# Kirk Hammet with an Ibanez?



## asmegin_slayer (Nov 17, 2009)

Check out this video of Kirk Playing a ibanez around the beginning of the video... Never in my life would I see him play a ibanez!!! I can't I've never seen this before..


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## Esp Griffyn (Nov 17, 2009)

Aye, tis true! I do like his ESPs though, imagine how dominating Ibanez would have become if they had scored Hammet for their stable. As if their line up wasn't amazing enough! Not that Hammet is a patch on guys like Satch, Vai or Gilbert, but he is a big name.


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## sessionswan (Nov 17, 2009)

There was a picture of him in Guitar World a month or so ago playing a UV777BK which I thought was interesting - never knew Metallica had any songs played on a 7


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## Cheesebuiscut (Nov 17, 2009)

He used to drag it and slap it around the stage to try to show how *shitty* they are in comparison to his esp's.

Even though they were still in tune with minimal damage after all the abuse


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## Esp Griffyn (Nov 17, 2009)

Cheesebuiscut said:


> He used to drag it and slap it around the stage to try to show how *shitty* they are in comparison to his esp's.
> 
> Even though they were still in tune with minimal damage after all the abuse



Oh dear what a douche bag. Metalli-respect minus 10.


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## vampiregenocide (Nov 17, 2009)

sessionswan said:


> There was a picture of him in Guitar World a month or so ago playing a UV777BK which I thought was interesting - never knew Metallica had any songs played on a 7



Hetfield plays an ESP Horizon 7 in the Some Kind Of Monster DVD if I remember correctly.


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## JohnIce (Nov 17, 2009)

vampiregenocide said:


> Hetfield plays an ESP Horizon 7 in the Some Kind Of Monster DVD if I remember correctly.


 
I remember seeing that too. Never seen Kirk with one though.


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## 8Fingers (Nov 17, 2009)

Hammett......playing.......................................what?


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## Bleak (Nov 17, 2009)




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## Koshchei (Nov 17, 2009)

He can afford whatever he wants. It's just that he can't play any of them.


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## Randy (Nov 17, 2009)

sessionswan said:


> never knew Metallica had any songs played on a 7



I've heard people stay that St. Anger had some 7-string on it. But that's coming from someone who's never listened to it first hand, so who knows.


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## s_k_mullins (Nov 17, 2009)

Randy said:


> I've heard people stay that St. Anger had some 7-string on it. But that's coming from someone who's never listened to it first hand, so who knows.


 
It did have a little 7-string.. on the St.Anger DVD Hetfield records "Some Kind of Monster" with a 7-string LTD F-series. 
Also, he used two ESP 7's: a satin black horizon and a 7string version of the KH-2


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## sessionswan (Nov 17, 2009)

Randy said:


> I've heard people stay that St. Anger had some 7-string on it. But that's coming from someone who's never listened to it first hand, so who knows.



Likewise, I never heard it either (save for the title track...that was all I needed to hear), nor did I see Some Kind Of Monster. Either way, it's cool to see Kirk with a 7 string... or an EB for that matter.


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## drmosh (Nov 17, 2009)

Cheesebuiscut said:


> He used to drag it and slap it around the stage to try to show how *shitty* they are in comparison to his esp's.
> 
> Even though they were still in tune with minimal damage after all the abuse



where did you hear that? sounds like a stupid rumour to me


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## Mattayus (Nov 17, 2009)

Yeah if I'm not mistaken the song "Invisible Kid" is in Ab (G#) so they may have used it on that.

Btw, fucking loving that man-to-wolf inlay on Jame's EX there  Never seen that before!


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## Monk (Nov 17, 2009)

James used the Grynch for Invisible Kid. He used the 7-string on Some Kind of Monster with the low string tuned to C (the other six were in dropped-C).


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## Esp Griffyn (Nov 17, 2009)

Mattayus said:


> Yeah if I'm not mistaken the song "Invisible Kid" is in Ab (G#) so they may have used it on that.
> 
> Btw, fucking loving that man-to-wolf inlay on Jame's EX there  Never seen that before!



