40 years after releasing their magnum opus Master Of Puppets, Metallica have proved that they can still dish out the thrash, sharing live footage of a recent Battery performance.
The US heavy metal giants have been playing the 1986 album opener as part of their ongoing residency at Las Vegas multimedia venue the Sphere, and now a pro-shot video of them blazing through it during the October 15 date has made it onto their YouTube channel. Watch below.
Metallica’s Sphere shows kicked off on October 1, and the band have resurrected a number of oldies for the five-month stint. On the opening night, the title track of 1988’s …And Justice For All was played for the first time since 2014. At a later show, Reload deep cut Devil’s Dance was dusted off for the first time since 2008.
Battery has been a fixture of Metallica’s setlist since it first came out, but October 1 marked the first time the track had opened one of their shows since 2014. It was also the opener at the recorded October 15 date.
The Sphere shows have been a great success for the veteran four-piece, with all of their planned dates there having long since sold out. However, it’s not been trouble-free. On October 10, singer/guitarist James Hetfield took the stage and told concertgoers that, unlike other “entertainers”, Metallica didn’t want to “influence you with their bullshit”.
The statement, made weeks after pop singer Macklemore was booted off a tour with Ed Sheeran for making pro-Palestine speeches onstage, sparked controversy. Even ex-Pink Floyd bassist/vocalist Roger Waters piled on, saying Hetfield has “an IQ of about three”. Hetfield has not publicly responded to the furore; Hammer approached Metallica’s representatives for comment on Waters’ words.
Nonetheless, Metallica’s shows continued as planned, including a special Halloween show on Saturday (October 31), where they played 1991’s werewolf-inspired Of Wolf And Man. Bassist Robert Trujillo and lead guitarist Kirk Hammett jammed a rendition of the Addams Family theme tune shortly after.
The band will return to the Sphere on Thursday and Saturday. After that, they’ll play two intimate shows at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut on November 19 and 21, celebrating the venue’s 25th anniversary. Their Sphere residency will restart in January.
After the residency wraps up on March 13, the band will continue their M72 world tour with a leg of North American shows, supported by Limp Bizkit and Avatar. See their full itinerary below.
Metallica tour dates:
Nov 05: Las Vegas Sphere, NVNov 07: Las Vegas Sphere, NVNov 19: Uncasville Mohegan Sun Arena, CTNov 21: Uncasville Mohegan Sun Arena, CTJan 28: Las Vegas Sphere, NVJan 30: Las Vegas Sphere, NVFeb 04: Las Vegas Sphere, NVFeb 06: Las Vegas Sphere, NVFeb 18: Las Vegas Sphere, NVFeb 20: Las Vegas Sphere, NVFeb 25: Las Vegas Sphere, NVFeb 27: Las Vegas Sphere, NVMar 04: Las Vegas Sphere, NVMar 06: Las Vegas Sphere, NVMar 11: Las Vegas Sphere, NVMar 13: Las Vegas Sphere, NVMay 08: Vancouver BC Place, BCMay 13: San Diego Snapdragon Stadium, CAMay 18: El Paso Sun Bowl Stadium, TXMay 22: San Antonio Alamodome, TXMay 26: Fayetteville Razorback Stadium, ARMay 29: Kansas City Arrowhead Stadium, MOJun 02: Raleigh Carter-Finley Stadium, NCJun 05: Indianapolis Lucas Oil Stadium, INJun 08: Buffalo Highmark Stadium, NYJun 12: Madison Camp Randall Stadium, WIJun 15: Cleveland Huntington Bank Field, OHJun 19: Salt Lake City Rice-Eccles Stadium, UT
(LouderSound)
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