Music News

© AP / James Hetfield of Metallica

WENN

U.S. military chiefs agreed to stop using music by Metallica as part of their tough interrogation process in Iraq after the hard rockers made a personal request to army officials, says the U.S. Navy SEAL who is credited with killing Osama bin Laden in 2011.

The "Enter Sandman" hit-makers' heavy metal was played at loud volume to weaken prisoners' resolve and compel them to cooperate in the military leaders' search for bin Laden.

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The anonymous shooter tells Esquire magazine, "When we first started the war in Iraq, we were using Metallica music to soften people up before we interrogated them. ... Metallica got wind of this and they said, 'Hey, please don't use our music because we don't want to promote violence.' I thought, 'Dude, you have an album called 'Kill 'Em All'!"

Interrogators opted for Christian metal group Demon Hunter to replace Metallica, and they were enthusiastic about being used to wear down terror suspects. The Navy SEAL adds, "Demon Hunter got in touch and said, 'We're all about promoting what you do.' They sent us CDs and patches (for uniforms). I wore my Demon Hunter patch on every mission. I wore it when I blasted bin Laden."

The members of Metallica previously objected to having their music used on prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, with lead singer James Hetfield stating in 2008, "Part of me is proud because they chose Metallica and then part of me is kind of bummed about it that people worry about us being attached to some political statement because of that. We've got nothing to do with this and we're trying to be as apolitical as possible, 'cause I think politics and music, at least for us, don't mix."