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And Finally Artist News
Metallica’s Kirk Hammett publishes first chapter of horror story and accompanying soundtrack
By Andy Malt | Published on Tuesday 13 September 2022
Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett has entered the world of horror fiction, posting the first chapter of a story he’s writing called ‘I Have To Get Rid Of This Guitar I Found’ onto Reddit, along with some music to soundtrack it on TikTok.
The story opens with a message from fictional character Abigail Forte, who explains: “I recently found a lead that might help in the search for my brother, William ‘Wills’ Forte”.
That lead is “a journal he had written, along with a cassette that was filled with what can only be described as very unusual field recordings. Seeing as the nature of these recordings seemed to push towards an evil energy, I sent the tape to a friend to help me understand the music, who in turn sent it to guitarist Kirk Hammett”.
“We have decided that while we cannot allow the actual sounds from the cassette to be released, we can share renditions of the music”, it goes on. “Kirk Hammett has agreed to quickly transpose the less complex portions of the cassette while keeping the integrity of the original field recordings intact”.
“These you can play or loop alongside the reading of each part, to create the appropriate mood for these journal entries”, it then explains, before adding: “We still advise you take precautions before listening to the recordings (such as burning sage, reciting prayers, drawing protective sigils). What you will hear are some phrases and motifs inspired by the cursed melodies recorded on to this mysterious cassette”.
The accompanying two minutes of instrumental acoustic guitar – as noted – can be played alongside your reading of the story (once you’ve worked out how to do that without the TikTok video muting whenever you click away from it).
This is not Hammett’s first foray into the world of horror. In 2012, he published a book called ‘Too Much Horror Business’, which explored his collection of horror memorabilia and discussed his love of the genre.
He also hosted two editions of his own horror and heavy metal festival – Kirk Von Hammett’s Fear FestEvil – in 2014 and 2015, and earlier this year moderated a panel at the Midsummer Scream convention, featuring relatives of classic horror actors Bela Lugosi, Vincent Price, Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney Jr.
Read Hammett’s story on Reddit here and play the accompanying soundtrack on TikTok here.
