Metallica

So What! spends an evening at Chez Ulrich learning exactly how Stone Brewing – and Enter Night Pilsner – came to be.

This was all it threatened to potentially be. A special night, one for the ages that turned up not just a fantastic collection of performances but also allowed many on both sides of the stage a chance to properly grieve the tragic, senseless passing of Chris Cornell and celebrate his enormous life and talent.

Kirk Hammett is currently in his trusty VW camper, toodling along a Hawaiian road, eyeing the surf and knowing he is fully prepared for whatever might need to go down in the next few hours (he maintains a stash of gear for various activities). To that extent, asking him to cast his mind back over three decades ago could well be asking a lot. But Kirk is always able to slip effortlessly into whatever conversational mode is required, and within minutes we find ourselves reflecting on all things Justice with the Hawaiian scenery temporarily forgotten.

This leg has been something else for me. Many good times, many smiles, many unexpected things as well. I look at pictures now, and I think that both today and 20 years from now, those pictures and memories will be something very special, a once in a lifetime opportunity we got to take and enjoy with family.