So true. I always wondered what’s the key to success with your band. After 15 years of being in bands I know for sure that getting along with each other makes at least 50%. Every time me and my bandmates had a great opportunity, our egos blew it up. That’s sucks
As someone whos been in a lot of bands i can say this is just not true. Proper musos get along with each other and other easily othjerwise yo ucant have anysuccess as a musician. This is how bands who formed as teenagers and stay together for 50 years act. The ynever had to be musicians, theyre metallica members.
Look, you need to take this seriously and understand that they're under so much pressure because when they go home they have to listen to their kids in their room playing Megadeth WAY TOO LOUD
This was so uncomfortable to watch when I was a teen, but having seen it over and over again as I've grown into an adult, and in therapy myself now, this was so raw and unfiltered, but most importantly, human. They weren't rock-gods, they were people like me. It solidified me as a fan not just of their music, but of them as people.
In retrospect Metallica were so ahead of their time by hiring a therapist when you consider how mental health had nowhere near the amount of attention compared to today.
I remember when this documentary came out many fans and people were half puzzled and half joking about watching Metallica going to therapy. It sounded like a comedy sketch from Saturday Night live. Now, years later everyone needs to recognise that this documentary made a lot for men's mental health. If people as hardcore as Metallica can talk openly about their feelings, why can't all the men in these world.
4:20 Lars is actually trying right here. I agree 100% that it should never have to be just one choice and the rest is fucked. There's always wiggle room when it comes to compromise and the problem we all have as people is that we like to make things more complicated to others because to us,having things a certain way is easier to us which isn't exactly fair to anyone else involved in your life and that's when self reflection has to take hold otherwise, nobody will grow to become adaptive and willing to learn and possibly grow.
Kirk has stood at the sidelines since cliff died just seeing these two "James and Lars" ripping each other apart. it was a total power struggle. I feel for Kirk. he should have said "you two are being complete dicks to each other. get your shit sorted out" more often in these moments
They are all gay. I knew as soon as I seen this shit. He’s in love with Hetfield. They all are. I was like wtf? Go back, and watch it. It’s all of them. They are literally in love with him. Not just friends. I’m telling you I was shocked. No wonder he’s n alcoholic.
@@spookshow6999 it didn’t ruined the band for you, it made you realize that your parasocial relationship and your fantastical idea of this band was shattered, it wasn’t their fault but yours for putting that assumption on them. You ruined the band for yourself by creating the idea that they’re these heavy metal rock gods and not normal human beings.
@@spookshow6999 to be fair, they weren’t like this early on. This was late into their career. They really were alcoholic angry young men with chips on their shoulder.
6:07 Bob is having a serious talk with the rest of the band about how after working with the band for years he still can't feel comfortable calling them his friends. Meanwhile the camera crew is filming Lars pacing around a fucking ping pong table cooling off after his little conniption to the sound of the loudest pair of track pants on planet earth.
He won't call them friends because they pay him very very very well. And well deserved by bob..can I ask you a question? Why the hell is bob there anyway?
@@natoprox4974Between the Black Album and St. Anger, Bob was the producer. Bob knew everything that was going in the band and everything individually. Bob saw 1st hand what Metallica was going through.
James and lars : * Arguing * Kirk :Rob? Rob : Yeah? Kirk : Are james and lars getting a divorce Rob : * Sigh * I-i don't know buddy we'll figure it out in the morning Kirk : okay
after watching this again i realized that how people like Lars are actually needed for a band. He is absolutely right when says to James that he shows up late then it's supposed to and James knows it too. everybody accuses Lars with being greedy, showman-ish, etc. but somebody has to deal with band's non-music related stuff and Lars just does that perfectly imho.
James Imposes a 4 hour window of WORK because of HIS problem. Doesn't want to take ownership of it. He shows up late. When he gets called out for it says IN THE PAST you showed up late. Totally not owning if it did happen in the past it wasn't when somebody imposed a 4 hour work window on the band. No wonder Dave Mustaine Kicked James ass.
@@Ukraineaissance2014 wtf are you even talking about. You've either never been an addict or have no idea how it works because this is the dumbest shit I've ever read. I was an IV heroin and coke addict for over a decade and I can promise you there's no 4 hour timer to be "suspiciously close to the amount of time goes by until an addict needs to score again" this is the kinda 3head uneducated crap I'd expect to hear on Fox News or from a 3rd grade education level idiot.
Should have brought Dave Mustaine into the room... Then you'd have the trifecta of issues. But I guess 20-30 years of letting shit slide, only stores it in the cupboard until someone opens the door.
