Kirk Hammett Says This Band is the ‘Architects’ of Metal

Kirk Hammett has long been open about his metal fandom, but his recent comments about who he considers the "architects" of metal might cause some debate.

These comments took place during a May book signing event in Germany. Hammett, Robert Trujillo and photographer Ross Halfin were on hand for the signing of Metallica: The Black Album in Black & White. The event featured Hammett Trujillo and Halfin going through various photos over the years and discussing them in front of the event's attendees.

One of the photos that was discussed was one that Hammett shared via Instagram from the Power Trip festival in October 2023. The photo is of Hammett and James Hetfield rocking out to Judas Priest's set in a section between the stage and the fan barricade. Hammett captioned the photo, "Paying tribute to the Metal Gods."

Hammett said of the photo at this book event, "Their music means so much to us, and the way Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing played the guitars -- I mean, they are architects of what we now know as heavy metal, to put it bluntly. And James and I, we love Preist."

Naturally, many might take issues with Hammett's phrasing and would contend that Black Sabbath are the architects of metal. However, let's not kid ourselves about Preist's importance to the genre.

Hammett also touched on how much fun Metallica had at Power Trip and said, "We don't really get a chance to see bands, a lot of times, when we're playing a huge festival or something, because we're always backstage doing press or getting ready for the show or rehearsing or whatever. So when we did Power Trip, we got there early — a few days early — just so that we could see all the other bands. And it was great — the anticipation of seeing (Iron) Maiden, Priest, AC/DC [and] Guns N' Roses, and actually seeing them. It was a wonderful time."

Metallica's M72 world tour continues on June 14 and 16 with shows in Copenhagen. A full list of remaining show dates are below.

6/14 & 6/16 – Copenhagen, DK – Parken Stadium
6/26 – Oslo, NO – Tons of Rock Ekebergsletta
6/29 – Clisson, FR – Hellfest Val De Moine
7/5 & 7/7 – Warsaw, PL – PGE Narodowy
7/12 & 7/14 – Madrid, ES – Estadio Civitas Metropolitano
8/2 & 8/4 – Foxborough, MA – Gillette Stadium
8/9 & 8/11 – Chicago, IL – Soldier Field
8/16 & 8/18 – Minneapolis, MN – US Bank Stadium
8/23 & 8/25 – Edmonton, AB – Commonwealth Stadium
8/30 & 9/1 – Seattle, WA – Lumen Field
9/20, 9/22, 9/27, 9/29 – 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."