Kirk Hammett maintains that it was the maturity of his Metallica bandmates that allowed him the freedom to record and release his debut solo EP, Portals.
Hammett spoke about the critically acclaimed new set to Consequence Of Sound's Kyle Meredith, with Ultimate-Guitar.com transcribing Hammett's view on the first solo project released in the group's 40-year-history.
The guitarist revealed, “Things are just different now with Metallica. I mean, we're just a lot more mature, I guess. A lot more responsible, I guess (laughs)? And so it seems like a solo album, it's a different understanding. I think the understanding nowadays is that we're all artists, and we all create, and we should have the opportunity to express ourselves, put out whatever art we want to put out to the world.”