Britain's Metal Hammer magazine (web site) recently conducted an exlusive interview with METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich about the progress of the recording sessions for the group's new album, among other topics. A few excerpts from the chat follow:
Metal Hammer: You've already recorded the drum, guitar and bass tracks for the new album, with the rest to be added some time in August.
Lars: "The backing tracks are done, yeah. But Rick [Rubin, producer] likes to keep things organic and work in a way that can be described as 'of the moment.' If we continue in August we should be done by October."
Metal Hammer: Rubin isn't known for being to giving with his time. What role has he played in the sessions?
Lars: "He's been there every single day so far. He's all about the big picture. He doesn't analyze things like drum tempos or tell James [Hetfield] to play something in F sharp. He's more about the feel: is everyone playing together? Rick's a vibe guy."
Metal Hammer: And is it okay for Rick to tell you something you've done sucks?
Lars: "Absolutely. And, believe me, he does. There's not a lot of gray with him. He really speaks his mind. Either something's great or something sucks."
Metal Hammer: How easy was it to can Bob Rock?
Lars: [Frowing]: "That's not a term I'd like to use. We'd been making records together for almost 20 years. That's as creative a relationship as you can come up with in music, film...just about anything. But it had got to a point where we would both finish each other's sentences. We needed to look somewhere else for our own sanity, survival and fulfillment."
Metal Hammer: How did you let him know that it was over?
Lars: "We talk on the phone a lot. That's the thing. I've said it many times: Bob has always been primarily a friend, and secondarily a producer. And that friendship hasn't suffered whatsoever."
Metal Hammer: In hiring Rubin, what were you hoping to achieve?
Lars: "To a certain extent, it was to do with wiping the slate clean when it came to the process of making records. I've known Rick for many years but we've never worked together. He brings a whole new energy and dynamic."
Metal Hammer: In keeping with the fact that you've been playing the title track of the "...And Justice for All" album again, Internet gossip suggests that some of these songs will be long ones.
Lars: "I wouldn't say that they're longer than the ones before. We've always written long songs. Most of the new ones clock between six and eight minutes. There's one that's five minutes. We're recording 14 and plan on finishing them all because we love them all. But only nine or ten will appear on the new record".
Metal Hammer: Kirk [Hammett] has said that although this is METALLICA's 11th studio album. It feels like the band's sixth. Does a part of you consider "St. Anger" was a mistake?
Lars: "Not at all. The mistake was the white leather jacket [worn in the drummer's infamous rock star phase, circa a stadiom tour with GUNS N' ROSES in 1992]. The Napster dispute wasn't a mistake, but it caught us off guard. The music has always been pure. It was the right thing to have done in 2003. That said, I listened to it a couple of months ago and it's a difficult record. I can hear that. But when I finished it, it made me do the same kind of backflips as all the other records."
Metal Hammer: You must've known that after the whole "Some Kind of Monster" thing, some people — including Kerry King [of SLAYER] who called you "fragile old men" — would never take the band seriously again.
Lars: "Oh listen, the reason we did that movie was to piss Kerry King off. Being the source of his amusement, that's great!"
Metal Hammer: As fascinating as it looked on screen, wouldn't it have been better to keep those things behind closed doors?
Lars: "There's certainly an argument for that. But right from day one, METALLICA has always been about the relationship with the fans. Unlike bands like LED ZEPPELIN who tried to keep things mystical, we've gone out of our way to be as accesible as possible. Our roots are alot more punk than that. 'Some Kind of Monster' was the logical conclusion of that mindset".
Metal Hammer: Then presumably you disagree with Kerry's ageist comments?
Lars: "Of course I do. If he hated 'Some Kind of Monster' that's the only stamp of approval that I need".
Metal Hammer: Nevertheless, "Some Kind of Monster" raised a lot of questions about your coheisiveness as a band. How are you all faring now?
Lars: "Of course, it asked some important questions. But you've got to remember that it was a moment in time from five years ago. Phil [Towle, therapist] is no longer around and we all get along. And mentioning Phil's name reminds me, he always used to tell us back then that the music we're making wouldn't shine through until the record after 'St. Anger'. I think he was right about that".
Metal Hammer: Not everyone approved of the new songs that you debuted earlier on the tour.
Lars: "Listen, what are we gonna do? Take a poll of the people that exit the venue? Stop playing them? I've just been on the METALLICA message board where a lot of moaning about all sorts of subjects goes on. But people are saying last night [Wembley stadium gig on July 8, 2007] was our best-ever appearance in the U.K."
Metal Hammer: Did the rumbling of fan discontent have anything to do with you dropping the new material out of the Wembley set?
Lars: "No, no...Not at all. We always try to play a different set every night. We played a new song in Donnington last year; we wanted to make the set as different as possible."
Metal Hammer: Do you consider this new album to be a thrash metal record?
Lars: "Oh [hang on] let me get my dictionary out...check my terminology."
Metal Hammer: Isn't that the record that the fans what you to make?
Lars: "I know that some of them do. But it's easier to tell you what it's not. It's not 'St. Anger' part two. This album has dynamics. It has slow bits; it has some very, very fast bits. It has melodic and very heavy bits. Rick is really focusing on James' vocals, but musically, it fucking rocks. So you might say that it falls into the category you just mentioned. But by the same token, anyone that follows this band will know, we always try to look forward and not back."
Metal Hammer: Does it feel like you owe anything to people who loved METALLICA in the early days but haven't liked too much of the band's music since the "Black Album?"
Lars: "Um, no. Not at all. I've a responsibility to my kids and to my lady to be a good partner. Also to myself, to create music that's honest, real and gets all three inches of my dick hard. Of course it's great to have as many people along for the ride as possibe. But when we put acoustic guitar into 'Fade To Black' 200 years ago, that's when the moaning started. We realized those people would always be around whatever we did. So, basically, we stopped trying to please them a long time ago."
Metal Hammer: When do you hope to release the album, and being touring properly?
Lars: "It'll be mixed by November and out in the new year. Maybe some time around February. In terms of playing live, we won't be quite as nutty as before. There won't be 39 dates in North Dakota. [laughs] I can't tell you that there will be an indoor arena tour in England. But things are going to be done in smaller increments. Instead of doing 14 arena gigs oveer 18 days, we'll do them in two legs of two weeks and then go home."
Metal Hammer: What you might call "doing less to do more?"
Lars: "Or taking longer to do the same. And that also applies to recording. People ask why it takes two years for METALLICA to make a record. We don't work 16-hour days in the studio for six days a week anymore. We work six-hour days in between dropping off our kids at school and picking them up again. The record still gets made, it just takes a bit longer."
To order a copy of the new issue of Metal Hammer containing the Lars Ulrich interview, visit www.metalhammer.co.uk.
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