Music the Military Weapon

[jon]

Metallica asked the U.S. military to stop using their music as a form of torture in Iraq, reveals SEAL who shot bin Laden
Daily Mail
PUBLISHED: 07:24 GMT, 14 February 2013 | UPDATED: 09:51 GMT, 14 February 2013

The U.S. military stopped using the music of Metallica as part of their tough interrogation process in Iraq after the hard rockers made a personal request asking army officials to stop.

The revelation has been made in an interview with the U.S. Navy SEAL credited with killing Osama bin Laden in 2011.

He told Esquire magazine that the heavy metal hit-makers were played at loud volume to weaken prisoners' resolve and compel them to cooperate in the military leaders' search for bin Laden.

‘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”!’ he said.

Instead, interrogators opted for Christian metal group Demon Hunter who were more enthusiastic about being used as a form of torture.

‘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,’ said the Navy SEAL.

The group have since issued a statement about their inadvertent involvement in bin Laden's demise. ‘We are honored, humbled and blessed that Demon Hunter was of any support or comfort to Seal Team 6 or anyone in the US military at any time,’ it said.

Metallica had previously objected to having their music used on prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

‘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,’ said lead singer James Hetfield in 2008.

‘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.’