Where James Hetfield Got the Idea for Metallica’s ‘72 Seasons’ Album Title
We've already shared with you the meaning of the Metallica song title, "Lux Æterna," so it seems fitting to give you some insight on why 72 Seasons is the title of the new Metallica album and where that title actually comes from.
Luckily, James Hetfield filled in the blanks (as heard below), explaining, "72 Seasons came out of a book I was reading about childhood, basically, and sorting out childhood as an adult. And 72 seasons is basically the first 18 years of your life. How do you evolve and grow and mature and develop your own ideas and identity of self after those first 72 seasons?"
The veteran singer-guitarist then added, "Some things are more difficult than others — you know, some things you can't unsee and they're with you for the rest of your life, and other things you're able to rewind the tape and make a new tape in your life. So that's the real interesting part for me, is how you're able to address those situations as an adult and mature."
Speaking about his own path, Hetfield commented, "There's been a lot of darkness in my life, and in our career and things that have happened with us, but always having a sense of hope, always having the light that is in that darkness… Without darkness, there is no light, and being able to focus a little more on the light in life instead of all of the… how it used to be and how horrible it is."
"There's a lot of good things going on in life - focusing on that instead, and it helps to balance out my life," says the Metallica frontman. "And there's no one meaning to it, everyone has some sense of hope or light in their life, and obviously, music is mine. And the song specifically talks about gathering of people at a concert and [being] able to see the joy and the life and the love that comes out of music and the family and the kinship in that, and just a sense of uplifting."
The 72 Seasons album is set for an April 14 release. In other news, Metallica also just announced a massive World Tour that carries them through 2023 and into 2024. Get your tickets here and you can also look into a variety of "enhanced experience" ticket packages ranging from $414 up to $7,272. Learn more here.