James Hetfield Gets ‘Straight Edge’ Tattoo

The Mighty Het (you don’t hear him called that enough these days) has given a brief interview on his latest tattoo – a tribute to the straight-edge lifestyle.

Metallica leader James Hetfield has spoken out about his ‘X’ tattoo on his wrist, something that he says is a tribute to the straight-edge lifestyle.

The following transcript comes from  Metallica Fan Club magazine ‘So What!’:

SO WHAT: (Caught by a tattoo)… that’s a new one, right? Sorry-

James: Straight edge? Yeah.

SO WHAT: You’re not getting away with the last comment, incidentally. We’ll have to go back to that. But anyways, the straight edge X.

James: Right. Well, straight edge, this was certainly a design of my own. You know, the old straight edge tattoo, it’s just like a big X on your hand. No drinking, and I don’t drink. It’s like when you go into the clubs, they put and X on your hand…

SO WHAT: Right. It’s because you haven’t shown your ID.

James: And I don’t need drink or drugs. That’s straight edge life. Obviously I’m not straight edge – a true, hardcore straight edge has never had any of it in her or her whole life. But I’m a reborn straight edge.

SO WHAT: I always associated Minor Threat and Ian MacKaye and those guys with straight edge punk. That’s what they were all about.

James: Absolutely. There’s some hardcore people that are straight edge from birth. So this was my take on the straight edge X, you know? Straight razors. A straight edge, is what that was all about.

See a close-up of Hetfield’s straight-edge tattoo here.

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