There are some quite good shots of it on "Of Wolf and Man" on the S&M dvd too


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## s_k_mullins (Nov 17, 2009)

Mattayus said:


> Yeah if I'm not mistaken the song "Invisible Kid" is in Ab (G#) so they may have used it on that.


 
On the DVD and one of the times I saw them live, Hetfield used his Grynch baritone on "Invisible Kid".. could have used a 7 in the recording tho.

These are a couple 7's that they used in the studio for St.Anger.
ESP Horizon on the left...









LTD H-307 on the left





KH-2 7-string (that reportedly belongs to Kirk)







Mattayus said:


> Btw, fucking loving that man-to-wolf inlay on Jame's EX there  Never seen that before!


 
That's one of my favorites also!


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## lobee (Nov 17, 2009)

drmosh said:


> where did you hear that? sounds like a stupid rumour to me


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## MikeH (Nov 17, 2009)

What a prick.


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## Cheesebuiscut (Nov 17, 2009)

lobee said:


>



Thanks!

I didn't hear it... I watched it.


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## cycloptopus (Nov 17, 2009)

lobee said:


>



I think Kirk plays better with his ass than he does with his fingers... just my


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## drmosh (Nov 17, 2009)

lobee said:


>





oh dear.. i take back my statement


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## jerry424 (Nov 17, 2009)

drmosh said:


> where did you hear that? sounds like a stupid rumour to me



On the "Live Shit" dvd, San Diego, he's playing and dragging around an Ibanez RG of some kind. I don't think it was to prove how "shitty" the are, though.


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## Cheesebuiscut (Nov 17, 2009)

cycloptopus said:


> I think Kirk plays better with his ass than he does with his fingers... just my






You know for all the bashing everyone does hes not a bad guitarist. hes no say... tosin abasi  but hes not bad at all.


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 17, 2009)

Sometimes it annoys me how many people worship Kirk Hammett... 

Then I realise I'm actually better than he is and every time he plays a solo he embarasses himself in front of thousands of people so I feel less bitter about it


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## asmegin_slayer (Nov 17, 2009)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Sometimes it annoys me how many people worship Kirk Hammett...
> 
> Then I realise I'm actually better than he is and every time he plays a solo he embarasses himself in front of thousands of people so I feel less bitter about it



damn bro... easy there lol


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 17, 2009)

asmegin_slayer said:


> damn bro... easy there lol



Nah being serious dude, most of the guitarists I know are better than Kirk and I bet there are a fair few guitarists on this board that smoke him.


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## asmegin_slayer (Nov 17, 2009)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Nah being serious dude, most of the guitarists I know are better than Kirk and I bet there are a fair few guitarists on this board that smoke him.



Totally agree, but the thing is this... Kirk "shitty" playing made a lot of memorable solo's that attracts peoples ears more then hearing a long 4-5 Yngwie/Via/Satriani solo's....


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## matty2fatty (Nov 17, 2009)

yeah, Metallica isn't famous because they're so technically proficient. They wrote catchy metal songs, which I would say is harder to do than play a million notes a second (I can't do either, so I'm just guessing), and its fair to say that this forum's existence/popularity is do in large part to metallica's (and as a result, metal's) success. 

I actually thought the ibanez sounded better, though...the ESP was shrill in comparison


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## JohnIce (Nov 17, 2009)

asmegin_slayer said:


> Totally agree, but the thing is this... Kirk "shitty" playing made a lot of memorable solo's that attracts peoples ears more then hearing a long 4-5 Yngwie/Via/Satriani solo's....


 
Not sure I agree... Metallica have memorable songs, yes, but solos? I'd say most of Kirk's solos are actually pretty hard to memorize/hum along to because they mostly consist of pentatonic wanking with a wah pedal, with occasional chromatics thrown in, sometimes unintentional.

Kirk is popular because his band is popular, I doubt he could have accomplished much as a solo artists or instrumentalist the way Yngwie, Satriani etc. actually have.


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## mattofvengeance (Nov 17, 2009)

JohnIce said:


> Not sure I agree... Metallica have memorable songs, yes, but solos? I'd say most of Kirk's solos are actually pretty hard to memorize/hum along to because they mostly consist of pentatonic wanking with a wah pedal, with occasional chromatics thrown in, sometimes unintentional.
> 
> Kirk is popular because his band is popular, I doubt he could have accomplished much as a solo artists or instrumentalist the way Yngwie, Satriani etc. actually have.



