Metallica's lead guitar Kirk Hammett says that the band felt very confident with the momentum behind them going into making their blockbuster "Black Album".
The band recently took part in a fan Q&A session with Kerrang! and Kirk was asked "It's October 1990. You're about to record The Black Album. What's the first thing that springs to mind?"
He responded, "By the end of the Damaged Justice tour [1989], we were kind of singing riffs to each other already. The Sad But True riff was already around. Jason had been in the band for a while and we had finally coalesced into a band over the course of that tour.
"We were feeling really good and ready to make another strong musical statement. MTV had started playing us, they were primed. Radio had started playing us, they were primed.
"The mainstream media knew about us and they were primed, and so everything kind of lined up. The expectation from all the external forces were like, 'Let's see what you got!'
"I think that made us a bit more confident because it was like, 'Oh now you want us? We'll show you these sets of riffs, chew on this.'" Check out the full Q&A here.
Metallica's Black Album and 'Master Of Puppets' Hit New Platinum Heights
Metallica Share Virginia Performance Of 'Enter Sandman'
Metallica Stream 'The Unforgiven' From Second Nashville Show
Metallica Announce 2026 M72 World Tour Dates
Al Jardine - Islands in the Sun
Hot In The City: Candlelight Concerts Set to Light Up Phoenix
On The Record: Miles Davis - Bitches Brew
Sites and Sounds: Dates Announced for Phish: Riviera Maya 2026 in Cancun, Mexico
Jason Bonham Recalls 'Shock' At Being Let Go By Sammy Hagar
Kelly Hansen Opens Up About Leaving Foreigner
Iron Maiden's Manager Angry At Certain Fans
Thom Yorke Releases Theme Song To New Apple TV Series 'Smoke'
The Living Tombstone Share Videos For 'Rust' Album Tracks
The Dead Daisies Stream New Album 'Lookin' For Trouble
HAIM Get Nostalgic With New Song 'Take Me Back'
ALEXSUCKS Release 'Flowers & Dirt' Video