Watch: Kirk Hammett Butchers the Intro to “Nothing Else Matters” Live, Laughs at His Own Screw-Up

Look, we all fuck up at our jobs at one time or another. It doesn’t matter if you’re a warehouse manager, a line cook, or, say, the guitarist for the biggest heavy metal band of all time — at some point, you’re going to zone out, or be distracted, and do something incredibly bone-headed. Happens to the everyone. Worst thing you can do is fight it, too — you just gotta own it, laugh at what a dumbass you are, and keep going. Which is exactly what Metallica‘s Kirk Hammett did at the Boston Calling festival this weekend, where he totally butchered the intro to a song he’s played a million times, and at least had the good humor to laugh at how hard he dropped the ball.

As you’ll see in the fan-shot video below, Kirk started off Metallica’s “Nothing Else Matters” on Sunday, May 29th, at the Harvard Athletic Complex in Allston, Massachusetts, with a little flourish from “More Than a Feeling” by Boston (because of the fest? Get it?). However, when it came time to play his own song, Kirk straight-up screwed the pooch, prompting him to fall to his knees and then flop onto his back in exasperation. The dude then got up with a big grin on his face and told the crowd, “Sorry, guys, you’re so kickass…I got distracted by how kickass you are!” Then he tried again, and the band played the song.

Some part of us wants to criticize Kirk for messing up a track he’s played about as many times as he’s eaten cheese in his life. Something about a big crowd, owing the fans, yadda yadda yadda. But honestly, this incident just makes him look very endearing. Metallica ONLY play to big crowds, so it’s inevitable that they’re going to have minor fuck-ups in front of thousands and thousands of people. Least they can do is chuckle about it and apologize.

Check out the video below: