METALLICA Guitarist Talks About His 'Too Much Horror Business' Book

METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett recently spoke to the San Francisco Chronicle about his upcoming book titled "Too Much Horror Business - The Kirk Hammett Collection". Due in October via Abrams Images, the book documents Kirk's love of all things horror and the legendary collection of horror memorabilia he has amassed over the years.

"Too Much Horror Business" is a stunning 228-page, hardback, large-format coffee-table book featuring well over 300 full-color images from Kirk's private collection and exclusive set photography by Mark Leialoha and Joe Gibbs. There are three extensive conversations with writer Steffan Chirazi covering the importance of collecting in Hammett's life from childhood, plus written captions by Kirk for many of the items displayed in the book.

"I've been into [horror] stuff since I was 5 years old," Kirk said. "You could say I started as a collector back then. But at one point, when I was 14, I discovered music, and for a long time it took over my life."

"My love for this stuff is insane and totally obsessive-compulsive," Hammett added. "It's just one of those things. I'm still waiting to outgrow it or get tired of it or get bored with it. But it does not seem to happen."

"When I see my kids totally into their Legos, it brings me back to the days I was hanging out and playing with my monster models," he said. "It brings me there in a second."

With the blessing of his second wife, Lani, whom he married in 1998, Kirk has slowly been introducing the kids to the creature features of his youth.

"The other day [my kids and I] watched 'Bride Of Frankenstein', and they loved it," he said.

During a recent viewing of "Ghostbusters", Hammett said, "I said to the younger one, 'This is a little scary, but I'll be sitting right next to you.' And he goes, 'You don't have to do that, Dad. I'm tough.' "

Read the entire interview, and check out photos, from San Francisco Chronicle.