00:03:55 "I'm more important than Metallica." This line is very sad to hear, in retrospect. James was suffering a lot around this time: you can hear it in his voice. I'm glad they're on better terms now, but Lars and Bob are lacking empathy throughout this conversation. The dude needed to get better, and he needed time and space. Metallica needed to go on the backburner for a while. As friends, they should have supported this.
Lars’ points and feelings are so valid here. He just wants everyone to put in the work to get the project done. And I’m not acting like I know how a major band operates but I know that 4 hours for any music session whether recording, writing or practicing, is not enough time, 2 hours can go by so quick before you actually start to get anything done. Bro took 10 months and only wants to work for not even 4 hours and just refuses to listen to anyone who is not okay with that and just constantly gaslights Lars and how he feels about the situation they’re in.
Yeah, exactly. As someone who works as a full time audio producer...James really thought they were going to make an album by putting in 20 hours per week AND having no work done on it when he's not in studio? When was it supposed to come out, 2010?
Also the comment about Lars not caring about his family if he’s willing to stay and work a full 8 hours. Surprised Lars didn’t flip his lid there. Like every male in America doesn’t work a full 8 hours everyday James. Jesus.
@@lyricelizabeth9860 You guys dont seem to appreciate the context. James' recovery is akin to chemotherapy. You're fighting for you life - literally. And your family and their wellbeing. Its 1000x more important than playing guitar. He's already got more money than he could ever spend. He's not opposed to hard work - he is trying to make a reasonable compromise by committing to continuing the work at all, while still being able to focus on his recovery. And Lars who is still blowing lines and drinking acts like the whole thing is just some silly siesta James is taking because he is still about the party life.
Lars: fighting James: fighting Kirk in his mind: “what’s for dinner?” *giving himself trivia on horror facts* *breaking down their arguments in his head*
@@killwalker you gotta give it to him though, a short balding guy with a round face, huge forehead, weird foreign accent and dorky voice. shows the importance of having a clear vision in life and knowing how to get there
Lars was not wrong about the lack of interest in other people's desires. But James was sticking to his guns to get through his sobriety. Tough situation. I was fascinated with this when it came out and remain so to this day. Excellent documentary. In all honesty, these guys should be commended for putting in real work with this effort at such a late stage in life. You can tell that they're really trying to access their authenticity. That's harder than it seems unless you've spent time on the couch. The pressure of where they were in their careers and the stunted growth that comes with celebrity...it's honestly a miracle that this conversation even happened, let a lone for 1.5 years.
No wonder why Mustaine got booted from the band. Could you imagine if Kirk wasn't there and it was Mustaine as the third guy in a conversation like this? Dave had way too much of a extrovert personality to last even if he wasnt a drunk back in the day.
@delreydavid They didn't bicker like this all the time early on. Dave was already an angry, violent drunk when he joined Metallica, and it's what got him booted from the band.
This makes me respect Metallica even more, because they're human. They make mistakes, they have flaws, and they have complicated thoughts, and emotions.
James: "I'm more important than Metallica" Also James when Jason wanted to pursue Echobrain for a while: "No. It's Metallica or bust, and we can make other arrangements"
But James wasn't trying to do solo music or work with a different band. Also, the band members were invested in Metallica. Newsted clearly wasn't fully devoted to the band. For good or bad reasons whatever, he wasn't fully invested. Lars' words...."he left the band..he LEFT the Band!"
@@killwalker Jason said that Qprime, their management company, was fully behind Echobrain and wanted to promote it, James found out and basically ordered them not to. That was final straw for Jason.
@@killwalker not true. Newsted wanted metallica to take a break with the intention of everyone coming back together after the year. Everybody needs a bread and just because Jason was tired didn't mean he wasn't devoted. It seems like he was a bit burnt and needed time to regroup.
@killwalker to be fair, James and Lars were both taking time away from the band at this point to be with their families. Jason had chosen to not commit himself to starting a family because music was his passion and his life. If they were taking time away from the band for personal reasons, why couldn't he? He was bullied relentlessly in Metallica, from day one right until he left. James didn't realise he couldn't have it both ways.
@@MrParkerman6 it's a proven fact that if you have to use "dumbass" twice in one comment that you in fact are the true dumbass. I await your response in which you say "but you just used it twice!!1!1!!1".
i was in a band with my brother and we had two guys that were always friction for eachother and us too... finally life happened and projects took them to other bands. my brother decided we would be a 3 piece and brought in our best friend to play drums for us. the next few years of the band were absolutely great.
