“If it’s not good enough for myself, it’s not good enough for you!”: Watch Kirk Hammett fail the intro of Nothing Else Matters in front of 80,000 people

For a band that tours as extensively as Metallica does, they’re bound to have some onstage mishaps from time to time. Just last month, guitarist Kirk Hammett suffered an apparent leg injury while performing Master of Puppets, but shook it off like a professional, barely missing a beat.

Now, Hammett has once again found himself at the centre of another onstage fumble, after forgetting how to play the intro of Nothing Else Matters while performing live.

The incident took place during Metallica’s sold-out show at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium on Friday, 4 August.

Fan-shot footage uploaded by YouTuber user ATARAXIA shows Hammett – armed with his legendary Gibson Les Paul, Greeny – kicking off the Black Album classic and 10th song in the set, seemingly with everything under control.

Seconds in, however, he appears to struggle with the song’s opening fingerstyle line, before raking his pick across the strings and calling a halt to proceedings.

He then steps over to a microphone and explains himself to the 80,000-strong crowd.

“Okay, it’s the first show. Haha! I’m going to do this intro all over for you guys again,” he says lightheartedly. “It’s just not good enough for myself, and if it is not good enough for myself, it’s not good enough for you!”

A second pass is all Hammett needs, though, as he proceeds to nail the intro on his next attempt. Watch the moment unfold below:

With the array of hard-riffing bangers in Metallica’s repertoire, Nothing Else Matters is hardly the first song you’d expect Hammett to mess up live. But we guitarists all have unique achilles heels.

Just last week, Dave Mustaine hit back at criticism levelled at Kirk Hammett regarding his playing abilities. “Kirk’s a really good guitar player,” the Megadeth leader said, following comments about Hammett’s solo on Lux Æterna, from Metallica’s latest album, 72 Seasons.

Metallica are currently in the midst of their M72 World Tour, which sees them put on back-to-back shows in different cities, with entirely different setlists on each night.

For instance, the band’s 4 August show at the MetLife Stadium saw them tackle the likes of Harvester of Sorrow, Fade to Black, Sad But True and Master of Puppets, while their 6 August set at the same venue saw them lean into Ride the Lightning, The Call of Ktulu, Blackened and One.

Tickets for Metallica’s M72 World Tour can be purchased via the band’s official website.