Josh Hart from Guitar World spoke with METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett about the upcoming Orion Festival, his new book and the band's new album. Here are a few excerpts from the chat:

Guitar World: The most striking thing about the festival is the incredibly diverse lineup. How did that come together? Did you all come to the table with a list of bands you wanted to see on the bill?

Hammett: "What happened was we got a long list of bands who were available, and we just kind of picked and chose. And made sure that whoever we picked was someone we actually like. (laughs) I'm really looking forward to it. And we also have these lifestyle tents that are kind of based on our own individual interests. James is having a car show, Lars is having a movie festival type thing, Rob is having a skate and surf thing and I have Kirk's Crypt, which is kind of like a haunted house type thing. Those are the things that we're kind of going above and beyond to make sure our own lifestyles and personalities come across. That's kind of a new thing for us. Usually when we get to the show, we just play the show and leave. But this time it's our show, and it's more of an event than anything else. That's where all the other types of bands and the lifestyle tents come in."

Guitar World: Can you tell me a bit more about the book you're going to be premiering?

Hammett: "Yeah, it's a book about vintage tour and movie posters, vintage monster toys and artwork. It's basically all the stuff I've managed to amass over the last 30 years or so. I have such a huge collection and I just thought now was the right time to share it with everyone. And that's exactly what I'm doing. I finished it in April and it'll be out in October, but the Orion festival will be the first time I'm letting people know that it's done and it's coming out. For me it was a lot of fun to make, and it's very cool for me to look at. Hopefully it's just as fun and cool for other people too."

Guitar World: James said he had more than 800 riffs laying around, and Rob hinted that you had more than 300. Is that pretty accurate?

Hammett: "I'm probably closer to 400 now. (laughs) But you know, out of those 400 there might only be 20 great riffs. It'd be something if all 400 were triple-A, diamond-rated ideas, but that's just not the case. Never was and never will be. James might have 800 riffs, but there's maybe 12 songs in there. Who knows? It all depends on what we do with it. In the fall, we plan on concentrating a little more on writing songs and doing nothing else but just thinking about the new album. That should be interesting."

Guitar World: Is there a time frame fro hitting the studio yet, or is it too soon to tell?

Hammett: "No, it's just whenever. Whenever it happens, it happens, really."

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