Lars Ulrich

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Lars Ulrich
Image:Ulrich.jpg
Birth Name	Lars Ulrich
Birth Date	December 26, 1963
Place of Birth	Gentofte, Denmark
Marital Status	Divorced - 2 Children
Eyes	Green
Hair	Brown
Height	5'7" / 1.7 m

Lars Ulrich (born December 26 1963) is the drummer of Metallica. He was born in Gentofte, Denmark to an upper-middle class family and worked in a gas station and as a paper boy during his childhood and teens. At the age of thirteen he begged his grandmother to buy him his first drum kit. The kit was a Ludwig because he wanted to have the same drum kit as Ian Paice of Deep Purple. Ulrich moved to Los Angeles, California at the age of seventeen, to pursue his training in tennis. After publishing an advertisement in a local Los Angeles newspaper, called The Recycler, he met James Hetfield and created a band — Metallica.

Although not regarded as one of drumming's greatest, Lars has been considerably influential due to both the popularity of his band and trademark drum phrases such as the machine-gun double bass in the hit song One. Lars is also notable for off-time signatures such as those in Battery and exceedingly fast thrashes in Dyers Eve.

It has been said in the past that his live ability does not match up to his studio output, but this can be attributed to his tendency for going out of time with the other instruments. This was particularly the case during the 1980's, however in recent years and noticeable from the 'Load' tour onwards (1996) he has considerably worked on his live ability, and now plays with more flair and tightness.

The Napster case may see Lars remembered more for suing his fans, more than his drum work, but there are still plenty of people who will stick up for Lars' creativity (Dillinger Escape Plan's Chris Pennie for one) above any personality critcisms.

His father, Torben Ulrich, who was an acclaimed tennis pro from the late 1940s into the early 1980s, was also a musician, playing jazz with such giants as Stan Getz and Miles Davis; another jazz legend, Dexter Gordon, was Lars' godfather. He had a jazz club in which Lars spent a lot of time as a child. In February of 1973, Torben Ulrich gained five passes for five of his friends to a Deep Purple concert that was being held in the same Copenhagen stadium as one of his tournaments. When it was discovered that one of the friends could not go, their ticket was handed over to the nine year-old Lars. The young Ulrich found himself mezmerized by the performance, buying the band's Fireball album the very next day. The concert and the album had a considerable impact on Ulrich, inspiring his entrance into the world of rock and roll and later on, heavy metal.

In 2004 Ulrich separated from Skylar Satenstein, to whom he was married for seven years and had two sons, Myles (b. August 5, 1998) and Layne (b. May 6, 2001). He is currently dating the Danish actress Connie Nielsen.

In 2005 a band called Beatallica (a band that mixed lyrics and riffs from The Beatles and Metallica) received a cease-and-desist order from Sony (who hold a lot of the rights to the music of the Beatles). In support of Beatallica, Lars Ulrich asked Metallica's attorney, Peter Paterno, to help Beatallica. Since then beatallica.com has been online.

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Equipment

Lars is a long time endorsee of both Tama drums and Zildjian cymbals, and is never seen without them onstage. It is said that he was the first Tama endorsee ever to have their own signature drumkit. He has, however, been known to use a mixture of brands when recording in the studio, such as Ludwig drums and Sabian cymbals.

Lars was also a long time endorsee of Calato Regal Tip wooden sticks, before making the move to Easton Ahead metal alloy drumsticks in 1994 (after Metallica's 'Shit Hits The Sheds' US stadium tour), citing the problem of wooden sticks easily breaking, especially during outdoor gigs in cold weather, as his reason for moving. He has had his own signature series of Ahead sticks since about 1995, although by his own admission he prefers the sound of wooden sticks on cymbals, even going as far as using a wood stick in one hand and an Ahead stick in the other during recording.

