Kirk Hammett

Musician

1962-11-18

Kirk Hammett is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist of the heavy metal band Metallica. He joined Metallica in 1983 and has performed on the band's major studio releases since then.

Quotes by Kirk Hammett

On 'Metallica,' I recorded six or seven different guitar solos for almost every song, took the best aspects of each solo, mapped out a master solo and made a composite. Then I learned how to play the composite solo, tightened it up and replayed it for the final version.
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It really shocked me just to hear of the fans' response to 'St. Anger' not having guitar solos.
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I would have to say I'm bored with the standard rock, guitar solos, but I've done it for five albums now, and this time I wanted to go in a completely different direction. I wasn't interested in showing off any more.
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It's definitely true that Stevie Ray Vaughan is one of my all-time favorite guitarists.
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If I had unlimited funds, wall space and storage, I would collect a lot more things, like 'Planet of the Apes,' 'Star Wars,' science fiction stuff, autographs, and prop guns and weapons. I have to draw the line somewhere.
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I've learned that there's a signature Metallica sound, and if we stray too far from that, our fans get impatient, or they just don't understand, or they miss the point. And I'm not saying that's a good thing or a bad thing; it's just something we have to contend with.
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Because of things like iTunes and streaming and social networking, it's destroyed music. It's destroyed the motivation to go out there and really make the best record possible. It's a shame.
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For a while I was collecting Satan and devil stuff - you know, anything that had to do with old Beelzebub or Lucifer. But I had to put the brakes on it, because there's a lot of stuff out there, and the collection was just growing too quickly.
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I'm death obsessed. You know, I have death all over my house. I have a stuffed two headed sheep!
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We wanted to offer something new to our audience. I hate it when bands stop taking chances.
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When you're first starting out, there's always the temptation to hide behind distortion because it lets you get away with murder. But, when it comes to rhythm work, you've gotta back off that gain control a bit, especially if you're playing with another guitarist.
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I love 'True Blood.' I love 'The Walking Dead.' Those are fantastic series.
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I was really, really wild in my early twenties and a bit self-destructive.
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Everyone has a side to them that's kind of unexplained and feels misunderstood.
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A good horror movie should have peaks and valleys, a good horror movie should move you emotionally; a good horror movie should be exciting to watch and energizing in a weird kind of way.
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My guitars are my umbilical cord. They're directly wired into my head.
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After months of playing air guitar to 'Free Bird', what really got me into guitar was watching a documentary about Jimi Hendrix and picking up the Woodstock soundtrack. Listening to his version of 'Star Spangled Banner' and 'Purple Haze.' My brother played acoustic guitar and, idolising him, I thought, 'I'm going to get a guitar.'
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A life lived unexplored is a life not worth living.
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One thing I've noticed over the years is that young players - I mean 10- and 12-year-olds - really like my guitar style. There's something in my guitar style that they totally can latch onto and learn quickly, and then go from there to your Yngwie Malmsteens or your Steve Vais or whatever.
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