Kirk Hammett Explains Why He Used Three Wah Pedals Together on Metallica’s “Hardwired”

Kirk Hammett was interviewed by Woody at Minnesota radio station 93X on Saturday, August 20, a few hours before Metallica performed at the new U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. They were the first group to play at the venue.

Asked about the response to Metallica’s new single, “Hardwired,” which the band released just two days before, Hammett says he’s grateful for the positive reaction.

“I know there’s a great buzz out there, and I’m totally, totally thankful the song is so well received,” he says.

Hammett also explains how he came to use three wah pedals simultaneously on the song and talks about the group’s new album, Hardwired…to Self-Destruct and the next phase in Metallica’s history.

“It really feels like we’ve climbed the summit and reached the peak, and now we can cruise for a while,” Hammett says.

Hardwired…to Self-Destruct comes out November 18.

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Christopher Scapelliti

Christopher Scapelliti is editor-in-chief of Guitar Player magazine, the world’s longest-running guitar magazine, founded in 1967. In his extensive career, he has authored in-depth interviews with such guitarists as Pete Townshend, Slash, Billy Corgan, Jack White, Elvis Costello and Todd Rundgren, and audio professionals including Beatles engineers Geoff Emerick and Ken Scott. He is the co-author of Guitar Aficionado: The Collections: The Most Famous, Rare, and Valuable Guitars in the World, a founding editor of Guitar Aficionado magazine, and a former editor with Guitar WorldGuitar for the Practicing Musician and Maximum Guitar. Apart from guitars, he maintains a collection of more than 30 vintage analog synthesizers.