Exactly. From the early records, about the only memorable solos were just passages in between the wankery (Creeping Death in particular). He had a couple, like the intro to Fade to Black, parts of One, and maybe a couple others that are memorable, but the vast majority of his stuff, like John said, is pentatonic wanking with copious amounts of wah pedal. My favorite solo of his is the Unforgiven, which to me is by far his best written solo.


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## Randy (Nov 17, 2009)

TUNE YOUR G AND D STRINGS, ASSHOLE.


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## stuz719 (Nov 17, 2009)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Sometimes it annoys me how many people worship Kirk Hammett...
> 
> Then I realise I'm actually better than he is and every time he plays a solo he embarasses himself in front of thousands of people so I feel less bitter about it



I've said it once, I'll say it again.

Please, this sort of comparison is so specious - fact of the matter is that more people have heard of Kirk H, and heard him playing, than quite probably the whole membership of this forum, "better than he is" or not.

Lettuce isn't "better" than onion, it's just _different_, and good for different things.

Just think, without Kirk H in Metallica there would be no R.T.L, no M.O.P....

And yes I _know_ that he was also part of St. Anger and the rest of the mediocrity, but we all have fallow creative periods, don't we?

BTW I seem to recall Kirk H describing how he threw his '61 Strat around, pulled it by the lead etc. because it was an instrument to be played, not an idol to be worshipped. Although Rory Gallagher did it first, I think.


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## mattofvengeance (Nov 17, 2009)

I find it exceptionally hard to believe that without Kirk there wouldn't have been a Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets. Hetfield and Ulrich were the main writers, and Mustaine is an infinitely better player/writer than Hammet, so who is to say they wouldn't have still happened? Or who's to say it couldn't have been better?


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## stuz719 (Nov 17, 2009)

mattofvengeance said:


> I find it exceptionally hard to believe that without Kirk there wouldn't have been a Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets. Hetfield and Ulrich were the main writers, and Mustaine is an infinitely better player/writer than Hammet, so who is to say they wouldn't have still happened? Or who's to say it couldn't have been better?



John + George + Paul + Ringo = The Beatles

Lars + James + Kirk + Cliff = Metallica


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 17, 2009)

JohnIce said:


> Not sure I agree... Metallica have memorable songs, yes, but solos? I'd say most of Kirk's solos are actually pretty hard to memorize/hum along to because they mostly consist of pentatonic wanking with a wah pedal, with occasional chromatics thrown in, sometimes unintentional.
> 
> Kirk is popular because his band is popular, I doubt he could have accomplished much as a solo artists or instrumentalist the way Yngwie, Satriani etc. actually have.







stuz719 said:


> I've said it once, I'll say it again.
> 
> Please, this sort of comparison is so specious - fact of the matter is that more people have heard of Kirk H, and heard him playing, than quite probably the whole membership of this forum, "better than he is" or not.
> 
> ...



Popular =/= praiseworthy. Just because millions of people who can't play guitar think he's a great guitarist doesn't make him a great guitarist, know what I'm saying?

Just for the record, Lettuce is better than Onion


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## cycloptopus (Nov 17, 2009)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Just for the record, Lettuce is better than Onion


+1  

Nothing for nothing, if he wasn't trying to pass himself off as a shredder with an 8:40 "solo" I wouldn't be too hard on him. Hell one of my favorite guitar players, David Gilmour, is not a shredder and he is brilliant. But the body of Kirk's work consists of the same 1st grade guitar level speed riffs. Then, in this vid, he raises his hands up like it was great, demanding applause for it. It's kinda sad.

FYI- Cliff Burton's songwriting and contribution to the band cannot be underestimated. I believe him to be the soul of early Metallica.


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## Bloody_Inferno (Nov 17, 2009)

stuz719 said:


> I've said it once, I'll say it again.
> 
> Please, this sort of comparison is so specious - fact of the matter is that more people have heard of Kirk H, and heard him playing, than quite probably the whole membership of this forum, "better than he is" or not.
> 
> ...


