“There’s a lot of sniping… and a lot of bad blood”: Kirk Hammett’s former Exodus bandmate Gary Holt reveals what he really felt when Kirk left to join Metallica
In 1983, Kirk Hammett packed his gear, said goodbye to Exodus, and took a chance on what would go to become one of the biggest bands of all time. While that decision would go down in metal history, not everyone left behind was banging their head in celebration.
In a new interview, Exodus guitarist Gary Holt opens up about how it felt watching his former bandmate and fellow co-founder jump ship, and whether he would’ve done the same if Metallica had come knocking on his door instead.
READ MORE: “It’s no different to purchasing a friggin’ milkshake”: Why Kirk Hammett thinks buying vintage guitars “leaves you feeling empty” and he prefers to trade them
Speaking on a new episode of The David Ellefson Show, Holt shares how he first reacted when Hammett, the original Exodus guitarist, got the call to join Metallica back in ’83.
“Yeah, it’s a whole incestuous relationship, for sure,” he says [via Blabbermouth]. “Kirk’s in Exodus, Kirk joins Metallica. I’m friends with both, and there’s a lot of sniping and stuff, and a lot of bad blood. But I stayed out of that.”
“But, yeah, it kind of put me in the driver’s seat [when it came to Exodus]. I was starting to write a lot of riffs. When I joined [Exodus], Kirk wrote everything. And at the time when he left, I was happy for him.”
Asked if he would have joined Metallica had he gotten the call instead, Holt admits he probably wouldn’t have said yes due to the uncertainties surrounding the move.
“‘Cause at that time in my life, change was scary to me,” says the guitarist. “I was always happy where I was comfortable. I would’ve probably said no. At the time, [before they recorded] Kill ‘Em All… If you joined, you were joining a great band, but you were joining a band that [was about to] put out an independent album and were playing clubs. You didn’t know they were gonna be [what they eventually became].”
Still, hindsight is a hell of a thing: “If I had been asked and knew now in the future of what they’d become, I would’ve traveled back in time and kicked my own ass to take that job.”
As for whether he ever considered inviting ex-Metallica guitarist Dave Mustaine to fill the gap Hammett left behind, Holt says that thought never crossed his mind.
“It was, like, ‘Congratulations, Kirk. I love you, bro. And thanks for getting me started on this journey and teaching me my first licks and chords. And now it’s my band. Let’s go.’”
The post “There’s a lot of sniping… and a lot of bad blood”: Kirk Hammett’s former Exodus bandmate Gary Holt reveals what he really felt when Kirk left to join Metallica appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.
Source: www.guitar-bass.net
