When bassist Jason Newsted left Metallica in 2001, the band was in a tough spot in terms of finding his replacement.
The need for a bassist arose during the recording of their 2003 studio album, St. Anger, which happened to coincide with the filming of a new documentary about the band, 2004's Some Kind of Monster.
Producer Bob Rock played bass on St. Anger, not to mention several live shows by the band. Once the album was completed in early 2003, Metallica started to host auditions for Newsted's permanent replacement.
Bassists Pepper Keenan, Jeordie White, Scott Reeder, Eric Avery, Danny Lohner and Chris Wyse—among others—auditioned for the role. After three months of auditions, Robert Trujillo, formerly of Suicidal Tendencies and Ozzy Osbourne's band, was declared the new bassist.
Below, you'll find footage from Some Kind of Monster that shows the bass auditions. The top clip is shorter and focuses on Trujillo. The bottom clip is twice as long.
Earlier today, Metallica released a sneak preview of a new song from their upcoming album, Hardwired…to Self-Destruct, which is due out November 18. You can check it out here.
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