Lars Ulrich is the mastermind behind METALLICA's annual festival "Orion Music + More" (full details HERE). Love him or hate him, Ulrich is one of the smartest business man in our music. This year the event will take place in Detroit, Michigan during the weekend of June 8-9, 2013." Our friends from Revolver Magazine recently chatted with Ulrich about this years massive musical event, a few excerpts of the interview follow:
REVOLVER: What are your favorite memories from last year’s Orion Music + More Festival?
LARS ULRICH: That whole experience I had in my film tent. It was just so cool to show movies to 300 Metallica fans and do Q&As with the directors and the producers. I also enjoyed getting a chance to play Ride the Lightning and doing the “Black Album” thing in its entirety, which was the only time we did it in America. And just hanging and being part of the scenery for a couple days.
I had fun seeing the bands, too, in the various tents, from the Hot Snakes to the Jim Breuers of the world. Seeing Avenged Sevenfold and The Sword and Sepultura and Arctic Monkeys. I got a chance to introduce the Arctic Monkeys, which was really cool, because I have a 14-year-old kid who worships the ground that the Arctic Monkeys walk on. So I actually was a pretty cool dad for a couple minutes when I introduced them.
Which artists are you most excited to see this year?
I saw the Chili Peppers in San Francisco about six months ago. They’re on a fucking roll at the moment. They’re better than they’ve ever been. I was completely blown away for two hours. We did a run with the Deftones in 2003 on our Summer Sanitarium Tour, which was really cool. Those guys are always good. Dropkick Murphys, those guys are so much fun and have so much energy. [Laughs] There’s such a positive vibe in what they do. Bringing in the 2013 incarnation of Black Flag, minus the “Black,” is obviously going to be pretty fun. My 14-year-old has turned me on to Japandroids, and I’ve heard some of their stuff, which is pretty amazing. I’ve become kind of a late fan of Fu Manchu. My girl actually turned me on to them a little while ago, so I’m a brand new fan of theirs. I’m glad that they’re with us. You know, [proto-punk band] Death. [Laughs] We’ll have Death come out and do their thing in Detroit again! And the Dillinger Escape boys. Lots of different stuff.
You mentioned Flag. Did you ever see Black Flag during their original run?
Yeah, we did. We actually saw them in New Jersey around ’84 or ’85. That was a very special night, because up ’til now—I’m not saying it won’t happen again—but up ’til now, that’s the only time I’ve been hardcore punched. We were hanging out at the Black Flag gig, and one of the bouncers asked us to leave. And I gave him a pretty obnoxious remark back, and the motherfucker just hit me hard in the stomach. And my stomach sort of caved around his fist. That’s the other thing I remember about that night other than seeing Black Flag.
Will you be playing any of your classic albums this year? Find out HERE!
Ticket info: http://www.orionmusicandmore.com/tickets/
Related links:
Orion Music and More
