“It had a huge impact on me and helped shape who I am today”: Metallica’s Lars Ulrich on being an Oasis superfan
The Metallica drummer has loved Oasis since the early days – and even once did the lights for them at a show
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Mark Milan/FilmMagic)
The UK and Ireland can be divided into two camps this morning: those who got Oasis tickets and those who didn’t. You can be sure that WhatsApp chats across England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland are ablaze with back and forths about who got lucky and bagged their pass to witness the return of the Gallagher brothers’ band, and those conversations are likely happening further afield too. There is a high chance that across the pond right now, in between two giant shows at Seattle’s Lumen Field, Metallica’s Lars Ulrich is shaking his fists at the sky and complaining to his bandmates about Ticketmaster’s queuing system.
That’s because the Metallica drummer is a self-confessed Oasis fanboy, as he explained to The Guardian for the 20th anniversary of their classic debut Definitely Maybe. He revealed how he got into the Britpop legends in their early days after reading an interview with the siblings and then stumbling across one of their tunes on the radio. “In 1994 I was browsing through an issue of a magazine called Select, and there was a story about a band from England, with some unusual looking fellows, that I’d never heard of,” he explained. “I skimmed across the article, and was quite amused by the fact that every other word was either “fuck” or “cunt”. There was a pretty detailed description of a conversation between one of the guys in the band, Noel Gallagher, and Paul Weller, that was particularly off-colour and very, very funny. It reeked of attitude and not giving a fuck, which at the time – at the height of the shoegazing-I-can’t-handle-being-a-rockstar attitudes that were becoming mainstream – was very refreshing.”
A few weeks later, Ulrich continued, he was driving around San Francisco listening to local alternative radio station Live 105 when one of their songs popped up on the airwaves. It was, he recalled, “unlike any I had ever heard before.” “The attitude, the aloofness, and the not-giving-a-fuck vibes were pouring out of the speakers, and by the time the first verse/bridge/chorus cycle was done, I was convinced that whatever I was listening to had to be that band that I had read about in Select a few weeks back. And sure enough I was right. It was Oasis and the Supersonic single. Thus began a long and very rewarding relationship with a sound, an approach and a way of looking at the world that has had a huge impact on me and helped shape who I am today … for whatever that’s worth.”
Ulrich ends his Oasis eulogy with an apt precursor to what’s going on around the announcement of their comeback shows this week, a reunion that everyone – both pro and anti – has had an opinion about. “The Oasis phenomenon cut across all shapes , sizes, boundaries and classes,” he said. “Everybody knew Oasis, and in some way were impacted by them. And if they didn’t love them, it was often the polarising opposite. But most importantly, nobody didn’t care. Everyone had an opinion. Everybody had a thought. Nobody ignored them. No one.”
Of course, maybe Ulrich has already snagged his place on what is sure to be a highly-competitive guestlist. He’s become pals with Noel Gallagher over the years, and even ended up as part of their crew at one point. “Doing the lights for them at a club show in the spring of ’95 at some God forsaken hole in the wall in Nowheresville, New Jersey, was a distinct highlight of my early encounters,” he reminisced. “They didn’t have a crew guy to run the light board, and I was the only one in the building that knew the songs.”
We don’t think his lighting skills will be required for next year’s run of shows, though. Judging by the ticket prices, there should be more than enough room in the budget for a pro.
News
These 5 Guitarists Are the Greatest Disciples of Jimi Hendrix tt
These 5 Guitarists Are the Greatest Disciples of Jimi Hendrix The Voodoo Child’s musical offspring. There’s no denying the immense influence Jimi Hendrix had on guitar playing. All you have to do is give a listen to some of the…
‘It’d Be Hard for Me to Name One Song’: Michael Sweet Explains Why He’s ‘Never Been a Big Fan of Metallica’ tt
‘It’d Be Hard for Me to Name One Song’: Michael Sweet Explains Why He’s ‘Never Been a Big Fan of Metallica’ “But hey, man, God bless ’em.” Michael Sweet admitted he wasn’t a big fan of Metallica even though he…
After This Album, Metal Music Was Changed Forever: 20 Years Later, and It Still Holds Up! tt
After This Album, Metal Music Was Changed Forever: 20 Years Later, and It Still Holds Up! A visionary mix of thrash, groove, and death metal from the New Wave of American Heavy Metal’s finest. 173,950 views · 31 comments Share During the…
‘Metallica’s Not Running Tape’: David Ellefson Explains Why Bands Shouldn’t Use Backing Tracks, Says Some Mistakes Are ‘Beautiful’ tt
‘Metallica’s Not Running Tape’: David Ellefson Explains Why Bands Shouldn’t Use Backing Tracks, Says Some Mistakes Are ‘Beautiful’ “Sometimes, the mistakes are beautiful.” It seems like nowadays, more and more music artists are relying on playing along with pre-recorded or…
Jason Bonham Leaves The Best of All Worlds Tour Due to Family Emergency, Watch the Band Play With New Drummer. tt
Jason Bonham Leaves The Best of All Worlds Tour Due to Family Emergency, Watch the Band Play With New Drummer Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, and Joe Satriani have already played with a replacement drummer behind the kit. Drummer Jason Bonham…
Steve Harris Reveals Why He Prefers Fender Precision Basses: ‘I’ve Tried a Lots of Others Over the Years, but…’ tt
Steve Harris Reveals Why He Prefers Fender Precision Basses: ‘I’ve Tried a Lots of Others Over the Years, but…’ “The position just always felt right for me.” Steve Harris revealed why he prefers to use Fender Precision basses. In an…
End of content
No more pages to load