Loudwire recently caught up with Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett to talk about the band’s now classic debut album, ‘Kill ‘Em All,’ which was released thirty years ago today, on July 25, 1983. A couple of excerpts from the interview can be found below.
Hammett, who replaced original Metallica guitarist Dave Mustaine shortly before the band began recording ‘Kill ‘Em All,’ recalled the recording process of the album as being intense: “The way we did it was just like, we go in there, do it, knock it out, next. Go in there, do it, knock it out, next. Go in there, do it, knock it out, next. There wasn’t a lot of time to second guess anything. It was all just about going for it.”
However, he explained that had it not been for the band’s unrelenting approach, the album would not have sounded the same: “…I think that was probably a savior for us…When I think of ‘Kill ‘Em All,’ I think of it being very visceral. We weren’t second guessing ourselves because we didn’t have time to do that. It was just something that we went for.”
He added that at the same time as recording ‘Kill ‘Em All,’ Metallica was well and truly living up to their ‘AlcoholicA’ nickname: “The whole recording process is kind of foggy because we were drinking so much vodka and just about any other alcoholic beverage we could get our hands on back then.”
Metallica celebrated the 30th anniversary of the release of ‘Kill ‘Em All’ with a surprise performance of the entire album at their Orion Music + More festival in June.
A classic performance of ‘Seek & Destroy’ featuring the ‘Kill ‘Em All’ Metallica lineup of Hammett, James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich and the late Cliff Burton can be viewed below.
Kirk Hammett Recalls Recording Metallica’s ‘Kill ‘Em All’
