Metallica Say 2004 Documentary Was a Mistake

It's been six years since the Metallica documentary Some Kind of Monster hit theaters, but the band is still sharing its reactions to the movie, which chronicled the band's bitter in-fighting and visits to a therapist while working on St. Anger. Their impressions? Not good. "Every time I see Noel Gallagher he quotes lines from that movie back to me," Ulrich told Australia's Herald Sun. "That thing has taken on a life of its own. I had to live that shit for three fucking years! The whole thing was a mindfuck. I am aware a lot of other musicians seem to have lived a lot of those moments. They weren't necessarily stupid enough to film them like we were and share them with the rest of the world."

Three decades of metal mayhem: look back at Metallica's career in photos.

Despite Metallica's squabbling earlier this decade, Ulrich says they've been getting along better than ever — they're already mapping out plans to prep their follow-up to 2008's Death Magnetic. "There is a good vibe in the band now, everyone's having fun and getting along," Ulrich said. "Things are real easy and borderline pleasant. I know that doesn't sound very rock and roll, but it would surprise me if it'd be a year before we start making a new album. There's a good chance the turnaround would be less than it's been on previous cycles."

Before heading back into the studio, Metallica will finish up a string of dates in Australia in the fall and perform on June 22nd in Sofia, Bulgaria as part of the Big Four tour alongside thrash icons Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax. For fans who can't make the trek, the concert will be simulcast in 450 movie theaters around the world.

Catch up with Rolling Stone's latest news in Random Notes.

• 
  MUSIC 100 Greatest Debut Albums
• 
  MOVIES 'Star Trek' Is Crazy Good
• 
  TV 10 Shows to Watch This Summer
• 
  POLITICS No Price Big Banks Can't Fix

Song Stories

“Help Me”

Joni Mitchell | 1974

Joni Mitchell wrote and recorded this song for her album Court and Spark, but she had to switch from her regular band to make the song sound exactly the way she wanted. "I had attempted to play my music with rock & roll players," she told Rolling Stone. "They’d laugh, 'Awww, isn't that cute? She's trying to teach us how to play.'" Mitchell switched to a jazz band, Tom Scott’s L.A. Express, and scored the biggest hit of her career in the process.

More Song Stories entries »

Twitter