 
Pretty much this. 

You can say the same with Angus Young too, yeah he's not really the greatest player in the world but still more recognised than some of the more technically better players out there. Slash is also one who wanks in pentatonics drenched in wah, and of course there's Jimmy Page's sloppy playing, but still they're great players. They're essential to their respective bands and the influence they have on music (and us) wouldn't be the same without them, even if there's a lot of you who will refuse to admit it. 

Also, being in a Metallica tribute band , it's quite surprising how many people love and appreciate some of Kirk's solos. Especially with the amount of drunken yobbos (guitarists or not is irrelevant) will sing along note for note to the solos of Creeping Death, One, Enter Sandman and so forth. Kirk also wrote the Master of Puppets riff for the record. 

Getting back on the topic:

Is that 61 Strat he was talking about the Sea Foam Green one from the I Disappear clip? I know he said that about his Les Paul as well (loves it dearly but beats the crap out of it). Well, we all knew he treats the LP like that once he put EMG 81s on them. 

EDIT: Sources say that Kirk was playing an RG470.


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 17, 2009)

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Also, being in a Metallica tribute band , it's quite surprising how many people love and appreciate some of Kirk's solos. Especially with the amount of drunken yobbos *(guitarists or not is irrelevant)* will sing along note for note to the solos of Creeping Death, One, Enter Sandman and so forth. Kirk also wrote the Master of Puppets riff for the record.



I completely disagree with this, especially the highlighted part.

If a director makes trash movies that lots of people that aren't much into movies enjoy, does that make him better than a director who makes more underground movies but is respected by his peers and fellow directors? Absolutely not. Same applies for guitarists.


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## Rogueleader (Nov 17, 2009)

I hate how talking shit about Metallica has become trendy.

The truth is that James Hetfield and Dave Mustaine (and Hammett after him) invented (or at the very least refined and polished) a style of guitar playing that every Heavy Metal band out there today uses. If you can tell me a heavy metal band that doesn't have a large percentage of their songs consisting of chugging on the lowest string alternating with powerchords I will eat my hat. Listen to the late seventies priest albums, stained class is a completely different style of guitar playing than ride the lightning. Listen to Ride the Lightning/Master Of Puppets/Justice and any death/thrash/modern metal that came after it (Morbid Angel, Pantera, Kreator, etc...) and you'll see that most of it is based on a fundamental style of guitar playing that metallica popularized.


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## Bloody_Inferno (Nov 17, 2009)

Scar Symmetry said:


> I completely disagree with this, especially the highlighted part.
> 
> If a director makes trash movies that lots of people that aren't much into movies enjoy, does that make him better than a director who makes more underground movies but is respected by his peers and fellow directors? Absolutely not. Same applies for guitarists.


 
Fair enough. And yes agreed on your movies statement, David Lynch is still making a career right?  (Don't worry, lots of Lynch love here)

That statement was speaking with those who appreciate music in general in mind. Not just guitarsts, whom as we are, tend to be very picky with every little details in terms of being and audience and a performer. Guitarists also have a tendency to listen as guitarists to forms of music that we like to praise/citicise whatever. We all do that, and it's fun to do that. Of course most of who will go to metal concerts obviously play instruments themselves thus appreciate the music in a much more deeper sense. But what about those who don't play yet still love the music? 

To me, being a musician comes first, then a guitarist second. I've always made a conscious decision that everything I do has more than just guitarists in mind. I don't want to be another shredder falling short because I'm writing music to justify my technique. To me, solos are meant to enhance the song and make it more memorable. When I see and hear non musicians singing along to guitar riffs and solos (like an Arch Enemy concert), it shows that it's memorable enough for the listener to transcend the guitarist's way of listening to music. 

But then again, this probably belongs in the Music Appreciation thread.


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 17, 2009)

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Fair enough. And yes agreed on your movies statement, David Lynch is still making a career right?  (Don't worry, lots of Lynch love here)
> 
> That statement was speaking with those who appreciate music in general in mind. Not just guitarsts, whom as we are, tend to be very picky with every little details in terms of being and audience and a performer. Guitarists also have a tendency to listen as guitarists to forms of music that we like to praise/citicise whatever. We all do that, and it's fun to do that. Of course most of who will go to metal concerts obviously play instruments themselves thus appreciate the music in a much more deeper sense. But what about those who don't play yet still love the music?
> 
> ...



