Metallica's Lars Ulrich reflects on the band's longevity after more than 40 years: 'There is still gas in the tank!'

It's been a rocky road, but nearly 42 years after founding Metallica, drummer Lars Ulrich and frontman James Hetfield are still rocking.

"Let me confirm," the Denmark-born Ulrich says in a new interview with the Sunday Times, "that the idea I’m sitting here at 59, talking about our 12th record, 41 years after we started, is obviously preposterous.”

Both rockers will turn 60 this year, and have traded hard partying and substance abuse for more sedate pastimes: art collecting for Ulrich, and beekeeping for Hetfield. According to Ulrich, there's "no desire to chase the fountain of youth."

“Saggy skin? Double chins? Whatever! None of this fazes me," he says. "I don’t have a need to put on a crazy tight leather jacket, dye my hair and convince the world I am 30. I’m comfortable in my body and have no desire to chase the fountain of youth."

But, he adds, the group's "enthusiasm has not changed" since their early days. While Metallica has racked up nine Grammys over the years and their musical equipment has been significantly upgraded, Ulrich maintains that they haven't lost their passion. Nor, he adds, has success and wealth alienated him from his edgy, young rocker self.

“I’d say the opposite,” he says. “I feel like an old version of the awkward loner kid I always was. People say, ‘Come on, look how successful you are!’ But success doesn’t change you. For better or worse you carry formative years with you and I’m more aware of the darkness than before. When younger I was in such a hurry — hellbent on the next stimulation and the next beverage. I never slowed down enough to understand what was going on around me. But, as you age, that becomes more obvious.”

Metallica's latest album, 72 Seasons, is a return to thrash metal. The band — currently embarking on a world tour — is also enjoying a pop culture boost thanks to the inclusion of the 1986 hit "Master of Puppets" in Stranger Things last year.

“If you look at your peers, so many fall away,” Ulrich says of the band's longevity. “Most bands are in their 20s. Some 30s. Fewer 40s. By the time that you get to your 50s, 60s or 70s it’s only a handful, because people can’t stand being in the same room together — but us? There is still gas in the tank!”