Kirk Hammett doesn't suck. Period.

[Gainzilla]

There's nothing to get over.....this isn't something that defines me as a person and the OP took me about 15 seconds to write. Kirk doesn't suck, IMHO.

IMHO he does. My personal opinion is that his fame is a matter of timing and circumstance, not talent.

All due respect Kage...because I respect your skills and you seem like a good guy...a critique by definition is a detailed analysis and assessment of something.

30 people saying his wah is overused or his vibrato sucks is not a detailed analysis.

Cmon dude, All due respect right back at ya; critique , opinion , are we really going to split hairs here with semantics?

I'm not saying that because he's wealthy or has sig gear makes him talented, I'm saying that I dig what he's done in the past and am just astonished at the amount of hate on here for him.....seems like every other day there's another thread about him being bad.

You may not be saying it but its quite often used in his defense, correct? Going on about his sig gear,money or the very small handful of tunes that hes written for a band with a huge catalog doesnt speak to his talent or lack there of, especially when you take everything into account and in the proper context.

As you are astonished by the hate, Im astonished at the reverence.. In the end, neither opinion matters in the grand scheme but the bad should be welcomed with the good...

 

[kiff]

I think most ppl around agree that his vibrato sucks and his playing is WAY less inspired than it once was... and I thought all the kirk bashing was fun for a while, but jeez it gets old. It's like an unhealthy obsession.

Oh, and I sucked period once... never talk to that lying bitch again!

 

[Gainzilla]

I'd like to go back in time and see how many Kirk haters had a man crush on him in the 80's.

Truth be told, I have every Metallica album and while I like a bunch of their tunes, Ive never liked anything that Kirk has done except maybe the Sandman riff... To me, Metallica's place in history rests squarely on James's Riffs...

 

[jcj]

To the OP.... you pretty much typed what I have always wanted to type in Kirk hater threads, but have just always been too lazy too...

It's jealousy to an extent plain and simple, the only part of your rant that I wanted to comment on is obviously a guitar player is going to be more critical than the average listener about another GUITAR players playing... but I agree at the end of the day it just doesn't matter, Kirk is pretty much the poster child for the proof that being the best player in the world, having the best gear, or whatever, doesn't mean your gonna "Make it"... and while a lot of dudes here would say that's not their reason for arguing that Kirk sucks, they are full of shit if they told you they wouldn't trade places with him...

....for the record I don't even really like Metallica LoL

.

I love playing guitar, and always have, but I've never had any real desire to make a living playing music; not everyone posting here wishes they were famous

I most definitely wouldn't trade places with Kirk, or anyone else, for that matter.......and I'm not full of shit.

 

[skoora]

and while a lot of dudes here would say that's not their reason for arguing that Kirk sucks, they are full of shit if they told you they wouldn't trade places with him...

....for the record I don't even really like Metallica LoL

Fuck, if only someone here would trade places with him

I think there isn't a bad solo on the first three records, many great ones. I don't know what happened after Justice but it's a night and day difference. Maybe he's just a horrible off the cuff player and needs to construct and arrange before he records to be at his best but honestly to say he doesn't suck is ignoring the time honored, famous Buddhist philosophy of.....if it walks like a duck......and etc.

I'll never understand why people bring someone's financial success/fame or lack there of into an argument of artistic merit. The have nothing to do with each other. Also why bring in the argument of the general buying public's perspective when arguing on a specialized niche forum on guitar playing and guitar rigs.

At the end of the day Lars and James have all the blame anyway for the horrible direction in which Metallica went in the 90's. And that bums me out a lot more than how Kirk plays.

 

[kiff]

Fuck, if only someone here would trade places with him

I think there isn't a bad solo on the first three records, many great ones. I don't know what happened after Justice but it's a night and day difference.

yea, I think his early soloing was great. Sure, in retrospect his vibrato was weak but he made up for it with energy, creativity and you could tell he was in good form. I didn't really like his AJFA solos though... and everything after that was just a let down.

 

[War Admiral]

hammett is fine ..im more worried about lars suckin balls

Totally useless thread but I lol'd with this ^^^^^

 

[Gainzilla]

It's jealousy to an extent plain and simple

Nope, the Jealousy argument has been debunked and proven worthless years ago. IF there is something about Kirl that Im envious about, it his money, definitely not his playing..

and while a lot of dudes here would say that's not their reason for arguing that Kirk sucks, they are full of shit if they told you they wouldn't trade places with him...

Sorry Duder, no desire now or back in the day. I enjoy them but not that much..

 

[EnGl]

As i said in other topic : Kirk don't sucks ... he is just average player.

First 3 records - yeah , i can't deny, pretty good material , old , good thrash(Black Album is good also but not so thrash ...). But later ?
Later Kirk "died". I can't remember ANY good and catchy solo or riff he wrotes after Black Album...

I'm not jealous due to his playing , I don't like WAHmett style.
I'm only jealous due to one fact - that he had opportunity (and still have ) to play in front of thousand people around world ... and touring...

 

[Mizati20]

To the OP.... you pretty much typed what I have always wanted to type in Kirk hater threads, but have just always been too lazy too...

It's jealousy to an extent plain and simple, the only part of your rant that I wanted to comment on is obviously a guitar player is going to be more critical than the average listener about another GUITAR players playing... but I agree at the end of the day it just doesn't matter, Kirk is pretty much the poster child for the proof that being the best player in the world, having the best gear, or whatever, doesn't mean your gonna "Make it"... and while a lot of dudes here would say that's not their reason for arguing that Kirk sucks, they are full of shit if they told you they wouldn't trade places with him...