Indeed, David Lynch is win 

That's probably a smart move man, I get your angle


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## Bloody_Inferno (Nov 17, 2009)

Scar Symmetry said:


> Indeed, David Lynch is win
> 
> That's probably a smart move man, I get your angle


 


Wait? Are still we talking about Kirk Hammett here?


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 17, 2009)

Yeah


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## Adam Of Angels (Nov 17, 2009)

Rogueleader said:


> I hate how talking shit about Metallica has become trendy.
> 
> The truth is that James Hetfield and Dave Mustaine (and Hammett after him) invented (or at the very least refined and polished) a style of guitar playing that every Heavy Metal band out there today uses. If you can tell me a heavy metal band that doesn't have a large percentage of their songs consisting of chugging on the lowest string alternating with powerchords I will eat my hat. Listen to the late seventies priest albums, stained class is a completely different style of guitar playing than ride the lightning. Listen to Ride the Lightning/Master Of Puppets/Justice and any death/thrash/modern metal that came after it (Morbid Angel, Pantera, Kreator, etc...) and you'll see that most of it is based on a fundamental style of guitar playing that metallica popularized.


 

Somebody was the first person to piss in the woods as opposed to just letting it go on their buddy's leg, but I'm sure he wasn't worth much compared to today's average human.. and I'm certainly not going to hold a large amount of respect for him each and everytime I choose to piss somewhere appropriate.


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## DaveCarter (Nov 17, 2009)

Scar Symmetry said:


> I completely disagree with this, especially the highlighted part.



Absolutely agreed, competent guitarists will always have a more valid opinion on who is a better guitarist than joe-public. How many kids worship Jack White? How many people have heard of Guthrie Govan? See where Im going with this...? Popularity is absolutely no indication of talent.


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## Triple-J (Nov 17, 2009)

Rogueleader said:


> I hate how talking shit about Metallica has become trendy.
> 
> The truth is that James Hetfield and Dave Mustaine (and Hammett after him) invented (or at the very least refined and polished) a style of guitar playing that every Heavy Metal band out there today uses. If you can tell me a heavy metal band that doesn't have a large percentage of their songs consisting of chugging on the lowest string alternating with powerchords I will eat my hat. Listen to the late seventies priest albums, stained class is a completely different style of guitar playing than ride the lightning. Listen to Ride the Lightning/Master Of Puppets/Justice and any death/thrash/modern metal that came after it (Morbid Angel, Pantera, Kreator, etc...) and you'll see that most of it is based on a fundamental style of guitar playing that metallica popularized.



Go listen to "Symptom of the Universe" by Black Sabbath that's the basic formula for Thrash metal right there and James Hetfield himself has admitted this many times.

As for Kirk I feel he's rather like Zakk Wylde as he's popular but he can't write a memorable solo to save his life but on the upside I think players like Kirk act as a gateway of sorts for younger players who usually move on to better guitarists and I don't think that's such a bad thing.


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## cyril v (Nov 17, 2009)

lol @ kirk hammett.

why the hell would you choose to cover a song that you can't even play competently?

I don't hate metallica... that'd be the wrong way to put it, but I'd definitely say that Hammets influence as of late has been grating, Hetfield is still solid as hell, but everytime I hear Hammett, all I can picture him doing is that Kerry King faux-shred with the built-in wah... just because you have wah on doesn't mean you don't have to hit the right notes.


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## Konfyouzd (Nov 17, 2009)

wow... that's crazy

and you know you're fuckin' up when Lars looks frustrated with you...


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## bigswifty (Nov 17, 2009)

LOL @ VID ^^
Hammet can't get 3 power chords down... soo sad.
Oh how I *hate* Metallica


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## Ckackley (Nov 17, 2009)

I LOVE Metallica, but not in any way because of Kirk. James riffs however are the shit. As far as the Ibanez thing , they're using whatever they feel like these days. Some of the concert shots have guitars in them from all kinds of manufacturers.


