Lars Ulrich..

[Hard Ball Get]

Ordinary.
Cant stand him.

 

[Roddy]

I honestly reckon Gene Hoglan could drum in Metallica if he had his left arm tied behind his back......

 

[Shane Hird]

I'v got a metallica doco on vhs about the making of Black and you can see the tension in Hetfield and JN way back then when Lars turns up and starts educating everyone with loud boring statements.

7 or 8 years later,no wonder JH went mad during that 'Some Kind of Monster'.
All those years of listening to Lars waffle on got to him. A big power struggle was going for years between those two and tension bubble finally burst.

In the Black video,he holds up productivity by crapping on all the time about nothing, eats a lot and takes showers at the studio while evryone sits around waiting. He's a whiney whinging brat who loves the sound of his own voice and is a rock star who can't control his ego..for a second.

Can he play?.... he's good for Metallica but losing it a bit...its all he's got..and no other band would put up with him anyway.

 

[NSWCROW]

Don't mind him as a drummer but i reckon he would be an absolute KNOB !

 

[G.O.B]

Don't mind him as a drummer but i reckon he would be an absolute KNOB !

Having had the pleasure (and yes, it was a pleasure) to meet the band backstage when they were last out here(melbourne BDO), I can sincerely say that Lars would've left the best impression on the 15 or so people that had also won Meet & Greet passes.
He simply took more time with each person as he went around, signed absolutely everything that was put in front of him (even though we were told to limit our requests to 3 items) and was the only member to actually engage you in a converstion and ask you questions about your life.
He actually remebered someone he had met at a M&G 1 week earlier and jokingly attempted to have him thrown out as you are only allowed to "win" 1 M&G pass in any calender year.
I fully realise that Lars' public persona doesn't always paint him in the best light and that it is quite easy to perceive that he is an absolute knob.
I also fully realise that it does remain a possibility that he is a knob despite my personal experience but I would never question his dedication to Metallica and it's fans.
But each to their own I suppose.
A few photo's from a very memorable day for me. (the Kirk & James photo's have been cropped to get my ugly mug out of them)

Please Note: If anyone on BF actually appears in any of the photo's above and wants them removed please let me know via PM.

 

[gPhonque]

Lars sucks balls as a drummer. (has some great ideas quite often, but just lacks the ability to be able to play them with anything resembling "feel" and "timing.")

Although as a person, I've gotta say that I actually thought he was the best guy in Metallica after watching Some Kind Of Monster. (not counting Rob Trujillo of course!)

Lars seemed to be the only guy who wanted to make an album. James Hetfield is a complete twat, Kirk Hammet is one of those guys who believes that anything that comes out of his mouth is profound and important (when it's usually either obvious or stupid) while Lars, while sounding like a wnnker quite often, really just wanted to make music.....which is more than can be said about the other two. (James who simply didn't WANT to, and Kirk who, apart from seemingly having a brain the size of a cat, can't even play simple guitar riffs forcing the band to alter the riff.... probably my most favouite funny moment in the entire film! Just stick to your widdly-diddly Kirk.... which is even very good anyway.)

I think that if you can ignore the way and the manner in which Lars talks and gets his points across (which is what makes people think he's a wnnker) and just listen to what he actually saying, you realise he's right most of the time and nearly always has a very good point.

And for as much crap as everybody (including myself at the time) gave to Lars over the whole Napster thing, he was absolutely RIGHT, and his actions have helped bring about quite a few big changes when it comes to downloading and obtaining music online.

I think the reason people gave him crap over that was because people just thought (remembering that this was in the early days of file-sharing when nobody really knew how quickly and how largely it would blow up) that "Oh what a greedy prick - Metallica have sold enough albums to never have to work again and he's out trying to stop us downloading"..... when what he did was more about the principles involved.

ie. You wouldn't walk into a music store or into my house and steal my music, so why do it to us online?

And for that, I applaud him today.

 

[Scott MacFlaherty]

And for as much crap as everybody (including myself at the time) gave to Lars over the whole Napster thing, he was absolutely RIGHT, and his actions have helped bring about quite a few big changes when it comes to downloading and obtaining music online.

