Lars Ulrich says that if the coronavirus lockdown continues for a significant period of time, there’s a “very good chance” Metallica could record an album from quarantine.
The drummer was speaking on a video call with Salesforce chairman and CEO Marc Benioff about what he, vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield, guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo have been doing with themselves while they’ve been stuck at home.
Ulrich says: “We've been sitting around in the last four to six weeks and having numerous conversations. The four members of Metallica connect via Zoom once a week, and it's great to connect.
“All four of us are in four different locations in four different states right now. But one topic of conversation on these weekly sessions is what does it look like going forward? What will the next couple of months look like? What will the rest of the year look like? And what will the next decade look like in terms of how do we create, how do we write music, how do we record music, how do we share music, and how is it all going to look with the uncertainties ahead of us.”
He adds: “As we sit here, we go, ‘Maybe in a month or two from now, is there a chance that the four of us can be together maybe at our studio here in northern California, if the quarantine and stay-at-home orders subside?’
“Right now, as everybody who has creative juices flowing through their veins, they're being challenged to try to come up with new ways to be creative, and I think that those are wonderful takeaways from the devastation that's happening all over the world at the moment."
As for the possibility of a new album recorded while all four of them are in isolation, Ulrich says that it depends on how long the lockdown orders are in place.
He continues: “On these weekly Zoom sessions, we are talking about how we can just be a band again. And there are many different phases to being in a band, but the most basic one, and certainly where it started 37 years ago, is to just have four guys playing music together.
“The fact that it ends up being shared all over the world and connecting with millions of people, that's much later and a whole different thing. But at its core essence is just four guys in room, or connected via Zoom, making music together.
“I can tell you that all four of us are really excited about what that could look like. So, will there be a Metallica quarantine record? I can't tell you, because, again, I don't know how long the quarantine will last.
“But if you and I and the rest of the world are still sitting here six months from now or a year from now, I'd say there's a very good chance.”
Earlier this week, Metallica launched the latest episode of their Metallica Mondays series – and gave fans an update on the upcoming S&M2 album.
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