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## AK DRAGON (Nov 17, 2009)

I don't think Kirk is leaving ESP

1. the Video was done when Jason was still in Metallica
2. Kirk, like the rest of us is an aficionado of guitars. ie, ESP, Gibson, Ibanez, Music Man
3. ESP would probably do just about anything to keep him as a signature artist

Just my 2cents


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## Mr. Big Noodles (Nov 17, 2009)

cyril v said:


>




 Really? Wow. I'm hoping that's because he had a bad night. I mean, I'm no fan of Kirk's, but, holy shit, how long has he been playing?


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## BrainArt (Nov 18, 2009)

cyril v said:


> lol @ kirk hammett.
> 
> why the hell would you choose to cover a song that you can't even play competently?
> 
> I don't hate metallica... that'd be the wrong way to put it, but I'd definitely say that Hammets influence as of late has been grating, Hetfield is still solid as hell, but everytime I hear Hammett, all I can picture him doing is that Kerry King faux-shred with the built-in wah... just because you have wah on doesn't mean you don't have to hit the right notes.




You'd think that for being taught some things by Satch that Hammett would know how to play guitar.


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## asmegin_slayer (Nov 18, 2009)

JohnIce said:


> Not sure I agree... Metallica have memorable songs, yes, but solos? I'd say most of Kirk's solos are actually pretty hard to memorize/hum along to because they mostly consist of pentatonic wanking with a wah pedal, with occasional chromatics thrown in, sometimes unintentional.
> 
> Kirk is popular because his band is popular, I doubt he could have accomplished much as a solo artists or instrumentalist the way Yngwie, Satriani etc. actually have.



Yeah, that does make more sense... and maybe i was meaning towards that more... But when I was a young pup learning guitar and hearing one of my favorite bands play such dark music (around the NU-METAL era btw) with those solos... A lot of it was very memorable... "One" "Fade to Black" "Sanitarium".... just for examples just really hit me in more of a emotional way then Via's "Tender Surrender" at the time..


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## Rogueleader (Nov 18, 2009)

Triple-J said:


> Go listen to "Symptom of the Universe" by Black Sabbath that's the basic formula for Thrash metal right there and James Hetfield himself has admitted this many times.
> 
> As for Kirk I feel he's rather like Zakk Wylde as he's popular but he can't write a memorable solo to save his life but on the upside I think players like Kirk act as a gateway of sorts for younger players who usually move on to better guitarists and I don't think that's such a bad thing.



Theres no need for that, black sabbath is my favorite band. I didn't say they were the first to do it, I said they popularized it. I would bet that if a large majority of this forum thought back to when they first got into metal they would acknowledge that metallica was one of the first bands they loved. You can trash them all you want, but for me (and I suspect alot of other posters here) they are hugely influential.


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## Prydogga (Nov 18, 2009)

He played One worse that 13 year old kids that try playing it for the first time!!!? Respect -1


That Ibby smashing vid was hard to watch, incredible treble overload and just useless soloing, at first I thought he was playing bad to make fun of the Ibby but then he wipped out the ESP and wow.  He's just jealous because people that play Ibby's know how to use that wiggle bar thingy that he has on his ESP that he thinks looks cool.


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## IAMLORDVADER (Nov 18, 2009)

ibanez-1 hammett-0
of course the ibanez is gonna stand up to abuse, ive seen vai do much worse than that playing a standard gig and carry on using the guitar.


OH MY GOD...... if you cant play the tune dont play it live imo.
but i do have do agree that hammett is a good gateway guitarist that gets you interested in the solos and then you move on to different players,but his solos are none the less memorable wheather people like it or not.



> and you know you're fuckin' up when Lars looks frustrated with you...


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## nikt (Nov 18, 2009)

nothing funny with that video. I had same problem when recording once

3 chords, easy riff, haven't played it clean like 15 times in a row.

Never try to do it. Just put your guitar down, get a smoke, beer, fresh air (whatever), get back in 10min and in 90% you will play it from first take


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## astrocreep (Nov 18, 2009)

nikt said:


> Never try to do it. Just put your guitar down, get a smoke, beer, fresh air (whatever), get back in 10min and in 90% you will play it from first take



Good point, and, you know, perhaps lose the film cameras in the same room!


