GARY HOLT: 'METALLICA Were The Best Of All Of Us' But 'I Think EXODUS Crushes Them' Now

In a new interview with Metal Hammer Spain, EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt spoke about the band's musical evolution, particularly in the wake of fellow metal legends METALLICA's massive commercial success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think the thrash bands that came after [us] — 'cause, obviously, the first two in the [San Francisco] Bay Area were us and METALLICA — were really chasing what METALLICA did. That's why most of 'em started doing ballads and they started following the blueprint a little, whereas EXODUS kind of did our own thing. And for better or for worse, we made our own decisions. We tried our hardest not to be like METALLICA."

Gary continued: "Everybody makes their own musical decisions. METALLICA were the best of all of us. I mean, I don't think so anymore — I think EXODUS crushes them, but that's my own humble opinion. But [METALLICA's third LP, 1986's] 'Master Of Puppets', to me, is the best metal album ever made. I fucking love it. I'm jealous, that album is so good. It makes me jealous. Some people like [METALLICA's second album, 1984's] 'Ride The Lightning' better. I think 'Master Of Puppets' is a masterpiece. That album and 'Stained Class' [by] JUDAS PRIEST are, to me, the two best metal albums of all time. [EXODUS guitarist] Lee Altus likes 'Ride The Lightning' better [than 'Master Of Puppets']. To me, it's no choice. It's, like, no — it's fucking 'Master Of Puppets'."

Back in 2021, Holt told U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine that EXODUS "stomped [METALLICA] into the dirt" when the two bands shared the stage at a New Year's Eve gig in San Francisco as they rang in the year 1986 along with MEGADETH and METAL CHURCH. "We were getting wasted after the show, and James [Hetfield, METALLICA frontman] was laughing and saying, 'Haha, that's the last time you guys'll ever support us.' And it was the last time we ever supported METALLICA," Gary said.

When Metal Hammer writer Dave Everley asked "The $64,000 question: no EXODUS, no thrash scene. True?" Holt replied, "Absolutely. I'll own that. We created the violent scene."

"The scene was rad," Holt added. "You could go to a different club five nights a week and never see the same band twice. There wasn't thrash metal competition, 'cause in the beginning there was only us and METALLICA. The first time I ever heard with them was when we played with them, and it felt like looking in a mirror. Later on, there was some competition. The bands were all friends, and we hung out together, but EXODUS owned [legendary San Francisco Bay Area club] Ruthie's. Everybody was gunning for us, but nobody could take us."

Holt's comments echoed those he made back in February 2021 when he told the "Alive & Streaming" YouTube series about EXODUS's 1985 concert with METALLICA: "We crushed METALLICA. And look, I'm not gloating — we crushed 'em, and they knew it. It was their big homecoming. They just finished recording 'Master Of Puppets', and we came out, and we had more amps, we had a bigger riser. We came out looking like the headliners. And we were partying hard after, and James comes up, and we were just getting wasted. [And he said,] 'That'll be the last time you guys open for us.' And it was. [Laughs] We never played with METALLICA again until in the recent decade, and that was, like, festivals somewhere."

Holt went on to say that he still gets along great with all the members of METALLICA. "I love 'em to death, and I'll always support 'em and always give them all credit where credit's due," he said. "I consider 'Master Of Puppets' the greatest metal album ever made. Nobody's ever come up with anything close to it. Maybe close would be JUDAS PRIEST 'Stained Class'. But I give 'em all respect. Even with 'St. Anger', I always said, yeah, if they made it sound right, it wouldn't be so bad. [I saw a thing] on YouTube, some guy re-recorded the whole album, but did it with a proper drum sound and guitar sound, and the songs are killer… I never listened to 'Lulu', because I don't want it to sully my opinion of the band I admire so much. [Laughs]"

"Lulu", METALLICA's controversial collaborative disc with Lou Reed, polarized fans around the world and earned the band some of the most scathing reviews of its career. The effort featured the late THE VELVET UNDERGROUND frontman's spoken-word poetry and lyrics combined with METALLICA's musical assault for a jarring experience that didn't sound like anything METALLICA had ever attempted before.

METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett was part of the original lineup of EXODUS alongside guitarist Tim Agnello, drummer Tom Hunting and vocalist Keith Stewart. Holt joined the band in 1981, while Kirk left to join METALLICA two years before EXODUS's debut album, 1985's "Bonded By Blood", saw the light of day.

Although EXODUS rarely gets mentioned alongside the so-called "Big Four" of 1980s thrash metal — METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX — "Bonded By Blood" inspired the likes of TESTAMENT, DEATH ANGEL, VIO-LENCE and many others to launch their careers and is considered one of the most influential thrash metal albums of all time.

EXODUS's twelfth studio album, "Goliath", came out on March 20 via Napalm Records.