Singer/guitarist James Hetfield rocks up on the new episode of the Metallica Report podcast to discuss all things lyric-writing.
During the chat, the 61-year-old offers particularly lofty praise to Tom Waits, calling the genre-splicing California musician “a master craftsman at lyrics”.
“As far as Tom Waits just being a master craftsman at lyrics, painting a picture in one sentence, it interests me, and it takes work,” says Hetfield (via Blabbermouth). “I saw Tom kind of live it. It was his vocabulary as well. He could sit and speak like that. I can’t.”
Later in the chat, the frontman also points to another unlikely source of lyrical inspiration: pop-punk icons Green Day.
“[Writing lyrics] is kind of like building a vehicle, building a whatever, collecting lots of little words. And how do they fit together? What does this really mean? Is this enough for a subject matter?” he rhetorically asks.
“Then I go and I watch a band like Green Day, and they have some simple [lines like] ‘Know your enemy’ or ‘Do you know your enemy?’, something like that. It’s so hooky and great, it sticks in you, but that’s not really literary geniusness.”
Hetfield co-founded Metallica in 1981 and has writing credits on almost all of their songs, the sole exception being 1983 bass solo Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth). In 2016, he named his favourite songwriters of all time, and Waits appeared on the list.
“I just wish that I could be as good as Tom Waits, Phil Lynott, Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen, a lot of great lyricists,” he said at a symposium hosted by Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich. “It is really cool to read up on them and hear how they come up with their stuff.”
Over a 50-plus-year musical career, Waits has experimented with rock, jazz, blues, funk, hip-hop, opera and more. He’s also an actor, known for his performances in Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) and Licorice Pizza (2021).
Noted for his strikingly deep voice and countercultural lyrics, he was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2011 by Neil Young. Young described Waits in his induction speech as “a performer, singer, actor, magician, spirit guide, changeling”.
Metallica released their latest album, 72 Seasons, in 2023 and will tour North America in the spring. See dates and details below.
Metallica 2025 tour dates:
Apr 19: Syracuse MA Wireless Dome, NY*
Apr 24: Toronto Rogers Centre, ON*
Apr 26: Toronto Rogers Centre, ON+
May 01: Nashville Nissan Stadium, TN*
May 03: Nashville Nissan Stadium, TN+
May 07: Blacksburg Lane Stadium, VA*
May 09: Columbus Sonic Temple, OH
May 11: Columbus Sonic Temple, OH
May 23: Philadelphia Lincoln Financial Field, PA+
May 25: Philadelphia Lincoln Financial Field, PA*
May 28: Landover Northwest Stadium, MD*
May 31: Charlotte Bank Of America Stadium, NC*
Jun 03: Atlanta Mercedes-Benz Stadium, GA*
Jun 06: Tampa Raymond James Stadium, FL+
Jun 08: Tampa Raymond James Stadium, FL*
Jun 14: Houston NRG Stadium, TX*
Jun 20: Santa Clara Levi’s Stadium, CA+
Jun 22: Santa Clara Levi’s Stadium, CA*
Jun 27: Denver Empower Field at Mile High, CO+
Jun 29: Denver Empower Field at Mile High, CO*
* Pantera and Suicidal Tendencies support
+ Limp Bizkit and Ice Nine Kills support
