Metallica brings 'loud, furious glory' to first of two Toronto shows
The band's second concert, with a different setlist, goes Saturday at Rogers Centre
Article content
Metallica
Rogers Centre
Thursday night
RATING: **** (4 outta 4)
“Metallica is with you! Are you with us Toronto?”
Recommended Videos
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Metallica brings 'loud, furious glory' to first of two Toronto shows Back to video
tap here to see other videos from our team.
It was a question that lead singer-guitarist James Hetfield, 61, asked early in the veteran heavy metal band’s Thursday night show at Rogers Centre — the first of two of their so-called M72 shows in Toronto (their latest album is called 72 Seasons and each of the two nights they’re doing in every city features a different set list with different openers) — with the second concert happening on Saturday night.
And the answer was — no surprise — a loud and resounding “Yes!”
It was kind of hard not to be given the impressive players and dramatic presentation that unfurled in all its loud and furious glory over the next two hours.
Playing on an enormous in-the-round jagged stage dominated by eight video towers that made it feel like the audience — those on the floor all standing — were at a festival instead of a stadium, the group rounded out by drummer Lars Ulrich, 61, lead guitarist Kirk Hammett, 62, and bassist Robert Trujillo, 60, was commanding from the opening tune Creeping Death until the closer Master Of Puppets.
Metallica, who openers Pantera called “the best heavy metal band in modern times,” decided to go very big or go home, as they often do.
It often feels like you’re at a rally when you’re at a Metallica show and Thursday night was no different.
The group never really let up at all while moving around the enormous stage with Ulrich’s bright yellow drum kit starting at the left of the stage before moving to the centre, then right, then at the back while Hetfield, Hammett and Trujillo played around him, with each other or on their own as the stage lights went through all the colours of the rainbow.
Interestingly, the show began with the one-two punch of the AC/DC song It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll) and the Ennio Morricone song The Ecstasy of Gold before the band took the stage.
Their influences are obvious, in good taste, and definitely work for them.
Hetfield was in a chatty, funny mood — like when he asked who had bought 72 Seasons, released in 2023, and wasn’t satisfied with the answer even though new songs like the title track, If Darkness Had A Son, and Shadows Follow blended in nicely with fan favourites like Nothing Else Matters, Seek & Destroy and Master of Puppets.
And the looseness of this otherwise tight band was evident, such as when Hammett and Trujillo jammed mid-set and didn’t lose our interest for even a second.
There were a few fun gimmicks too like fire bursts during Fuel or bouncing black and yellow beach balls that dropped down during the final song, Master of Puppets, but mostly it was about those four guys on that big stage playing their hearts out for us to enjoy.
Suicidal Tendencies and Pantera opened on Thursday night and Ice Nine Kills and Limp Bizkit open on Saturday.
SET LIST
It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll) (AC/DC song)
The Ecstasy of Gold (Ennio Morricone song)
Creeping Death
Harvester of Sorrow
Holier Than Thou
King Nothing
72 Seasons
If Darkness Had a Son
Kirk and Rob Doodle (“Murf Da Surf” and “Suicide & Redemption” with drum backing track)
The Day That Never Comes
Shadows Follow
Orion
Nothing Else Matters
Sad But True
Fight Fire With Fire
Fuel
Seek & Destroy
Master of Puppets
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.