Kirk Hammett on How ‘Toxic Masculinity’ Influenced Metallica

Metallica has been in the news all this week thanks to the release of their new single, "Lux Æterna," and the announcement of a new album and tour. Concurrently with these announcements, The New Yorker published an extensive feature piece on the band. In addition to covering the band's history, it also touched on the band's inner dynamics. As most fans know, oftentimes those dynamics weren't for the faint of heart.

Guitarist Kirk Hammett touched on this telling The New Yorker, "Toxic masculinity has fuelled this band. I’m still sitting around saying, ‘O.K., I’m gonna write a really, really tough, kick-ass riff.’ Just look at my rhetoric there: tough, kick-ass riff. It’s an aggression that everyone feels, but it was ratcheted up in us—this weird masculine macho bulls--- thing."

Hammett also noted of band relations years ago, "We would get drunk, and just start in. I remember once James [Hetfield] got up and pushed Lars [Ulrich], and Lars literally flew across the room. We would see each other and start wrestling. We could be in a room of twenty people and we’d fixate on each other. No one else mattered."

In other Metallica news: Two-day tickets for their 2023/2024 tour go on sale beginning tomorrow (December 2.) For each tour stop, Metallica will perform two shows over two nights. Each show will have a completely different setlist and opening acts.  Among the acts joining Metallica on the road are the reunited Pantera, Mammoth WVH, Five Finger Death Punch, Ice Nine Kills and Greta Van Fleet.

A complete list of North American tour dates is below, while full ticket and tour details can be found at Metallica.com/M72-info.

2023 NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES:
Aug 4 & 6 – East Rutherford, NJ – MetLife Stadium
Aug 11 & 13 – Montreal, QC – Stade Olympique
Aug 18 & 20 – Arlington, TX – AT&T Stadium
Aug 25 & 27 – Inglewood, CA – SoFi Stadium
Sept 1 & 3 – Glendale, AZ – State Farm Stadium
Nov 3 & 5 – St. Louis, MO – The Dome at America’s Center
Nov 10 & 12 – Detroit, MI – Ford Field

2024 NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES
Aug 2 & 4 – Foxborough, MA – Gillette Stadium
Aug 9 & 11 – Chicago, IL – Soldier Field
Aug 16 & 18 – Minneapolis, MN – US Bank Stadium
Aug 23 & 25 – Edmonton, AB – Commonwealth Stadium
Aug 30 & Sept 1 – Seattle, WA – Lumen Field
Sept 20, 22, 27, 29 – Mexico City, MX – Foro Sol

Show 1 support: Pantera & Mammoth WVH
Show 2 support: Five Finger Death Punch & Ice Nine Kills
Mexico City: Greta Van Fleet replaces Pantera on Show 1 of both weekends

Kirk Hammett celebrates his birthday on November 18. While his work in Metallica has been celebrated for years, there's another aspect of his playing that also should be recognized: His "Guitar Face."

You know, all of those weird facial expressions guitarists tend to make when they're performing and are just feeling it. Some examples of "guitar face" are rather strange, but Hammett's "guitar face" somehow is like an effortless cool.

Want proof? Here are just ten examples of Hammett's variations of "guitar face."