During a recent appearance on the Dan Chan Show, John Bush praised Metallica for continually pushing forward and not relying on past achievements.
The singer turned down an opportunity to join Metallica in the early ’80s. When asked what he thinks about the band’s recent music, he said:
”Metallica is a band that never rests on the laurels of what they’ve done. They’re always taking chances, they’re always doing different things, they’re always expanding on their style and pushing the boundaries of the listeners, whether it’s doing the orchestra stuff or doing a record with Lou Reed or making just a metal, powerful, thrashing record.”
Bush Was Impressed With Metallica’s Live Show
Bush shared his opinion on Metallica’s live performances:
“The live performances — I want to see him at SoFi Stadium here [in Los Angeles], and it was phenomenal. It was really cool how they have these four different sections — they actually took this arena and yet when they were all together playing, it felt like you were almost watching them in some small room. It was amazing.”
The vocalist praised Metallica’s willingness to take risks:
“When you’re a band like Metallica, everybody’s expectations are so grand all the time. And the reality is you’re not always gonna hit the bullseye on everything, especially if you’re willing to take chances, which they are. And I really commend that, because it would be easy to just kind of play it safe. And they never do. So I really respect them on that level.”
Bush’s Words On Why He Turned Down Metallica
In December 2021, Bush talked about why he didn’t join Metallica in an interview with Waste Some Time With Jason Green:
“I’ve been talking about this for many years now. I’m always gonna be completely super flattered about the fact that I was asked to join Metallica back in the early ’80s. It just was never meant to be my destiny, is what I always say. There’s no other singer that should have been the singer of Metallica other than James Hetfield. That was meant to be, and that’s kind of the way I see it. Like I say, I’m always flattered that I’m always connected to the history of that band — it’s a huge feather in my cap, so to speak — but at the end of the day, it just was not my destiny to be the singer of Metallica. I had a different fate in store.”
Bush also previously performed with Metallica on December 7, 2011, at the Fillmore in San Francisco. It was part of the band’s week-long 30th anniversary celebration.