Metallica guitarist, solo artist, and well-known wah pedal user Kirk Hammett has revealed his 11 favorite wah-using solos from his career. The kicker here is that Hammett didn't reveal his favorites to any press outlet, but instead printed them on the bottom of his new Jim Dunlop signature wah pedal. Shout out to Guitar World for the catch!
The 11 songs are:
- "No Remorse" – Kill 'Em All
- "Fight Fire With Fire" – Ride the Lightning
- "Battery" – Master of Puppets
- "…And Justice for All" – …And Justice for All
- "Enter Sandman" – Metallica
- "Until it Sleeps" – Load
- "Memory Remains" – Reload
- "The Outlaw Torn" – S&M
- "Turn the Page" – Garage Inc.
- "Shoot Me Again" – St. Anger
- "The End Of the Line" – Death Magnetic
You can also check the pedal out here, which may give you magical wah powers. Hammett recently released his debut solo EP Portals to pretty widespread acclaim. The EP is nothing like Metallica's music, and instead trades in heavy riffs and galloping rhythms for a more soundtrack-type experience and tons of different instrumentation.
Hammett said in a recent interview that he began working with S&M2 conductor Edwin Outwater on the EP, though he wasn't specifically gunning for a solo career. Hammett later added that he's digging the autonomy of having a solo project and intends to work with Outwater again on new music in the future.
"This wasn't something where I sat down and said, 'Okay, solo album, it's about time!' I don't take myself that seriously! And I'm not that intelligent, I'm seriously not. I write music and shit happens… and this falls under the category of shit happening [laughs]. But now that it has happened, I've gotten a taste of this and this sort of autonomy, I'm thinking, 'Why not?' I have the full band's blessing on this, particularly James and Lars and so it's okay, now I have something else cool to do. Edwin and I have every intention to keep on collaborating as well, because the results have been so great."
Portals is four songs long, with two of its four songs ("High Plains Drifter" and "The Djinn") being co-written by Outwater. Portals also features drummers Jon Theodore (Kirk's fellow Wedding Band member) and Abraham Laboriel, Greg Fidelman on bass, Emmy-winning arranger Blake Neely, and Bob Rock. Hammett previously stated that he was shocked he got the blessing by Metallica to do the project in the first place.
