Kirk Hammet: Non-Musis Will Not Remember Cool Solo Guitar

Kirk Hammet (Instagram @kirkkhammet)

JAKARTA - In an interview with British Total Guitar magazine, Kirk Hammett of Metallica said that the only person who really cares about guitar solos is another guitarist.

For this reason, Hammet is more focused on the composition side of the song than highlighting its guitar playing in the interlude section or something like that.

"People won't remember cool guitar solos," Hammet started.

"I hate to say it to all your readers out there. They will remember a good melody. They will remember a good song. And I'm not talking about musicians. Yes, musicians will remember a great guitar solo, but a non-music, which is the majority of the audience's world, they won't remember guitar solos," he continued.

"Yes, they will remember a good melody and they will really remember a good song, especially a song that will take them to a different place from five minutes earlier."

Hammett continued by saying that his focus must always be on the song itself.

"I found out when I was 15 years old," he explained. John Marshall [former guitar technician and guitarist James Hetfield's replacement at one of Metallica's concerts] and I had been playing guitar for six months when I said to him, 'We have to start writing songs. Look at KISS, they wrote all their own songs... and Aerosmith, Van Halen.' So John and I started writing music. And that's nonsense, but it's something."

Hammett added that his approach to Metallica's latest album, 72 Seasons, was to intentionally improvise 20 or 30 solos, give it all to drummer Lars Ulrich and producer Greg Fidelman, and tell them, "You guys, edit it."

"I want the solo to be a rock solo in the 70s, or in short, Angus Young [AC / DC]," said Kirk.

"Because I love Angus's flow, and over the past few years I have found a bigger appreciation for his game because Angus has always played for the song."

"Some of his solos are crazy and weird and amazing but always, always so in the context of the song, and it looks like Angus never managed to do anything. It sounds like he went straight in there and did it, and that's what I did."

"I have to do it this way because that's how I feel inside. I want spontaneity. I don't want a perfect solo image because some of my favorite solo players are a bit campy and I like it."