Rubin. The spring and summer found them escaping from the studio once again with shows in South Africa (their first ever visit to the continent!), Europe, Japan and Korea. “The New Song” made its debut in Berlin, Germany on June 6 to give us all a little taste of things to come in 2007 with the remainder of the year scheduled for more writing and jamming.