Plenty of diehard rock fans would never consider listening to Metallica torture. The influence of the group arguably redefined the metal genre in the ‘80s and its classic hits have taken up residence in the playlists of radio stations worldwide. However, when its members found out that Navy SEALs were using their music to assist in detainee interrogation, they took exception and asked that the elite military unit take their songs out of the rotation.

The SEAL Team 6 member (referred to as ‘the Shooter’) who shot Osama Bin Laden told Esquire magazine in an exclusive interview that Metallica’s wasn’t comfortable with the manner in which his fellow SEALs were using its music. As portrayed in the recent movie Zero Dark Thirty, American interrogators allegedly would bring out the jarring elements of songs and incessantly blast them into the cells of war prisoners.

"When we first started the war in Iraq, we were using Metallica music to soften people up before we interrogated them," the Shooter said. "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.’”

Changing up the music that motivated SEAL Team 6 to complete their missions certainly wasn’t hard after Demon Hunter, a more than enthusiastic Seattle-based Christian rock band, came forward to offer their support to the team.

“A band called Demon Hunter got in touch and said, 'We're all about promoting what you do.'” The Shooter said. “They sent us CDs and patches. I wore my Demon Hunter patch on every mission. I wore it when I blasted bin Laden."

We wouldn’t be surprised if we heard a track from Demon Hunter featured in the next Navy ad campaign.

Read the Esquire story on Shooter 6 here:  http://www.esquire.com/features/man-who-shot-osama-bin-laden-0313-4

Check out the Demon Hunter site here: http://www.demonhunter.net/

Learn more about the Navy Seals here: http://navyseals.com/nsw/navy-seal-history/