Current Stage Equipment:-

2003 - Present

Tama Starclassic Maple, Green Sparkle finish, Chrome Hardware

2x Tama Starclassic 22"x16" Bass Drums
Tama Starclassic 14"x16" or 16"x16" Floor Tom (Both sizes have been used with this kit)
Tama Starclassic 16"x16" or 18"x16" Floor Tom (Both sizes have been used with this kit)
Tama Starclassic 10"x8" Tom Tom
Tama Starclassic 12"x10" Tom Tom
Tama LU1465 Diamond Plate Signature Snare Drum 14"x6.5"
Tama LU1465BB Bell Brass Signature Snare Drum 14"x6.5" (Both signature snares are present in Lars' snare hardcase on tour, it is not known how he decides which one to use.)
Tama Cymbal Stands and Hardware
Remo coated Emperor batter heads on toms with clear Ambassador resonant heads. Clear Powerstroke 3 bass batter heads with Ebony ambassador resonant heads. Remo coated CS with reverse dot and Ambassador snare side resonant on snare drum.
Tama Iron Cobra bass drum pedals
Zildjian 2x 17", 2x 18", 19" A medium cymbals
Zildjian 20", 18" China Trash
2x Zildjian 14" Z Custom Dyno-Beat Hi-Hats
Zildjian 12" Z Custom Splash Cymbal
Zildjian 20" A Ping Ride
Easton Ahead Lars Ulrich Signature drumsticks

Previous Stage Equipment:-

1996 - 2000

Tama Starclassic Maple, Silver Sparkle finish, Chrome Hardware

2x Tama Starclassic 22"x16" Bass Drums
Tama Starclassic 16"x16" Floor Tom
Tama Starclassic 18"x16" Floor Tom
Tama Starclassic 10"x9" Tom Tom
Tama Starclassic 12"x10" Tom Tom
Tama LU1465 Diamond Plate Signature Snare Drum 14"x6.5"
Tama LU1465BB Bell Brass Signature Snare Drum 14"x6.5" (Both signature snares were used with this kit, it is not known how he decided which one to use.)
Tama Cymbal Stands and Hardware
Remo clear Pinstripe batter heads on toms and bass drums. Remo coated Ambassador resonant heads. Remo coated CS with reverse dot and Ambassador resonant on snare.
Tama HP45 Pro Beat Pedals
Zildjian 14" Z Custom 'Dyno Beat' Hi-hats
Zildjian 17" (x2), 18", 19" A medium Crashes
Zildjian 20" A Rock ride/20" A Custom Ping Ride
Zildjian 18" Oriental China Trash
Zildjian 12" Z Custom Splash
Zildjian 20" Z Custom China
Easton Ahead Lars Ulrich Signature drumsticks

1994 - 1995

Tama Artstar II maple, Piano White finish, Custom Black Hardware, Granstar lugs

2x Tama Artstar II 24"x16" Bass Drums
2x Tama Artstar II 18"x16" Floor Toms
Tama Artstar II 12"x11" Tom Tom
Tama Artstar II 13"x12" Tom Tom
Tama 14"x6.5" Bell Brass Snare Drum
Remo clear Pinstripe batter heads on toms and bass drums. Remo Ebony Ambassadors as resonant heads. Snare head was a Remo coated CS with reverse dot and Ambassador snare side resonant.
Tama HP45 Pro Beat Pedals
Zildjian 14" Z Custom 'Dyno-Beat' Hi-Hats (main set on left and a second set on his right)
Zildjian 17" (x2), 18" (x2), 19" A medium crashes
Zildjian 18" Oriental China Trash
Zildjian 20" Z Custom China Boy
Zildjian 20" A Custom Swish or 19" A China Boy
Calato Regal Tip 5B Lars Ulrich signature drumsticks

1991 - 1993

Tama Artstar II maple, Piano White finish, Custom Black Hardware, Granstar lugs

2x Tama Artstar II 24"x16" Bass Drums
2x Tama Artstar II 18"x16" Floor Toms
Tama Artstar II 10"x11" Tom Tom
Tama Artstar II 12"x11" Tom Tom
Tama Artstar II 14"x13" Tom Tom
Tama Artstar II 16"x15" Tom Tom
Tama 14"x8" Birch Snare Drum (Possibly used)
Tama 14"x6.5" Bell Brass Snare Drum
Remo clear Pinstripe batter heads on toms and bass drums. Remo Ebony Ambassadors as resonant heads. Snare head was a Remo coated CS with reverse dot and Ambassador snare side resonant.
Tama HP45 Pro Beat Pedals
Zildjian 14" Z Custom 'Dyno-Beat' Hi-Hats (main set on left and a second set on his right)
Zildjian 17" (x2), 18" (x2), 19" A medium crashes
Zildjian 20" Z Custom China Boy
Zildjian 20" A Custom Swish or 19" A China Boy
Calato Regal Tip 5B Lars Ulrich signature drumsticks

