METALLICA's LARS ULRICH: Making 'New Music Is A Vital, Huge, Significant Part Of Who We Are'

In a new interview with Switzerland's 20 Minuten, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich spoke about his measure of success. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I would say, at this point, my measure of success is walking out of the studio with an album in our back pockets that we all felt super proud of. That's the main measure of success."

Referencing specifically the response to METALLICA's latest studio album, "72 Seasons", Lars said: "So far, the feedback has been fantastic. It's exceeding expectations.

"I would say a big thing for me about the success of this record is the joy of making it," he continued. "So in the past I think there have been times where you had to make a record. The record company [would tell you], 'Now you've gotta go make a record.' Those days are long gone. Now we make music because we want to, and we do it with joy and with a sense of appreciation. And we're not [going], 'Oh my God. There's an idea. What happens if that idea doesn't play out exactly how I want it?', all that craziness."

According to Ulrich, METALLICA will never stop making music because of a lack of inspiration.

"We have enough ideas for another 20 records," he explained. "We will never get all the riffs and the ideas to fruition because history dictates that that's just not gonna happen.

"There's never a conversation about should we make new music as in should we not make new music," he added. "So it's never a question like that. New music is a vital, vital, huge, huge, significant part of who we are."

According to Billboard, "72 Seasons" sold 146,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart. It marks the band's 12th Top 10-charting album, of which eight have reached the top two.

"72 Seasons" has had the biggest week for any rock or hard rock album since TOOL's "Fear Inoculum" arrived in September 2019 with 270,000 equivalent album units.

"72 Seasons" was released on April 14 via METALLICA's own Blackened Recordings. Produced by Greg Fidelman with guitarist/vocalist James Hetfield and Ulrich, it is METALLICA's first full-length collection of new material since 2016's "Hardwired…To Self-Destruct".

In the seven years since the arrival of "Hardwired… To Self-Destruct", METALLICA has reissued some of its classic albums, released a second live album with the San Francisco Symphony, commissioned a covers album featuring the likes of GHOST, VOLBEAT, WEEZER, Corey Taylor and THE HU, and landed on the Billboard songs chart with "Master Of Puppets" after a prominent placement in the hit Netflix show "Stranger Things".

METALLICA's "M72" world tour will feature two-night stops in nearly two dozen cities. Presented worldwide by Liquid Death and Blackened American Whiskey (in North America only) and promoted by Live Nation, the 46-show trek will launch in Amsterdam on April 27 and will include shows all over Europe and North America through 2024. Each "No Repeat Weekend" on "M72" will feature two completely different setlists and support lineups.