Metallica claim they won't perform into their 70s like The Rolling Stones.

The heavy metal band - made up of James Hetfield, Rob Trujillo, Lars Ulrich and Kirk Hammett - are in their 50s and admit their intense sets take a massive toll on their bodies.

Kirk said: ''I saw the Stones last year in San Francisco and I thought they played fucking great, and for a bunch of guys who are 70-plus, it was a pretty amazing feat.

''I don't know if we can do what we do when we're in our 70s, because playing one of our songs is equal to playing eight Stones songs in terms of physical energy and intensity.''

The 51-year-old guitarist hopes the band can work out a plan which means they can play for the next 20 years but he's not very hopeful.

He said: ''I personally think we have another 10. Maybe that's one album, maybe that's two albums, I don't know.''

The band claim there has been a lot of talk about how they need to ''get our sh*t together'' and release another record, the follow-up to 2008's 'Death Magnetic', but admit fans will have to wait a while longer.

Kirk said: ''Getting the space and time to do it is what we need. We've already been writing, but there's still a lot to go.

''After this summer we're gonna work on it some more and see how it shapes up, but yeah... 2015, 2016, maybe? It's a f***ing long time, man.''

Metallica will headline this year's Glastonbury festival with Kasabian and Arcade Fire.