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## lucasreis (Nov 18, 2009)

I'm actually worse than Kirk...


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## cycloptopus (Nov 18, 2009)

FTR- I'm a huge Metallica fan of everything up to "And Justice For All". Just never thought Kirk was the right guy. I always wondered what Metallica would have been like with Alex Scholnick playing lead.


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## jymellis (Nov 18, 2009)

Rogueleader said:


> I hate how talking shit about Metallica has become trendy.
> 
> The truth is that James Hetfield and Dave Mustaine (and Hammett after him) invented (or at the very least refined and polished) a style of guitar playing that every Heavy Metal band out there today uses. If you can tell me a heavy metal band that doesn't have a large percentage of their songs consisting of chugging on the lowest string alternating with powerchords I will eat my hat. Listen to the late seventies priest albums, stained class is a completely different style of guitar playing than ride the lightning. Listen to Ride the Lightning/Master Of Puppets/Justice and any death/thrash/modern metal that came after it (Morbid Angel, Pantera, Kreator, etc...) and you'll see that most of it is based on a fundamental style of guitar playing that metallica popularized.


 
guess you never heard of slayer or anthrax


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## Metal Ken (Nov 18, 2009)

i just think its hilarious that people are bashing the guy for breaking an ibanez on stage. i bet most of them wouldnt care if it were an ESP or Fender or whatever.


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## lobee (Nov 18, 2009)

Metal Ken said:


> i just think its hilarious that people are bashing the guy for breaking an ibanez on stage. i bet most of them wouldnt care if it were an ESP or Fender or whatever.



Actually, it would bother me just the same. It's a total cliche, just like Kirk's sloppy generic wah-infused pentatonic wankfest solos that he plays live. I think part of it is what was mentioned already somewhere in this thread, the whole eight minute show-off solo like he's some sort of guitar god. And what do guitar gods do? They smash up guitars because they're too good for that shit.


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## jam3v (Nov 18, 2009)

One of his signature guitars had a bolt on neck specifically because he used to break it every night. 

I've seen a part of his collection, he has lots of interesting guitars, but I imagine his endorsement deal is such that he has to play ESP's live.



lobee said:


> Actually, it would bother me just the same. It's a total cliche, just like Kirk's sloppy generic wah-infused pentatonic wankfest solos that he plays live. I think part of it is what was mentioned already somewhere in this thread, the whole eight minute show-off solo like he's some sort of guitar god. And what do guitar gods do? They smash up guitars because they're too good for that shit.



Call me cliche, but I'd love to smash guitars on stage.


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## TreWatson (Nov 18, 2009)

also, remember, Satch Taught Hammet. who knows, maybe thats What good ol' kirk learned on.


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## drmosh (Nov 18, 2009)

cycloptopus said:


> FTR- I'm a huge Metallica fan of everything up to "And Justice For All". Just never thought Kirk was the right guy. I always wondered what Metallica would have been like with Alex Scholnick playing lead.



and a decent drummer


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## JohnIce (Nov 18, 2009)

drmosh said:


> and an actual drummer


 
Fixed it for ya, mate!


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 18, 2009)

Metal Ken said:


> i just think its hilarious that people are bashing the guy for breaking an ibanez on stage. i bet most of them wouldnt care if it were an ESP or Fender or whatever.



If it was an ESP I would hunt Kirk down and kill him


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## Adam Of Angels (Nov 18, 2009)

Breaking guitars or anything on stage = completely retarded. If I ever had any respect for Kirk Hammet, I got rid of it.


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## Triple-J (Nov 18, 2009)

Rogueleader said:


> Theres no need for that, black sabbath is my favorite band. I didn't say they were the first to do it, I said they popularized it. I would bet that if a large majority of this forum thought back to when they first got into metal they would acknowledge that metallica was one of the first bands they loved. You can trash them all you want, but for me (and I suspect alot of other posters here) they are hugely influential.



