Metallica to Start Work on New Album, Says Kirk Hammett

Story by Anne Erickson
Guitarist Kirk Hammett has 400 song ideas for Metallica’s upcoming album
Metallica are finally ready to start work on their follow-up to 2008’s “Death Magnetic.” It’s something fans have been asking about for quite some time, and now, guitarist Kirk Hammett has confirmed that the band will start recording their upcoming album in the coming weeks.
“We’re pretty excited about it because we’ve been saying we need to start working on this album, but we’ve been procrastinating greatly with it,” Hammett told Billboard. “We’ve pretty much come up with every sort of excuse we can not to start work on the album, but we’ve run out of excuses, so we pretty much have to start work on it now.”
Hammett says he has already has a crop of ideas for the new album– hundreds, in fact. “We’re a band that never has a shortage of ideas,” he said. “[Frontman] James [Hetfield] has, like, 800 ideas. I have 400. Those numbers alone are just crazy. That’s formidable.”
Metallica are also slated to perform at the upcoming Grammy Awards alongside the Grammy Cultural Ambassador to China, pianist Lang Lang. Hammett says to expect a performance of Metallica’s 1988 track, “One,” at the show. The ceremony will air on Jan. 26 on CBS.
- 3 Underrated Foo Fighters Songs That Should Have Been Hits - June 23, 2025
- The Most Iconic U2 Album of All Time - June 18, 2025
- 3 Underrated Iron Maiden Songs - June 15, 2025
Related Posts
- Metallica Bass Player Reveals Surprising Second Career Choice
- Metallica Make Big Announcement—And They’re ‘As Surprised As Anyone’
- Metallica Turns Heads With Big Announcement
- Metallica Makes Exciting Announcement Before Tour
- 5 Greatest Metallica Guitar Solos