Interview: James Hetfield from Metallica

Online Entertainment Editor MEGAN GIBB interviewed singer James Hetfield before their performance at the Big Day Out yesterday.

Heavy metal band Metallica are in NZ for the Big Day Out, seven months after releasing their 11th album 'St Anger'. They were last seen in New Zealand six years ago, and have endured tumultuous years since, losing a band member (bass player Jason Newsted) being on the verge of breaking up, singer James Hetfield's stint in alcohol rehab and gaining a new member (bass player Rob Trujillo).

You're touring with the Big Day Out, Metallica has played a few festivals over the years, what draws you to doing festivals rather than your own shows?

Well I think on this we're doing a little of both, some of the days off we're going and headlining, we're doing some stuff with The Datsuns, in Australia that is, but here, we've always heard about this [the Big Day Out] and we've never got to do it. For Metallica after 21 years to still find a first to do is really cool. Plus we get to be in the summertime again.

How does your set differ from your own shows to a festival like this?

Well, we don't get to play as long, like only two hours, instead of three or so (laughs).

That long?

No, we do play plenty long, for our old, head banging necks. Two hours is quite a long set for a festival like this, and when you look at the list, there's a lot of bands playing. We're shortening it up a little bit, it's a festival, people are there to usually enjoy the best songs you've got, so it's ahh... two songs is what we got... stretch em out really long. (laughs)

What are the oldest Metallica songs you still play? I know you play a couple off 'Kill 'em All', from the look of recent set lists.

Oh yeah. We're playing stuff from 'Kill 'em All' all the way up to 'St Anger', 'Seek and Destroy' is always a great one to play.

What are your favourite songs to play live? What gets the best response?

Well nowadays, the songs from 'St Anger' are going over really well, boy, stuff like 'For Whom The Bell Tolls', 'Nothing Else Matters' they really get the crowd moving, anything that the crowd can be a part of, sing along, like 'Master Of Puppets' well, I get a rest, vocally! (laughs)

St Anger going over well?

I definitely don't get a rest on any of those songs!!

So besides the press you're doing today, what's your regular pre-show ritual like, what are you going to be doing for the next couple of hours?

Well, when the interviews are done, we get a little food, we have a meet-and-greet with fan club members, and we also have some kinda schmoozy stuff with the record company, and guests of theirs, then you know, start getting our battle gear on.

Do you guys communicate much before the show?

Yeah, when we get the set list together usually we're talking about what things work, what doesn't work, you know, between songs, can we fill it in with this or?.., then we go into, we've got a 'tuning and attitude room', that is pretty much what it says, we tune up, we get geared up, we shake some rust off, get psyched up, say a little prayer... and kick ass!

What about winding down afterwards?

Well, re-hydrate, take a shower, try and stop sweating, just eat some food... I just usually like to chill out.

You don't go out?

Well it depends whats going on, if there's some kind of special event, here it's our only gig in NZ, so if there's something afterwards, I'd go by, say hi to a few people.

This week at the Sundance Film Festival a documentary on Metallica is playing - "Metallica: Some Kind of Monster" - Have you seen all of that?

I've seen the film, yeah.

Did you like how it turned out?

Yeah, I saw it once, and that was enough. (laughs).

It was filmed over the process of making St Anger, is that right?

Yeah, two years of struggle, pretty much, after Jason left, me going into rehab, and us not knowing if the band was gonna continue, it was pretty interesting that a film crew was there, starting it. It was just gonna be a 'making of' the record, it turned into something more.

You did something similar while making the Black album.

Yeah, but this is like, so much deeper. It gets into personal lives, arguments, fights.

That's my next question... Dave Mustaine (Singer of Megadeth and short-term member of Metallica in their early days) he's on there somewhere is he?

Yeah, he's in there.

Whats youre relationship with him now?

It's allright.

Do you keep in contact?

Well you know, we share struggles, trying to stay clear and present, we don't really communicate much, we're doing a lot of communicating within the four of us, in the band... I wasn't around when he (Mustaine) was there, I was doing my own soul searching.

Old thrash bands, Exodus, Nuclear Assault, Death Angel reforming, touring, what do you think about that?

Great.

Do you still follow them? I know Kirk (Hammett, Metallica guitarist) was in Exodus for while...

Kirk was in Exodus, and ahh, they've gone though some tough stuff too, their original singer died, and those other bands, they were all around when we were growing up, and starting.

And now theyre back playing again.

I means it's great, if they want to do it, why not ... I mean if it feels right, if it feels good, some bands have survived, and some bands needed to go away and then come back when metal got, kinda together again.

What was the last metal album you bought, actually paid for?

Metal... hmmm what do I consider metal... Mars Volta... that's not really metal, Queens of the Stone Age...

You mean you don't really follow the heavier bands?

You mean like death metal?

Well yeah, there's a broad range of bands doing things these days that get called metal, I mean the heavier stuff

Well like Hatebreed...

Hatebreed were down here last year, they were great...

Yeah, we tend to get those things for free, for some reason (laughs) so it's awesome!

Cool, I just wanted to get an idea of the things you were listening to.

Yeah we're getting some of that stuff, and it's cool to throw on and see what's going on out there, you know, you can really get wrapped up in you own stuff, for a while, I definitely don't listen to our stuff all the time! When you've just made an album and you're so intense on your stuff, you're not reaching out for other kinds of stuff. When you're making a record, you're not on your time off, resting your ears with Hatebreed you know! (laughs).

I know you've only recently released it, (the album) and it was a long time coming, but are there any plans for a follow up?

Well we've got a lot of songs that we didn't use on St Anger, maybe about 18 songs. They might see the light of day somewhere, we might kind of revamp some of them, but there's no lack of new stuff coming, everytime we go in the 'Tuning and Attitude' room, there's something new.

You're still writing.

Oh we can't not write, you can't just turn it off.

I know you've been nominated in the Grammys this year, does that mean anything to you?

Yeah, definitely. Especially being around 22 years, you know? Theres a little gap between the last one and now.

The last one was for the Black album?

Actually I think 'The Call of Ktulu' on S&M, but its really great to still be nominated.

You've got a good portion of this year filled with touring, what else does the future hold, for the next, maybe... year?

This year we'll be on the road quite a bit, though not as much as before, we'll be taking some nice breaks, to be able to be home with family, you know, we've got kids growing up, don't want to miss that, and then hopefully start recording after the beginning of next year.