Lars Ulrich is one of the most famous modern drummers. Since 1981, he has been the permanent drummer of the cult rock band Metallica, which he co-founded with James Hetfield. The group is active and is currently continuing to delight fans around the world with concert tours and new albums.
Childhood
December 26, 1963 in the Danish city of Gentofte, the son of Lars was born into the family of the famous tennis player and music critic Torben Ulrich. For several generations, the Ulrich family were professional tennis players, and Torben, although he followed in the footsteps of his ancestors, decided to devote his free time to music and independently mastered such instruments as saxophone, clarinet and flute. In addition, the craving for art helped him begin to paint, which later began to be exhibited in art galleries and in demand. It was his father’s versatile creative personality that helped the future drummer of Metallica become what he became.
From childhood, his father instilled in the boy an interest in music. At nine years old, Lars managed to get to the concert of the band Deep Purple, which young Ulrich was very shocked at. He began to search and collect discs from this and other hard rock bands. The father wanted Lars, like everyone in their family, to devote his life to sports, and from his earliest years he gave his son to the tennis team, in which the boy managed to achieve good results and become one of the best players in Denmark among young men.
First drum kit
For a decade, Lars Ulrich grandmother decided to give him a drum kit. On the same day, the boy decided to create his own group, and at the advice of his father to take first a few lessons on drums, he replied that “he was born for this and will learn in a few days.”
Six years later, Torben Ulrich and his family moved to the town of New Port Beach near Los Angeles, so that Lars could attend a tennis school. But the young man did not want this and called the new place of study "prison." All his free time, he listened to hard rock and played on a new drum kit, which, however, like the last, was far from professional.
The choice
Still not knowing what would become his main occupation in life, at the age of 17 Lars bought tickets for the Diamond Head's London performance and traveled to England on his own. His trip was poorly thought out, and he did not know where to spend the night after the port. However, by a happy coincidence, he managed to go backstage and personally meet with the members of the group. Explaining his situation, he asked them to help, and they readily agreed, taking him on his concert tour, which ended just in Florida. Lars Ulrich still maintains a warm relationship with the group and periodically helps them bring songs together.
Returning after that trip with his beloved band, Ulrich decided that his vocation was music. A year later, he met James Hetfield, and six months later they founded Metallica, in which Hetfield became a vocalist and guitarist, and Lars Ulrich became a drummer.
Metallica
After the release of the first album, Metallica became very popular, and Ulrich was called one of the best thrash metal drummers and a pioneer in fast rhythms. With each new album, the technique of his playing became more and more complicated.
Despite this, Lars Ulrich was criticized more often than other members of the group. Even ardent fans of Metallica repeatedly focused on his mistakes during the game. According to the results of one online survey, Ulrich took the honorable first place in the list of “Most Overrated Drummers”. Most likely, the changes in his playing are noticeable precisely for this reason: he sought to refute the opinion that Lars Ulrich is a bad drummer.
With all the criticisms addressed to him, he continues to be one of the most famous drummers. Most fans are grateful to him for his contribution to the creation of Metallica, because without Lars they would never have heard their songs that had already become cult.