The artist who talked himself out of joining Metallica
When people first start learning an instrument, it’s likely that the only thing they want to do is be a famous artist and travel the world. That’s exactly what Metallica was able to achieve. With their blend of heavy metal and rock music, a healthy mix of punchy vocals, distortion-laden riffs and unrelenting rhythm, they have amassed a fanbase that spreads worldwide. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that?
Of course, you don’t get to such a prestigious level without setting yourself a high bar. Metallica has strict rules when it comes to getting anyone new to play in the band. They need to have a specific technical ability that meets the band’s expectations, and everyone in the band has to be on board with the sound.
There have been a number of reasons why the band has needed some new members, from the passing of Cliff Barton to stints in rehab, but regardless of the circumstances surrounding the appointment of a new member, that high bar has remained. As such, many aspiring Metallica bassists have ended up falling short of the mark; however, only one was good enough but talked himself out of joining.
While your ambition when you start learning an instrument might be to play in a successful rock band, that can change slightly when you do find success. When your passion becomes your job, your image of it shifts, as you want to see it done to the best that it can be in the face of impending deadlines and increased stress. As such, when Pepper Keenan auditioned to be in Metallica and saw that it might result in the downgrade of the band, he stepped away from the position.
During Metallica’s wilderness period in the mid-1990s, they experimented with different styles of rock and were keen on working with an adaptable bassist who could quickly change to whatever style they were pursuing. Keenan seemed like a good choice, as the band were already fans of his, particularly James Hetfield, but that fandom is where the problems started to arise.
While Keenan’s audition for the band was successful, there was no escaping the fact that Hetfield was a fan of the bassist and was happy to have him there. However, that slowly started to manifest in a changing dynamic in the band, as Lars Ulrich began to worry that things in the band may sway further towards Keenan and that it could change how they operate. Keenan felt this shift too, so he removed himself from the audition process, telling Metallica that he didn’t want to be in the band but would help them find another bassist.
“If you guys just wanted somebody to play the bass, then that’s easy, but I know you don’t,” he said when discussing potential options, “Hire some cat to sing the shit and play band, you can find somebody to do that, but you don’t want that, I know you don’t want that. Go listen to some of the stuff Cliff Barton did for the short time he was around, and I don’t wanna get too philosophical, but that was a very strong character. They don’t come around too often. You guys know that.”
In the end, Metallica hired Ozzy Osbourne and Suicidal Tendencies bassist Robert Trujillo.
