Guitarist Gary Holt has a bit of history with Kirk Hammett dating back from their Exodus days, and he is still a little pissed when Kirk took off with some Exodus riffs to Metallica.
1983 was a pivotal moment in heavy metal history as it was when Kirk Hammett, who was “sitting on the toilet,” got the call to leave Exodus and join Metallica.
Musicians jumping ship to another band isn’t that uncommon, especially when it happened decades ago, but Gary Holt still holds a little grudge against Kirk Hammett for bailing on Exodus and taking a stack of material with him to his new band.
Chatting to Metal Hammer for a retrospective look at Metallica’s Ride The Lightning album, Holt claims that his former bandmate used the riff from Exodus’ song, ‘Impaler’, for Metallica’s 1984 banger, ‘Trapped Under Ice’.
That wasn’t the only time where Kirk allegedly used Exodus material for Metallica songs as Holt claims his old bandmate also lifted the iconic “die by my hand!” refrain from Metallica’s ‘Creeping Death’ from an old Exodus song called ‘Die By His Hand’.
“I recall calling Kirk up and giving him a great deal of grief,” recalls Holt. “He said, ‘Ah, I thought I asked you if it was OK.’ I’m like, ‘No, you didn’t.’ So I’ve had the pleasure – and I use the term loosely – of watching 60,000 people chant ‘Die by my hand!’ at Metallica shows, yet I’ve never received a penny for it.”
Despite seemingly holding a slight grudge over these alleged material lifting incidents, it seems like Holt and Kirk are pretty cool with each other these days.
Love Classic Rock?
Get the latest Classic Rock news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more
Kirk appeared on Exodus’ 2014 album, Blood In Blood Out, and Holt talked warmly about how Kirk taught in how to play guitar in a 2015 interview with Full Metal Jackie.
But Holt and Kirk’s Metallica bandmate, Lars Ulrich, though? That’s a slightly different story and he’s not the only one.
Check out ‘Trapped Under Ice’ by Metallica:
