METALLICA has been working on and off on its tenth studio album for a couple of years now, but the last few months have seen the band get down to serious business on the disc and spend less time than usual on touring or other projects. Drummer Lars Ulrich told Billboard.com that the homestretch for the album is in sight. "We're getting there!" he said. "I think it's going to get wrapped up soon. Unless something radical happens, it would be difficult for me to believe that it won't come out in 2016. That's what we're going for. But obviously, the way we do things now is very different than the way we did things back in the days of 'Kill 'Em All' and 'Ride The Lightning'. Nowadays we like to do so many different things — we like to write and record but we also like to be Record Store Day ambassadors and put out deluxe reissues and go play at Rasputin's and AT&T Park and all these other things. So, you know, writing and recording is now something that is part of the bigger picture rather than something that happens exclusively. And when it really comes down to it, the new record may actually have been written and recorded faster than the last one [2008's 'Death Magnetic']. It's just been spread out over a longer period of time, with these gaps in recording. Which is fine. I'm certainly not complaining about it. It's just the way we work now. But anyway, the record — it's definitely coming along. Nearing completion. Should be done soon…hopefully. [Laughs] End quote!"

The new METALLICA album is being produced by Greg Fidelman, who engineered and mixed "Death Magnetic".

Ulrich was in New York City last week for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremonies, at which he helped induct DEEP PURPLE.

METALLICA will next perform live at Berkeley, California's legendary record store Rasputin Music on Saturday, April 16 in celebration of Record Store Day. The bandmembers were named Record Store Day ambassadors for 2016.

METALLICA last played at a record store in 2008, when it performed in the basement of tiny Nashville outlet Grimy's.

In addition to a live album recorded in Paris that's being released exclusively for Record Store Day, METALLICA will reissue its first two albums, "Kill 'Em All" and "Ride The Lightning", in deluxe box set editions this Friday (April 15).

The band's recently announced headlining show at Minneapolis' new U.S. Bank Stadium on August 20 sold out all 66,000 tickets in less than 10 minutes two weeks ago. Joining METALLICA at that show will be AVENGED SEVENFOLD and VOLBEAT.

METALLICA's classic 1986 album "Master Of Puppets" is among the records that have been selected for induction into the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. Every year 25 recordings that are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" and at least ten years old are selected.