Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett will release his first-ever solo project named Portals on April 23rd. The four-track EP will be the first solo project released by an active member of the band and will be released via Blackened Recordings.
The EP features the likes of drummers Jon Theodore and Abraham Laboriel, Greg Fidelman on bass, Bob Rock and the Emmy-award winning arranger Blake Neely. On top of that, two of the four tracks, High Plains Drifter and The Incantation, are co-written by Edwin Outwater who adds keyboards as well as conducting the LA Philharmonic who worked with Metallica on S&M2.
Produced by Kirk, the EP promises to be true to its name by opening up gateways into various places. For a start, the record was recorded in various places all over the world from LA to Paris. Anyone that knows anything about Kirk and his love of cinema will have a decent idea of what to expect from the record.
“This music was created with what I describe as an Audio-Cinematic approach. They’re soundtracks to the movies in your mind.” says Hammett. “Initially, before I even had the idea for a solo EP, I was inspired by the need to create some sort of soundtrack music to accompany The Kirk Hammett Collection for the first ‘It’s Alive’ exhibition at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, 2017,”
“I wanted to conceive music to play on a loop in the background as people walked through the exhibit. I sat down one night with a progression, and before I knew it, all the parts were there for ‘Maiden and the Monster,’” in reference to one of the tracks on the EP.
Kirk Hammett’s Portals will be available on April 23rd on digital platforms, physical CD and as a record store day exclusive ocean blue vinyl via Blackened Recordings