You seem to forget that Metallica were part of a generation of bands that popularized Thrash and that they didn't do it alone the only difference between them and Anthrax, Megadeth, Slayer and Testament etc is that they crossed over into mainstream culture on a global level and like Ozzy or Iron Maiden before them they became the acceptable face of Metal in popular culture. 

As for trashing Metallica I wasn't and like I said I have no problem with Kirk as he serves a purpose as a gateway for younger kids getting into guitar and I say this because I was one of those kids. 
You are very right about people bashing on Metallica though and tbh I'm tired of how even the threads that mention Metallica in a positive manner seem to devolve into Metalli-bashing everytime.


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## CrushingAnvil (Nov 19, 2009)

sessionswan said:


> There was a picture of him in Guitar World a month or so ago playing a UV777BK which I thought was interesting - never knew Metallica had any songs played on a 7



Some kind of monster was recorded on an H-307 and a Les Paul.


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## Bleak (Nov 19, 2009)

Rogueleader said:


> If you can tell me a heavy metal band that doesn't have a large percentage of their songs consisting of chugging on the lowest string alternating with powerchords I will eat my hat.



Opeth


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 19, 2009)

^ And Necrophagist.

In fact, there's loads 

Hope that hat tastes nice.


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## Cancer (Nov 19, 2009)

Just my 2 cents. Hammett got lucky. He's an average player in an above average band. I would think his presence in Metallica has to do more with his laid back personality then his playing (ie...he was never enough of an asshole to get rid of him).

The biggest crime in the history of metal is that Kirk Hammett got to be a celebrity, while amazing players like Gary Holt (his replacement in Exodus) may fade into obscurity.


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## JohnIce (Nov 19, 2009)

Cancer said:


> Just my 2 cents. Hammett got lucky. He's an average player in an above average band. I would think his presence in Metallica has to do more with his laid back personality then his playing (ie...he was never enough of an asshole to get rid of him).


 
Very good point. Also, kicking anyone out of Metallica for not playing well enough would be pretty hypocritical 

To be honest, if a new band came out today and got remotely successful, with a lead guitar player like Kirk, that band would probably be the laughing stock of this entire forum. By today's standards, he really does play like a 15-year old. And there are many 15 year olds who can play circles around Kirk, for that matter. The guitarists from mainstream bands like Trivium, Sevenfold, Atreyu etc. are often called overrated, but they still absolutely pee on Kirk's abilites.

I don't question Metallica's significance, their legacy, their sound and their riffs etc., but I could never say Kirk as a guitarist is anything but overrated and, in my highly subjective an politically incorrect opinion, bad.


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## cyril v (Nov 19, 2009)

Cancer said:


> Just my 2 cents. Hammett got lucky. He's an average player in an above average band. I would think his presence in Metallica has to do more with his laid back personality then his playing (ie...he was never enough of an asshole to get rid of him).
> 
> The biggest crime in the history of metal is that Kirk Hammett got to be a celebrity, while amazing players like *Gary Holt *(his replacement in Exodus) may fade into obscurity.



He would've been a way better replacement for Mustaine, the guy still writes some badass stuff and while he's no broderick, he certainly can actually play his guitar.... hell, mustaine would be a better replacement for Hammett.


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## Scar Symmetry (Nov 19, 2009)

JohnIce said:


> I don't question Metallica's significance, their legacy, their sound and their riffs etc., but I could never say Kirk as a guitarist is anything but overrated and, in my highly subjective an politically incorrect opinion, bad.







cyril v said:


> He would've been a way better replacement for Mustaine, the guy still writes some badass stuff and while he's no broderick, he certainly can actually play his guitar.... hell, mustaine would be a better replacement for Hammett.


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## mattofvengeance (Nov 19, 2009)

Rogueleader said:


> If you can tell me a heavy metal band that doesn't have a large percentage of their songs consisting of chugging on the lowest string alternating with powerchords I will eat my hat.





Bleak said:


> Opeth





Scar Symmetry said:


> ^ And Necrophagist.
> 
> In fact, there's loads
> 
> Hope that hat tastes nice.



Add to that (off the top of my head),

Animals As Leaders
Fellsilent
Obscura
Cynic
Origin
The Faceless
Nile
Scale the Summit
Protest the Hero
Sikth

So, here ya go:


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