What changes have been made? You can still download pretty much anything you like for free if you wish to

 

[gPhonque]

What changes have been made? You can still download pretty much anything you like for free if you wish to

The entire idea of "buying" MP3's for a start. Was unheard of in the old Napster days when people were like "Cool! I'll never have to pay for music again!" and Lars was one of the first people to actually stand up and make an issue of it.

You seem to forget that nobody would have even comtemplated the idea of "buying" an MP3 in those days and that was basically what he was pushing for.... intellectual property rights in cyberspace... for the artists to get something from MP3 downloads, just as they get money from CD sales and radio airplay etc.

And fair enough too.

And today, there are countless sites selling MP3's.

People can still illegally download music of course, however the people who sit there downloading everything they listen to without ever buying anything are just pathetic and, although they'll claim to know and love and care about music, they're actually hurting it in the worst possible way by reducing its value to literally nothing, whilst simultaneously driving the price up for honest music listeners.

People NEED to BUY music. Not so much to support big-name labels and bands like Metallica (although they have every right to get their money) but to support music as a whole..... and in particular smaller artists and smaller independant labels who, in many cases, do what they do simply because they love it and often struggle just to stay alive week to week.

Lars' war against Napster certainly helped to speed up the process of buying digital downloads and popularizing the simple concept of IP rights in the digital domain, and that helps many smaller artists, even if it's just that little bit of money trickling in here and there.

 

[Shane Hird]

To much Lars is never enough!!


Who would have suited Metallica more for a replacement drummer if Lars had been sent back to the Lord instead of Cliff..?


Alex Van Halen?..he wouldn't have left his brother..

The guy from Iron Maiden?

the AC/DC drummer?


Would've Metallica be better if Lars had gone instead at an early time? Say before Master of Puppets?

 

[mr_cellotape]

The entire idea of "buying" MP3's for a start. Was unheard of in the old Napster days when people were like "Cool! I'll never have to pay for music again!" and Lars was one of the first people to actually stand up and make an issue of it.

You don't really understand how corporations operate, do you?

 

[gPhonque]

You don't really understand how corporations operate, do you?

Huh?

I never said that Lars created the changes single-handedly. (and that seems to be what you're implying...?) If you go back and read both of my posts, you'll find I said that Lars helped bring about the changes. Which he did. And he did that by being pretty much the first high-profile "celebrity" type person to actually stick his own neck out and tell his own "fans" that they were stealing from him.

It's all about changing attitudes.

Believe it or not, and despite how it seems around here sometimes, not everybody downloads music illegally these days, and the fact that there are numerous sites where people go to every day and BUY mp3's (when they could just as easily go to any number of places and steal them) is proof that attitudes have changed.

Lars had a fair role in that. When he spoke out, despite his status as one of the biggest jokes in music over the past 20 years, he still managed to divide people simply because his point was quite correct. (and splashed around the world because he was a world-famous artists and not just another faceless "corporation" looking for more money)

As for me not knowing about large corporations, I've worked for one of the biggest videogame companies in the world for over 10 years now (as part of a dev team) creating stuff that is pirated and stolen everyday. I've been through a few changes of ownership, seen people come and go, and have even been privy to quite a lot of the "behind the scenes" action which has been fascinating (and quite depressing at times) so I reckon I have a fair understanding of how they work..... and trust me, it's not all about money for the company, but when it comes to the power people, quite often all about ego and PERSONAL financial gain. For companies whos existence is based around money, they waste more than you could possibly imagine.

And to get back to piracy, despite what people think, piracy does hurt the big companies too....... but more to the point, it hurts the people like me and the people I work with who are all just trying to make OUR livings as well.

The only names and faces that people think about (if they think about who they're stealing from at all) when they illegally download music, or movies, or videogames, or whatever... are the people like Lars Ulrich, or the names SONY or WARNER or ELECTRONIC ARTS..... but behind those names (and as Lars pointed out in one of his statements) are thousands and thousands of people all trying to make their living as well.... cameramen, studio assistants, games programmers, artists, receptionists, toilet cleaners.... etc etc etc.... all of whom get hurt through piracy. Piracy affects salaries, jobs, and has even played a big part in many companies closing down (or big companies "downsizing" which results in more people losing their jobs which is the same thing at the end of the day.)

Again, Lars spoke out for ALL of those people.

And again, for that I applaud him.

