Many have wondered why Kirk Hammett had no writing involvement in Metallica’s latest Hardwired…To Self-Destruct release. For over a year now, it has been no secret that Hammett lost his iPhone that had about 250 song ideas. Shortly after Metallica’s performance in Toronto on November 29th, Bravewords managed to sit down with Hammett to reflect on the loss of his phone including new material that could have been included on the new album.

While Hammett discussed his love for a cassette player he admitted how terrible he is remembering his phone as he stated, “I’m like the poster boy for losing his iPhone. I am the poster boy for that.”

Hammett continued to explain his story:

“Let’s just say it’s like, the reverberations for me, the consequences of losing my cell phone have been immense. I mean, it doesn’t matter who you are or what type of person you are, I think losing your cell phone is traumatic for anyone. And I mean, okay, I lost my phone, I lost a lot of music, but I mean, people lose cell phones, they lose all their personal information, you know? I’m kind of a technological sloth. It took me losing my iPhone to figure out that I can back it up to the iCloud. And the ironic thing about that is, the guy who invented the cloud is my next-door neighbour (laughs).”

As Hammett revealed how much was lost versus what he remembered, he mentioned that he is always writing. I’m sure many are curious where that will take him and who knows, maybe a new Metallica record within less than an eight-year gap?  

“Let me tell you this. I had about, I don’t know, 450 entries in there, which means there were about 250, 300 riffs because a lot of times I’ll write different versions of the same riff. And when I lost my phone, I could only recall about four riffs. So I’ve closed the book on that (laughs). And, you know, I’m sitting on some music—now!—that I’m happy about. I’m just waiting, waiting for an opportunity, you know, where it can grow. – And, you know, I’m always writing music. Every time I pick up my guitar, I’m hoping I can write the next ‘Rock The Nation’ or something.”

Aside from Hammett’s iPhone reflection, the interview was informative as it explained information on the recording process, comparisons to previous albums, and much more.