....for the record I don't even really like Metallica LoL

.

I love playing guitar, and always have, but I've never had any real desire to make a living playing music; not everyone posting here wishes they were famous

I most definitely wouldn't trade places with Kirk, or anyone else, for that matter.......and I'm not full of shit.

LIAR!!!!

Ok maybe not, the exclamation points just made me feel good!!!

 

[Steinmetzify]

IMHO he does. My personal opinion is that his fame is a matter of timing and circumstance, not talent.

So you're saying that anyone that was there at the time could have done just as fine a job or better? Maybe, but Dave Mustaine couldn't do it.

Cmon dude, All due respect right back at ya; critique , opinion , are we really going to split hairs here with semantics?

Nah, not really bro.....didn't mean to drag that into it. I just meant that a lot of the time it seems like that's the only thing that anyone has to say, is that his vibrato is weak........there's nothing constructive about that at all. If I posted a vid and my vibrato was weak, would I get the same treatment, or would you guys be the good buncha dudes you are every day and give me some tips or advice or something?

You may not be saying it but its quite often used in his defense, correct? Going on about his sig gear,money or the very small handful of tunes that hes written for a band with a huge catalog doesnt speak to his talent or lack there of, especially when you take everything into account and in the proper context.

Yeah, it IS used in his defense, and it's wrong......agreed. But at the end of the day if you can hang with a dysfunctional family like Metallica is reputed to be and do so for over 30 years, you've got a lot more talent than I do. Mega shows, mega tours, going out there and doing it night after night after night, while still writing and still trying to remain relevant.

As you are astonished by the hate, Im astonished at the reverence.. In the end, neither opinion matters in the grand scheme but the bad should be welcomed with the good...

I'll say this....I don't revere the guy, and to be honest I don't think I've ever listened to anything after AJFA more than once.....and I'll agree that the bad should be welcomed with the good.....it's just the sheer vehemence in these threads that pop up. I can't believe that there's this much hate on a forum devoted to guitars, music and gear. Where some people see weak vibrato and overused wah, I see part of the soundtrack of my life from about '83 up to about '89. Maybe I'm just too sentimental about all of this, in the end.

I'm not a pro and never will be.....that was never anything that I wanted from music; I just play for fun, and maybe that's the difference. Either way, I'm done with it. I'll stay out of these threads from now on, and just listen to old Metallica and enjoy it for what it is.

I just kind of wanted some explanation from you guys......this is usually the best forum I visit for gear and opinions, not hate and bashing and I just wondered why.

 

[Spaceboy]

good melody/songwriting goes miles further good playing

at least to everyone but guitarists

just saying

and yeah i know james writes most of the riffs

kirk has inspired multiple generations to pick up a guitar, so i ain't gonna hate

i'm a metalhead and i don't even like metallica

 

[Shawn Lutz]

I not a fan of Metallica or Kirk. They have a couple good songs, guitar playing isn't great but it isnt shit either. It is what it is. I just don't like the band but that is no reason for me to slam em, just isnt my cup of musical tea...

 

[jcj]

To the OP.... you pretty much typed what I have always wanted to type in Kirk hater threads, but have just always been too lazy too...

It's jealousy to an extent plain and simple, the only part of your rant that I wanted to comment on is obviously a guitar player is going to be more critical than the average listener about another GUITAR players playing... but I agree at the end of the day it just doesn't matter, Kirk is pretty much the poster child for the proof that being the best player in the world, having the best gear, or whatever, doesn't mean your gonna "Make it"... and while a lot of dudes here would say that's not their reason for arguing that Kirk sucks, they are full of shit if they told you they wouldn't trade places with him...

....for the record I don't even really like Metallica LoL

.

I love playing guitar, and always have, but I've never had any real desire to make a living playing music; not everyone posting here wishes they were famous

I most definitely wouldn't trade places with Kirk, or anyone else, for that matter.......and I'm not full of shit.

LIAR!!!!

Ok maybe not, the exclamation points just made me feel good!!!

 

[RSRD]

I think its an inevitable thing... you hit a certain level of success and then every minor flaw or weakness is amplified and blown out of proportion.

This

 

[Shiny_Surface]

If I posted a vid and my vibrato was weak, would I get the same treatment, or would you guys be the good buncha dudes you are every day and give me some tips or advice or something?

I think generally people will be polite and just not respond to the clip if they don't like it (not all obviously just imo).

Kirk gets special treatment.

 

[gmcelroy]

Everytime I read a thread like this a can't help but remember back to last year when a good buddy and myself were at a Cinderalla gig with Tom Keifer and Jeff LaBar tearing it up on guitar. While watching the show my buddy looks at me and says in a serious tone "I'm telling you what.. you and I could play circles around these guys" to which I respond with "possibly... but who's onstage and has toured the world many times over while you and I get to go back to our mundane existance of only dreaming about doing what these guys do night after night"!

 

[mdc1mdc11]

what some of these guys play on stage as a product might not exactly reveal or represent what they are capable of playing from a skill perspective when not on stage.

 

[chunktone]

So, if I recognize that someone is overrated, that means I hate them? I did not know that.

 

[Attercop]

I find his playing uninspired, boring, and over-rated. Straight up. There are so many other better players out there, he is just completely outclassed. He has his moments (the solo in Unforgiven III is one for me), but I just don't respect him very much as a guitar player. That said, I don't instantly lose respect for someone if they're a big Kirk Hammett fan, I just disagree with them. I like him as a person, he seems like a fun guy, and I like Metallica's music. I think his success with them is deserved, he's a big part of the band. But as a lead guitarist, he leaves me cold most of the time