 

[Smell The Glove]

To much Lars is never enough!!


Who would have suited Metallica more for a replacement drummer if Lars had been sent back to the Lord instead of Cliff..?

Would've Metallica be better if Lars had gone instead at an early time? Say before Master of Puppets?

Cliff Burton was the LAST person that Metallica could have lost (purely from a musical, not a personal standpoint). He was the driving force, and the primary influence that held Metallica together. He unified the band and got each of them thinking about other people than themselves for a change, as well as thinking of different styles of music. If Cliff was alive, I doubt they would have tured so corporate so quicky, or at least would have delayed or reduced any of the negative, inevitable aspect of commercialism. Lars was nothing more than a spoilt brat, together with an arrogant dictator and half-witted little snot until Cliff entered the band.

 

[FIGJAM]

For what's expected of a metal drummer, he's probably quite ordinary.

But he's no car crash and probably cops more than his share of abuse drumwise.

Deserves a bit os stick Napster-wise. I doubt he had little unkown bands in mind when fighting the fight!

 

[gPhonque]

Deserves a bit os stick Napster-wise. I doubt he had little unkown bands in mind when fighting the fight!

Perhaps not entirely, but here are a few random comments from his actual testimony:

(and I'm not having a go at you FIGJAM, just thought you might be interested...)


"We rent time for months at recording studios which are owned by small businessmen who have risked their own capital, to buy, maintain, and constantly upgrade very expensive equipment and facilities. Our record releases are supported by hundreds of record companies' employees and provide programming for numerous radio and television stations."

"Add it all up, and you have an industry with many jobs, a few glamorous ones like ours, and lots more covering all levels of the pay scale and providing wages which support families and contribute to our economy. Remember too that my band Metallica is fortunate enough to make a great living from what we do. Most artists are barely a decent wage and need every source of revenue available to scrape by. Also keep in mind that the primary source of income for most songwriters is from the sale of records. Every time a Napster enthusiast downloads a song, it takes money from the pockets of all these members of the creative community."

"It is clear then that if music is free for downloading, the music industry is not viable. All the jobs that I just talked about will be lost and the diverse voices of the artists will disappear. The argument I hear a lot, that music should be free, must then mean the musicians should work for free. Nobody else works for free, why should musicians?"

"We have to find a way to welcome the technological advances and cost-savings of the Internet."

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0007/11/se.01.html

 

[FIGJAM]

I stand corrected then.

FWIW, I have Limewire and do use it. The peculiarity of it is that it does not diminish my CD buying, but enhances it in much the same way hearing tracks consistently on the radio helps me unearth music I like.

I appreciate that this is not the same for everyone, but I'd like to know if there is actual proof of substantial falls in CD sales since Napster and it's many clones. JB, HMV and other superstores always seem packed when I'm in there!

 

[metallicamatty]

Lars Ulrich inspired me to start paying drums. Now, I am one of the best in my class

 

[Carlos]

I bet if Lars practiced for long enough, he too could become one of the best in your class as well.

 

[spanna050]

I don't profess to be a drum expert by any means, but Lars was the reason I got into Metallica back in the day, and I've heard numerous live performances and can't see any reason why he's not a good drummer.

Is it just me, or is hating on Metallica cool since the 'black' album?

 

[mr_cellotape]

I ... can't see any reason why he's not a good drummer.

You need to listen to more music.

 

[metallicamatty]

I don't profess to be a drum expert by any means, but Lars was the reason I got into Metallica back in the day, and I've heard numerous live performances and can't see any reason why he's not a good drummer.

Is it just me, or is hating on Metallica cool since the 'black' album?

Then consider me not cool

 

[Hard Ball Get]

Is it just me, or is hating on Metallica cool since the 'black' album?

Well the reality is they have not released much that is good since their self titled album. Load and Re-Load were pieces of ******** and S&M is a disgrace (they should have just released a normal live album). St. Anger is woeful and finally made me lose patience and I refused to buy it.

The only decent thing they have done since 'Metallica' is Garage. That is very good and it is good mainly because they are playing songs the way they played them in the beginning.

 

[Roddy]

I actually think S&M is pretty good. I'd rate it as the best thing they've done since MoP.
And yes, that does include AJFA. Bores the crap outta me, that album....