Harry Potter & the Megadeth anthem

Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has revealed he used Megadeth track Sweating Bullets to prepare him for his starring role upcoming fantasy-horror movie Horns.

He plays murder suspect Ig Perrish, who grows a pair of horns after a drunken night, and their paranormal powers help him hunt for the true killer of his girlfriend.

The actor has previously described the part as “deeply emotional and incredibly outrageous” – and now he’s explained how he channeled those feelings.

Asked with Megadeth track he used most, Radcliffe tells Gigwise: “Sweating Bullets, specifically for the lines ‘Hello me, it’s me again / You can subdue but never tame me,’ and ‘A dark black past is my most valued possession.’ It’s an insane song and it sounds like a psychopath talking to himself – and that was very helpful.”

Radcliffe, who played JK Rowling creation Potter in nine movies between 2001 and 2011, namechecks the Pixies, A Place To Bury Strangers and B.B. King among his musical heroes – and says he’d love to play Iggy Pop in a film.

He adds: “I’m not a fan of the big electronic sound that is in music now. I don’t mind it coming in, but when it’s all the time it’s exhausting, and just soulless. I’ve become a lot less of a music snob: there’s a lot of stuff I would never listen to, but I feel I used to judge people for listening to things. I’ve learned life is too short to pretend pop music is going to go away one day.”

Horns is released in the UK on Wednesday.

Not only is one-time online news editor Martin an established rock journalist and drummer, but he’s also penned several books on music history, including SAHB Story: The Tale of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, a band he once managed, and the best-selling Apollo Memories about the history of the legendary and infamous Glasgow Apollo. Martin has written for Classic Rock and Prog and at one time had written more articles for Louder than anyone else (we think he's second now). He’s appeared on TV and when not delving intro all things music, can be found travelling along the UK’s vast canal network.