Kirk Hammett calls Judas Priest the “architects” of heavy metal

Kirk Hammett has hailed Judas Priest as the “architects” of heavy metal in a Q&A.

During the Q&A, a photo of the Metallica guitarist and singer James Hetfield watching Priest at the Power Trip festival in Indio, California last year is projected behind him. Hammett says, “We were worshipping at the altar of Judas Priest, their music means so much to us. And the way Glenn Tipton and KK Downing played the guitars – I mean, they are architects of what we now know as heavy metal, to put it bluntly. And James and I, we love Priest.”

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Hammett explains that he doesn’t always get to see other bands when playing festivals because the band will be backstage doing interviews or preparing for their own sets. “So when we did Power Trip, we got there early, just so that we could see all the other bands. And it was great – the anticipation of seeing Iron Maiden, Priest, AC/DC, Guns N’ Roses, and actually seeing them. It was a wonderful time,” he adds.

As well as Judas Priest, Metallica are also big fans of Motörhead. Last month, Hetfield slammed the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for not including the band’s late frontman Lemmy Kilmister, saying, “The most rock and roll lifestyle-living person on this planet is not in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, which is a travesty, a shame. It’s kind of a disrespect to rock and roll, basically.”

Currently, Metallica are in the middle of a European tour with their next shows at Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 14 and 16 June.

Their tour has a ‘no repeat weekends’ format, where they’re playing two sets at the same venue, but with completely different setlists.

You can take a closer look at the tour dates, and buy tickets, on Metallica’s website.