Jason Newsted Weighs In on Metallica’s New Album and Robert Trujillo

2017-04-24

Story by Anne Erickson

Jason Newsted is a fan of the new Metallica album and says the band has ‘come back into stride’

Former Metallica bass player Jason Newsted is weighing in on the metal band’s new album and current bass player, Robert Trujillo. When asked about “Hardwired…to Self-Destruct,” Newsted is pretty positive about the new tunes.

“I feel they’ve kinda come back into stride and there’s something of substance here,” Newsted told Ultimate Guitar, also saying that the album “is a bit different than the other efforts that led up to it.”

When asked about Trujillo, Newsted said, “Robert’s a great bass player and he’s always been a great bass player. I’ve known him for 25 years at least. He’s always been good…That guy has always got my respect. He got in there and he can hang with those guys and make it sound like it does? Peace, peace, power to you.”

The one suggestion Newsted has for Trujillo is to try playing with a guitar pick once in a while. Playing without a pick does make Trujillo’s playing unique for a metal bassist, though.

“If you don’t play with a pick — this is where I’m gonna swing heavy, and I’ve always got crazy pushback because of not playing with my fingers as a bass player — look at the scoreboard…When it comes to playing with a pick and the aggression and tone that can come from the attack, you can’t get that with fingers,” Newsted said.

“There are a lot of places you can do with fingers that you can’t do with a pick as well and I appreciate that,” he added.

Newsted became Metallica’s third bass player in 1986. He exited the band in 2001 but was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the members of Metallica, including Trujillo, in 2009.

Anne Erickson
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