Unless you have lived under a rock for the last 4 decades, you know Metallica has practically held the status of metal icons for most of that time. They released their new record 72 Seasons earlier this year (which we loved) and have been trekking the world with their M72 tour, whose North American kick-off happened in East Rutherford, New Jersey, this past Friday, August 4.
However, the band’s founder and drummer Lars Ulrich still feel astounded by the band’s popularity, despite so many achievements, and he elaborated on that during a brand-new interview with Jim Kerr of New York's Q104.3 radio station. "It's pretty surreal. 42 years in, it's pretty crazy. I've said this a thousand times, but it still feels like we're just getting started and it still feels like we are just trying to figure it all out and we keep threatening, at least to people around us, that we may turn professional at some point soon. The dedication and the support from the fans over the years it’s crazy. And, obviously, it's not all the same fans. There's a whole revolving door, a whole new, young generation that is showing up at all the shows, and I'm getting recognized by 10-year-olds on the street, after the whole Stranger Things phenomena, you know.”
"For a lot of years, in our twenties and thirties, we were full of piss and vinegar, as they say, and probably never slowed down long enough to take any of it in, as one doesn't when one just keeps cruising at that speed, but now in our advanced ages here, – and I can’t wrap my head around the fact James turned 60 today – it's amazing that there's still this love for heavy music and for what we do” Lars continued.
“42 years into this ride that is still happening and it's pretty wild the shows we have here this weekend at MetLife are the biggest shows we've ever played in the greater New York, Jersey, tri-state area. The difference now, compared to, say, 20, 30 years ago, is that we slowed down long enough to take it in, and appreciate the love, appreciate the generosity of the fans and the interaction, and how fortunate we all are to share music and to be able to still feel that we're out here."
Lars also touched upon the Metallica’s efforts to make things easier for their fans – and specially kids – to attend their live shows: “We are trying to encourage kids to come and be a part of this, and we are trying to do what we can to make it easier for everybody across all the different economic levels. We want a Metallica concert, a Metallica experience to be reasonably attainable for everybody”
Catch Metallica at one of their seemingly infinite tour dates below. Get tickets here.
Show No. 1 opened each night by Pantera & Mammoth WVH, Show No. 2 by Five Finger Death Punch & Ice Nine Kills
8/11/23 Montreal QC Stade Olympique
8/13/23 Montreal QC Stade Olympique
8/18/23 Arlington TX AT&T Stadium
8/20/23 Arlington TX AT&T Stadium
8/25/23 Inglewood CA SoFi Stadium
8/27/23 Inglewood CA SoFi Stadium
9/1/23 Glendale AZ State Farm Stadium
9/3/23 Glendale AZ State Farm Stadium
10/3/23 St. Louis MO The Dome at America’s Center
10/5/23 St. Louis MO The Dome at America’s Center
10/10/23 Detroit MI Ford Field
10/12/23 Detroit MI Ford Field
5/24/24 Munich DE Olympiastadion
5/26/24 Munich DE Olympiastadion
6/7/24 Helsinki FI Olympic Stadium
6/9/24 Helsinki FI Olympic Stadium
6/14/24 Copenhagen DK Parken Stadium
6/16/24 Copenhagen DK Parken Stadium
7/5/24 Warsaw PL PGE Narodowy
7/7/24 Warsaw PL PGE Narodowy
7/12/24 Madrid ES Estadio Cívitas Metropolitano
7/14/24 Madrid ES Estadio Cívitas Metropolitano
8/2/24 Foxborough MA Gillette Stadium
8/4/24 Foxborough MA Gillette Stadium
8/9/24 Chicago IL Soldier Field
8/11/24 Chicago IL Soldier Field
8/16/24 Minneapolis MN US Bank Stadium
8/18/24 Minneapolis MN US Bank Stadium
8/23/24 Edmonton AB Commonwealth Stadium
8/25/24 Edmonton AB Commonwealth Stadium
8/30/24 Seattle WA Lumen Field
9/1/24 Seattle WA Lumen Field
9/20/24 Mexico City MX Foro Sol (w/ Greta Van Fleet no Pantera)
9/22/24 Mexico City MX Foro Sol
9/27/24 Mexico City MX Foro Sol (w/ Greta Van Fleet no Pantera)
9/29/24 Mexico City MX Foro Sol
