# Anyone else feel bad for Kirk Hammett? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 6, 2003, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074 "2003-06-06T13:45:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/1 "2003-06-06T13:45:54Z")
I’m sticking this in the Cafe, since it is music related. Perhaps this belong in the Pit. I dunno, that’s up to a Mod. So, I’ve heard the new Metallica song. Awful. Pitiful. Absolutely terrible with little to no redeeming qualities. YMMV, but I’m speaking from the perspective of someone who found the Black Album and worked my way back to _…And Justice for All_ and _Master of Puppets_. I even liked _Load_ and _Reload_. But this is just terrible. The drums are WAY too loud, the lyrics are trite, and there is **NO FRIGGING GUITAR SOLO**! That’s probably my biggest gripe. Kirk Hammett is probably my all time favorite guitar player. And the direction that Lars is taking the band (and you all know that this is Lars’ doing) is wasting his talent. I wish he would do a solo project, but I fear that his time may have passed. I wish he would dump the rest of the band and go do his own thing. I can guarantee that it will be 100 times more brilliant than this shell of a former metal/god band. If nothing else, I wish he were allowed to do a guitar solo. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/2 "2003-06-06T13:52:34Z")
Heck, I like Hetfield’s guitar playing as well…he didn’t get any pie, either! I hope they get the message if this thing tanks “Quit jacking around and play some …eeerrr, uhh, METAL!!!” ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/3 "2003-06-06T14:38:51Z")
Kinda hard for me to feel bad for Kirk Hammett, what with the millions and millions of dollars and all. If he wanted to leave, I imagine he would. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/4 "2003-06-06T17:12:18Z")
Kirk Hammett always struck me as someone off in his own world and not really aware or caring about what’s going on in the “real” world. That’s why he doesn’t do as many other interviews as the other two. As for solo projects, if he wanted to do one, Lars & James would forbid him to release it. (That’s why Jason left.) ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/5 "2003-06-06T17:16:53Z")
Damn, I wish we could edit posts. (Why was that disabled anyway?) I forgot to mention that I _really_ feel bad for Jason Newsted, who wasted 14 years of his life in Shittalica and never got a SINGLE song credit. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/6 "2003-06-06T17:35:13Z")
Kirk doesn’t really write, he pretty much just plays solos (James writes the riffs and plays all the rhythm tracks on the albums) so I don’t know how well he’d do on his own. What I’ve heard of the new Metallica is pretty disappointing. This is a band that’s probably run its course. They should all retire for ten or fifteen years and then return for a massive reunion tour. ---
**Author:** ![rmbnxs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b9e5f3/32.png) [@rmbnxs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rmbnxs)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/7 "2003-06-06T17:39:09Z")
I feel badly for Kirk Hammett because he is condemned to be a diminutive, slickly-dressed, and well-coifed girly-man in pointy shoes who has an unnatural fixation on wah-wah pedals and the minor pentatonic scale. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/8 "2003-06-06T18:01:43Z")
He could quit, or he could stand up to them. Telling Jason Newsted to fuck off is one thing, but Kirk Hammett is the only lead guitarist Metallica has ever had (well, not literally, but from the standpoint of who people know). And whatever he writes, he gets plenty of credits. > [@](#): > > I forgot to mention that I really feel bad for Jason Newsted, who wasted 14 years of his life in Shittalica and never got a SINGLE song credit. Actually, he did get ONE. _Where the Wild Things Are_, from ReLoad. Which just served to underscore his complaints. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![av8rmike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@av8rmike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/av8rmike)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/9 "2003-06-06T19:38:05Z")
I stopped feeling bad for Hammett when I saw him with earrings and painted nails. Girly man indeed. ---
**Author:** ![arachnidlove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@arachnidlove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/arachnidlove)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/10 "2003-06-06T21:54:53Z")
I read in a recent Newsweek issue that the band members of Metallica are not allowed to write songs on their own anymore. They all have to contribute together. No one goes off on their own and comes back with a song. ---
**Author:** ![quixotic78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3ab097/32.png) [@quixotic78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quixotic78)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/11 "2003-06-06T22:27:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lord Ashtar \* > \*\*So, I’ve heard the new Metallica song. Awful. Pitiful. Absolutely terrible with little to no redeeming qualities. \*\* The really sad thing is that it’s one of the better songs on the album. I listened to it yesterday, something I’ll probably never do again. ---
**Author:** ![widdershins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f0a364/32.png) [@widdershins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/widdershins)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2003, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/12 "2003-06-07T02:12:57Z")
Hammett’s been well paid for it over the years, but I feel sorry for anyone who has to associate Lars Ulrich on a regular basis. ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2003, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/13 "2003-06-07T03:47:04Z")