Kirk is like a child watching his parents marriage fall apart. Like he’s totally neutral, and probably agrees with Lars / James on a lot of things and doesn’t want them to fight anymore, and sometimes as Lars becomes more and more of a piece of shit to James, Kirk has that lookin his eye like, “are we even gonna be able to finish this record?”
Are you saying Kirk is the problem!? I think the reason Kirk isn’t fighting is that 9 times out of 10 these issues are totally ego based and not worth fighting about.
@@pergustafsson1155 no lol, I’m not saying Kirk is the problem at all lol, if anything he’s probably the most reasonable person in the band at the time.
Kirk speaks then Lars taps the table thinking, "if it wasn't for the camera's I would throw this at you and tell you to GTFO!" I think Lars and James are just toxic
Kirk just wants to have fun and play music, kirk and rob are the two who are the sit aside and not join in alot, they just wanna play music and have fun, but it makes sense why james and lars take it personally when its literally their lifes work basically
What i really love about this video : Bob Rock is playing the role of an NFL coach applied to a metal band. That's stunning. Bob Rock could be a coach anyday. If you change "Metallica" with "the team", you got an NFL coach speech.
@@thebunnieskiller Dave is his own Genre like Ozzy. No one cares who Ozzy's new drummer or bassist is ect.. Mustaine is the band and whoever He decides to be with is good enough fool.
@@Momoa786 they're both that way in their own ways. Lars is the reason metallica even exists. Without him there is no metallica, that's why they respect him and hetfield hasn't punched his nose in.
Ramsés F. Yeah James Hetfield caused all the shit for Metallica. Hazing Jason and then creating all the drama which caused him to leave. He’s a true asshole
@@Grimeyhoob I know, but it's sad that people say great things about him and just talk shit about Lars. They blame Lars for Napster but then enjoy Spotify. They blame Lars for be "mainstream" but they love The Black Album. They make jokes about his drum skills but they enjoy all his work. And people talk about James like he's a God and just an innocent guy, but even he says that Lars is the reason why Metallica still existing.
@@Grimeyhoob Dude obviously you are blinded by the media he's not as much of a jerk he didn't at the time notice that he was bullying jason newsted and that's because he was still grieving the lost of thier bassist cliff burton and didn't even get a full six months in to do so which preferably is the minimum amount to grieve! Also he was very young and less wise but never noticed everyone messes up in life. And he was loaded on beer because the poor man was rushed into fame and his still had anxiety I mean he said to conquer it he would drink, drink, and drink to not get scared on stage!! So he's not purposely a jerk he's had a lot to deal with and to be honest lars and him are a lot like which often makes both against each other. So next time you think he is a bully, jerk, idiot, blah blah blah i mean dude he's had a lot and he never showed emotion and at the age he is now it's all spilling out....
Wow i didn't know about all this. Group therapy for the band was brave bold and obviously has made them stronger and better and than ever and kept them going for so long after. Also to include Rob and how to treat a new member at the time like family. Lars frustration really shows when he's walking around the table repeatedly lol. Respect to Metallica for going through that and sorting out thier problems as a band and as individuals. They are legends!!
Yeah, being able to show your fans the stuff that goes on behind the scenes (emotionally) is really hard. They see you as being immortal, legendary, exempt from pain, but your heroes are human too!
4:50 most of us have to be somewhere for 8 hours and even longer. I know he wasn't talking about people in general but I'm with Lars on that you need the time to be put in. Long term it's usually for the best
Yeah the problem is Lars is a drummer he can spend all day in the studio doing blow and not actually having to work. A lot of the issues going on behind the scenes was that lars didn't think getting drunk and doing cocaine all day long, was something to stop just because James went in to rehab. The flip side is obviously it's absurd that they couldn't work without him in the studio.
I was so pissed at the way Lars treated James after he came back from therapy. Couldn't he just cut him some slack and be more understanding?? He was so impatient and James was obviously shaken and vulnerable.
What they Don't show is james going in to check on Lars after he walked away and Lars thanked him for coming to check on him. The Book bye the Filmmakers is really Great , I've read it a few times
I wish Axl, Slash and Duff had done this back in 1995. GNR broke up for 19 years because of resentment like this. Lars and James spoke about their feeling rather keeping it all inside.
Everyone ripping on Lars for his whining should understand that he's the only reason the band still exists. He was the only one not afraid to be honest, even if he was insulting James. By being brutally honest with James, they were able to overcome their breakdown in communication and rebuild their relationship. Unfortunately for GNR, Axl never seemed to want to do this.
