Metallica and the Freedom to Roam William Irwin *This essay is excerpted and adapted from The Meaning of Metallica: Ride the Lyrics. Metallica means freedom, and “Wherever I May Roam” is a declaration of individual independence, a freedom manifesto. The song starts with sitar, evoking visions of the far East, but this is an American…
Musical Journeys with Metallica’s Kirk Hammett William Irwin I’ve appreciated Metallica’s instrumental compositions, particularly “Orion,” but I prefer music with lyrics. Really, I’m obsessed with song lyrics. My book The Meaning of Metallica: Ride the Lyrics explores lyrical themes in Metallica’s songs, including freedom, religion, insanity, death, war, and addiction. I like a song to…
Coming Home from War and Metallica’s “Confusion” By William Irwin (originally published at Psychologytoday.com) Life is war. It’s a common metaphor. In fact, I thought it was the theme of Metallica’s new song “Confusion” when I first heard it. The lyric that comes through most clearly is “My life, the war that never ends.” Listening…
30 Years of Master of Puppets and Philosophy “Honesty is my only excuse” By William Irwin It was 30 years ago today, March 3, 1986, and I was about to turn sixteen. Actually, I remember hearing “Battery” for the first time on my friend Joe’s boom box weeks earlier. He had taped it off…
The world has elected its first heavy metal president, Indonesia’s Joko Widodo—a man who proudly turns it up to 11 when playing Metallica. Some may see this as the end of the world as we know it, but I feel fine about the prospects of a headbanger in chief. Despite misperceptions, metal has had an…
The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series 