The Two METALLICA Songs JAMES HETFIELD Finds 'Truly Difficult' To Perform Live: 'Really Messes With Me'

Metallica has been around for over 40 years, and their music is known for being fast, loud, and often complex.

But for frontman James Hetfield, two songs from their 2008 album Death Magnetic still stand out as especially difficult to play live.

In a MusicRadar interview in 2021, also featured by Loudwire, James said the main challenge isn’t about speed or difficulty.

It’s about keeping his playing and singing in sync.

The first track he mentioned was “My Apocalypse”, the final song on Death Magnetic.

“The guitar is doing the exact opposite of the vocal line,” Hetfield said. “It’s hard to keep both things consistent.”

That song was played live 37 times, according to Setlist.fm. The last time was back in 2011.

The second song is “That Was Just Your Life”, which opens the same album. Hetfield says the rhythm of the guitar part doesn’t line up with the melody of the vocals, making it tricky to perform.

“There’s a part where I sing ‘I close my eyes and find it all fit into place,’ but I’m playing a rhythm that completely goes against the vocal phrasing. That one really messes with me,” he said.

This one saw more time on stage, with 170 live performances through 2010, but has mostly been dropped from the setlist since then.

Even with the challenges, Hetfield still sees Death Magnetic as a key moment in the band’s history. In a 2008 interview with Guitar World, he said the band tried to reconnect with the sound of their early albums.

“We grabbed the essence of our old style and played it with the skill we have today,” Hetfield said. “You can’t really bring back the innocence of the early albums, but we tried to get as close to that as possible.”

About Death Magnetic

Produced by Rick Rubin, Death Magnetic marked a shift for Metallica, blending the raw energy of their early years with more modern execution.

The album features lengthy compositions, abrupt riff changes, and unpredictable rhythm sections. For longtime fans, it was a welcome blast from the past. For the band? A full-on workout.

As James made clear, some of these songs still push his abilities, not because he forgot how to play them, but because the sheer coordination they demand is still a puzzle even after all these years.

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