Lars is like…King Asshat, James is Assistant Asshat, and everyone else just puts in 8 and calls it a day. I lost respect for em when “Load” came out and Hetfield thought he was a crooner. ---
**Author:** ![mtdman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/65b543/32.png) [@mtdman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mtdman)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2003, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/14 "2003-06-07T06:31:56Z")
This cd sucked. I can understand why the single isn’t getting much airplay, and why they didn’t release much of it prior to the album release. It was so bad I laughed at many of the songs. If this is the best they can do with a clean and sober James, maybe he should go back to drinking. Ugh. BTW, this makes 3 outta the last 4 albums that have been crappy. ---
**Author:** ![Keith\_Berry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/22d042/32.png) [@Keith\_Berry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keith_Berry)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2003, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/15 "2003-06-07T07:36:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Marley23 \* > \*\*Actually, he did get ONE. _Where the Wild Things Are_, from ReLoad. Which just served to underscore his complaints. 😉 \*\* Wasn’t Newstead also co-credited for “Blackened” off of _And Justice For All_? He was on the vinyl version, at least. ---
**Author:** ![Keith\_Berry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/22d042/32.png) [@Keith\_Berry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keith_Berry)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2003, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/16 "2003-06-07T07:45:56Z")
By the way, the shitty thing about Metallica is that they had a very good run of producing solid ALBUMS that were great from A to B. “Master Of Puppets” is probably highest ranked on everyone’s list, but I always thought “And Justice For All” was a sonic masterpiece through-and-through. For most of the 90’s, it seemed, they put out a few classic songs along with a TON of crapola. “Load” in particular has 2 or 3 terrific songs sandwiched between a interminable amount of lame Grade-B songwriting. I didn’t bother purchasing “Re-load” and will probably skip “St. Anger” as well. They’re just filling in the blanks now, and that’s depressing, but no artist in any genre stays on top forever. They’ll be well noted in musical history for their past accomplishments, as well as being remembered as one of the best live bands ever. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_H](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a5b964/32.png) [@Bill\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_H)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2003, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/17 "2003-06-07T10:50:08Z")
I can’t imagine why some of you think Newstead should get credit if he didn’t write anything. You suppose just being in the band is good enough? Burton got plenty of credit. Mustaine got credit in his day. Hammett as well. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2003, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/18 "2003-06-07T17:12:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mtdman \* > \*\*BTW, this makes 3 outta the last 4 albums that have been crappy. \*\* Would I be correct in assuming that the only one of the last four that you didn’t think sucked was _Garage, Inc_? ---
**Author:** ![Journeyman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/779978/32.png) [@Journeyman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Journeyman)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2003, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/19 "2003-06-09T04:51:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by quixotic78 \* > \*\*The really sad thing is that it’s one of the better songs on the album. I listened to it yesterday, something I’ll probably never do again. \*\* My head is reeling from the implications of that sentence. Gah. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Ender\_Will](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Ender\_Will](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ender_Will)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2003, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074/20 "2003-06-09T05:22:02Z")
Damn rehab! Kills every band. Sometime after ReLoad, the lyrics fell completely to shit (which is not to say that ON ReLoad they were the greatest of all time). Think about it… -Human off S&M, No Leaf Clover from S&M, I Dissapear from M:I-2. They turned to repitition of one or two lines over and over and over again. As shitty as the songwriting is on St. Anger, they still go to 11, so they’ll rock ass in concert (2 months and a day! not that I’m counting). As for the original topic, no I don’t feel bad for Kirk. He’s in a band that has sold 80 million albums, been THE preeminent hard rock band for the better part of 2 decades. He’s built up a reputation as one of the greatest guitarists ever, and had a lot of fun in the meanwhile. If that isn’t reason enough to not feel bad for him, consider the lack of solos on St. Anger pennance for playing with his ass on the San Diego concert from Live Shit: Binge and Purge [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-feel-bad-for-kirk-hammett/180074.md?page=2)