METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett recently spoke with ArtistDirect.com about his upcoming fear FestEvil. An excerpt from the interview is available below:

Q: How did you differentiate the Fear FestEvil?

Hammett: "You know, the whole point was to make something that was completely different from everything else that's out there. I guess it's the influence of approaching everything a certain way. After doing that for three decades with Metallica, it's just rubbed off on me. I approach everything through a Metallica sort of filter. In Metallica, we always try to do something new and different and we tend to challenge ourselves. I found myself in the exact same place here with this convention. There are a lot of conventions out there that pack the show with all sorts of events, visuals, and eye candy. It's really easy to get lost in all of that stuff. When I went to San Diego Comic-Con last year and a few years before that, I was so struck by how much conventions have changed. My whole approach to Fear FestEvil is not like that. My whole approach is rooted in the approach that conventions took in the late seventies and eighties. It was a lot more personable. We're trying to make this convention much more personable. I want it to be a complete human experience for whoever comes to it. It'd be easy for me to fill the convention hall with a bunch of neat, flashy cool stuff. I don't want to do that (laughs). It's been my goal to personalize this and make it a real experience with real human interaction so it's not like you're just staring at a bunch of stuff, if you know what I mean. That's basically what I'm trying to do here."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

Hammett recently announced that he’ll be joining EXODUS and DEATH ANGEL on stage for their encores at his Kirk Von Hammett’s Fear FestEviL, which will be held next month, February 6th - 8th, at The Regency Ballroom in San Francisco.

Performances include:

· Friday, February 7th - CARCASS, EXODUS + Kirk encore

· Saturday, February 8th - DEATH DIVISION, ORCHID, DEATH ANGEL + Kirk encore

Hammett stated: "As we gear up for the home stretch towards the Fear FestEviL in February, we couldn't be more thrilled to announce the attendance of Sara Karloff, the daughter of infamous horror legend Boris Karloff."

"Sara Karloff was born on her father’s 51st birthday, November 23, 1938. He was filming Son Of Frankenstein at the time. Sara jokes that she was 'his most expensive birthday present ever.' In 1993, following the death of her step-mother, Evelyn Karloff, Sara assumed the responsibility for the licensing rights relating to her famous father and formed Karloff Enterprises. The company’s goal is to maintain a standard of excellence and appropriateness when the name or likeness of her father is used. Through the licensing process she has been able to make merchandise and collectibles available to her father’s fans."

"The popularity of Mr. Karloff’s 170 plus films, his immense body of radio and television work, his children’s recordings and his stage performances is multi-generational and universal. Original audiences enjoyed the films in theaters, their children were enthralled with the films on televisions, and today’s youth enjoy them on DVD. It is with great affection and respect for the personal and professional legacy left by her father that Sara Karloff and Karloff Enterprises continues to make available though the licensing process the likeness of this remarkable film icon."

Further details and ticket information is available here.