1990

Tama Granstar birch, White finish, Chrome Hardware

2x Tama Granstar 24"x16" Bass Drums
2x Tama Granstar 18"x16" Floor Toms
Tama Granstar 12"x11" Tom Tom
Tama Granstar 13"x12" Tom Tom
Tama Granstar 14"x13" Tom Tom
Tama Granstar 15"x14" Tom Tom
Tama 14"x8" Birch Snare Drum
Remo clear Pinstripe batter heads on toms and bass drums. Remo Ebony Ambassadors as resonant heads. Snare head was a Remo coated CS with reverse dot and Ambassador snare side resonant.
Tama HP45 Pro Beat Pedals
Zildjian 14" Z Custom 'Dyno-Beat' Hi-Hats (main set on left and a second set on his right)
Zildjian 17" (x2), 18" (x2), 19" A medium crashes
Zildjian 20" Z Custom China Boy
Zildjian 20" A Custom Swish or 19" A China Boy
Calato Regal Tip 5B Lars Ulrich signature drumsticks

1988 - 1989

Tama Granstar birch, Custom Dark Gray (sometimes quoted as 'Gunsmoke Blue') finish, Custom Black Hardware

2x Tama Granstar 24"x16" Bass Drums
2x Tama Granstar 18"x16" Floor Toms
Tama Granstar 12"x11" Tom Tom
Tama Granstar 13"x12" Tom Tom
Tama Granstar 14"x13" Tom Tom
Tama Granstar 15"x14" Tom Tom
Tama 14"x8" Birch Snare Drum
Remo clear Pinstripe batter heads on toms and bass drums. Remo Ebony Ambassadors as resonant heads. Snare head was a Remo coated CS with reverse dot and Ambassador snare side resonant.
Tama HP45 Pro Beat Pedals
Zildjian 14" Z Custom 'Dyno-Beat' Hi-Hats (main set on left and a second set on his right)
Zildjian 17" (x2), 18" (x2), 19" A medium crashes
Zildjian 20" Z Custom China Boy
Zildjian 20" A Custom Swish or 19" A China Boy
Calato Regal Tip 5B Lars Ulrich signature drumsticks

1985 - 1987

2x Tama Superstar mahogany, Mirror Chrome finish, Chrome Hardware

2x Tama Superstar 18" Floor Toms
Tama Superstar 12" Tom Tom
Tama Superstar 13" Tom Tom
Tama Superstar 14" Tom Tom
Tama Superstar 15" Tom Tom
Tama 14"x5.5" or 14"x6.5" metal Snare Drum
Tama Cymbal Stands and Hardware
Remo clear Pinstripe batter heads on toms and bass drums, resonators tended not to be used. Snare head was Remo coated CS.
Zildjian cymbals.

(Lars used these two probably identical kits throughout the 'Ride the Lightning' and 'Master of Puppets' tours. One was based in the US and the other in Europe.)

Tama Artstar, White, Chrome Hardware

Remo heads
Zildjian cymbals

Not much is known about this kit because it was only used for the Japanese leg of the 'Master of Puppets' tour, possibly borrowed from Tama Japan. It is likely that the same sizes of his regular kit's were used.

1984

Tama Imperialstar, Mirror Chrome Finish, Chrome Hardware

Remo heads
Zildjian cymbals

1983

Ludwig, Black Finish, Yamaha Hardware

Possibly used to record 'Kill 'Em All', can be seen on back sleeve of 'Ride The Lightning'. Stolen in January 1984 along with most of the band's equipment.

1982

Camco