Everyone in the comments really doesn't understand what was going on, they lack the empathy. When James said "I'm more important than Metallica" he saw his normal life slipping away, he loved his wife and kids and hated the man he became because he was an alcoholic. He needed to work on his issues in his life and was saying "hey right now I need to work on myself." Lars was frustrated because he was losing something that he is proud of, he created this huge metal band that will never be forgotten and at that point in time he thought it may just end. He had been with James from day one and he thought he would lose him. They both were just hurt and were expressing their points of view. I do think Lars should have allowed James to figure out his life's problems without pushing to make an album and if Kirk and Lars were not willing to wait they should have asked James to leave. In retrospect this was actually handled very well, James got the help he needed and they made the album regardless.
Agreed. James was going off the cliff to get himself together and he expects his long time friends to understand. Lars basically threw a two year tantrum about how he has always felt less-than in the band and in the friendship and he didn’t want to let it continue since it wasn’t him that was stopping the band to get it together. In my mind, this is AMAZING stuff and this band means everything to these guys! Most bands would just implode. Most bands break up rather than fight it out and come to love and understand each other and continue on. Granted, this band was/is a huge machine that a lot of people rely on for a living but still, the spirit of rock n roll has always been to implode. These guys broke the mold for a minute in time by hiring the therapist to assist them and get to the root causes of their problems and work it out. This man earned his money in this gig. Without his efforts, it’s possible that Metallica would have been done for. Then in walks Rob and they go on to make the best music as a unit since MOP.. 💯🙏
I think not. Urlich is feeling excatly this: 2:33 , he have a good moral compass. Hetfield is used to playing with others so he can get what he want. Lars is respecting others but always being frustreded BECAUSE no one give him this credit back, he is not self-centric jerk like James. Lars also have life but no one cares about what he is feel. And now look at this: Lars is being himself all the time, he is honest being truth even if somebody with not agreed with him. James all of he's lifetime was lieying, acting, fooling everyone and now he have a mental problems, he can't be himself no more. He must play this fuc*king star all the time. #teamlars #respecting #rules
@@czernm20 EXACTLY. Lars is actually the altruistic one in the video that get fed up about how everything had to be scheduled around James's feeling of the moment while Lars never had to stop or nobody cared about his feelings and his family duties as well to get Metallica going like it's always been this way and Lars just had to deal with that. When he says that Metallica and family duties can coexist, Hetfield just blew him off with a shitty ass response like Lars working 8 hours on a Metallica project means that Lars doesn't give a shit about his family. What a shitty thing to say. How is that supposedly make Lars the bad guy here?! Lars should have punched James in the face just for implying that Lars is a shitty dad .just because he wanted to spend time on Metallica's new music balancing his family duties.
This is actually quite nice to watch. You see everyone kind of go through it, I think it’s very respectable they all try to talk to eachother and feel it out. With Lars reacting “This is what bugs me about this process, is asking how im feeling about every single thing that happens” (I’m paraphrasing) but you can tell he’s getting that annoyed feeling about therapy, but at the same time it’s working because he’s letting it all out, and I think this ultimately saved the band to continue making music now for fans that weren’t around when they exploded!!
"When you sit here for 8 hours, and dont go home, i think he dosent give a shit about his Family" Eeeehm James, i hate to tell you this...all non rockstar people Work for 8 hours every day, and still care for their Family.
Old comment but I'll reply anyways. I think he was referring to being in a studio voluntarily instead of being with his family. Their circumstances are a little different. They can choose to either be in the studio or be with their family, it's not an actual JOB.
Lars said "if that's what it takes." He was referring to the effort you have to put in to make a quality record, not that he does not give a shit about his family. Why would that be a huge concern for James? It is not about "choosing to be in the studio." It is about the sacrifices of time in the studio to make quality music. Has anybody here had experiences with an alcoholic? My sister is one (over 1 year sober now) and they are extremely difficult to deal with, drunk or sober. It is amazing how the Hetfield fanboys still defend him to the bitter end and try to blame it all on Lars and Jason.
@Luke Bargowski when you're going through a lot of unhealty and bad attitudes by your bandmates, you don't pay attention to the things that you will loose if you leave, you have to do what is best for your self no matter the success or fame that you could get.
Kirk was the only one to make a smart statement, keeping himself out of the problem and saying out loud the other 2 had huge ego issues and need to resolve them
They all make sense bc they all have their own needs. True empathy is one of the most nuanced and difficult human conditions. Talking about it is difficult.
Listen you don't threw 40 years + without any hiccups. Ye guys are awesome and Merry Christmas Metallica... We all Fucking Love you guys!!! Don't ever give up please!!!!