Metallica have brought the curtain down on their long-running Metallica Mondays series, which the thrash giants began broadcasting back in March to keep us entertained during lockdown.
The band rummaged through their vaults and unearthed a treasure trove of archive performances in the process.
From dusty old VHS tapes containing classic sets and their first-ever tour in 1983 in support of Kill ‘Em All, through to James Hetfield celebrating his 37th birthday on stage in Dallas in 2000 and last year’s epic headline set at Ireland’s Slane Castle – it was a weekly roller coaster ride.
But while the show might be over, you can still dive into and enjoy all of the concerts that were broadcast – and with 23 of them to explore, you'll be in Metallica heaven for the foreseeable future.
We’ve listed every concert in chronological order, so you can either watch in sequence at your leisure or plan the mother of all Metallica sessions. Enjoy!
Metallica: Live in Chicago, Illinois - Aug 12, 1983
Filmed at The Metro in Chicago in 1983, this set shows Metallica on their first ever tour supporting Raven. As Lars Ulrich said: “We were going across America, just trying to figure it all out.” Eight tracks over 48 minutes. This is a slice of history.
Metallica: Live in Irvine, California - Sep 23, 1989
This particular show was filmed on Lars Ulrich’s personal camcorder on Metallica’s Damaged Justice tour. The good news is that sound was taken directly from the soundboard, so while the visuals might be a bit dated, the audio certainly isn’t.
Metallica: Live in Michigan - Nov 1, 1991
Take a trip back to 1991 and the Wherever We May Roam tour when Metallica were on the road in support of the Black Album. The performance was captured on an old VHS tape, with Lars Ulrich saying: "We’re bringing you straight old school vid from the house cameras and audio off the sound board."
Metallica: Live in Mountain View, CA - July 22, 1994
Next up, we revisit Metallica’s Shit Hits The Sheds tour from the summer of 1994. Interesting fact time: Metallica's support on the night was provided by Suicidal Tendencies – who featured a certain Robert Trujillo on bass.
Metallica: Live in Salt Lake City, Utah - Jan 2, 1997
Another dusty old VHS tape was recovered from the vaults for this episode, which captures the band in Utah on The Poor Touring Me Tour in support of their sixth studio album Load, featuring Jason Newsted on bass duties.
Metallica: Live in Bogotá, Colombia - May 2, 1999
Another moment in Metallica’s long history is documented with this performance, as it was the first time the thrash giants had played in Colombia. It was the second stop on the Latin American leg of their Garage Remains The Same Tour, with Lars Ulrich saying: “We have been back many times since and it’s always great and we always feel at home, but this was the very first time, 21 years ago.”
Metallica: Live in Dallas, Texas - Aug 3, 2000
James Hetfield celebrated his 37th birthday with this set from Dallas in the summer of 2000. As is tradition, the vocalist and guitarist was pelted with cream pies towards the end of the set during Enter Sandman.
Metallica: Live in Munich, Germany - Jun 13, 2004
We’re off back in the time machine with Metallica, this time to the early summer of 2004 on the band’s European leg of their Madly In Anger With The World tour. Support that night came from none other than Slipknot.
Metallica: Live in Berlin, Germany - June 6, 2006
We’re back in Germany, this time Berlin for a very special show in 2006 as Metallica celebrated the 20th anniversary of their classic album Master Of Puppets by playing it in its entirety. As if that wasn’t epic enough, there’s even a guest appearance from Avenged Sevenfold, who joined James, Lars, Kirk and Rob for a cover of the Ramones’ Commando.
Metallica: Live in Lisbon, Portugal - June 28, 2007
Staying in Europe, this time we land in Lisbon, Portugal, in 2007. The footage was captured at the Parque do Tejo during Metallica’s Sick Of The Studio tour. As you would expect, it’s a set full to the brim with classic cuts.
Metallica: Live in Madrid, Spain - May 31, 2008
Crossing the Portuguese border, we now find ourselves in Spain – and it's May 2008 during Metallica’s European Vacation Tour. It’s an 18-track set featuring Ride The Lightning, Harvester Of Sorrow and more – and all the action was captured on two video tapes that were buried at the band’s HQ.
Metallica: Live in Copenhagen, Denmark - July 22, 2009
This stop-off in beautiful Copenhagen was in support of Metallica’s 2008 album Death Magnetic. 21 tracks await the viewer, with this episode the third to be unveiled in the Metallica Mondays series.
Metallica: Live in New York - Sept 14, 2011
This performance from the Bronx was part of the legendary Big Four tour – and was the first time Metallica had ever played at the home of MLB’s New York Yankees. The video also features an all-star jam which sees members of Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax rock out to Motorhead’s Overkill.
Metallica: Live at Nova Rock, Austria - Jun 10, 2012
Metallica celebrated the anniversary of the Black Album with this powerful performance at Nova Rock in Austria in 2012... but with a twist. Lars Ulrich explained: “Instead of playing it front to back, we played in back to front which was cool. We started with The Struggle Within and ended with the toe-tapping favourite Enter Sandman.”
Metallica: Live in Melbourne, Australia - Mar 1, 2013
Australia’s Soundwave festival is celebrated with this set from 2013. Lars Ulrich said: “There was a travelling festival all across Australia – a bunch of gigs here, there and everywhere. Lots of bands and among them were Linkin Park, A Perfect Circle, Slayer, Stone Sour, Kyuss Lives, Tomahawk and so on. Looking at the setlist, there’s some pretty crazy stuff here – although I’ll try not to give the setlist away.”
Metallica: Live in Lima, Peru - March 20, 2014
Another Metallica show with a difference as the setlist was hand-picked by fans. Looking back at the performance, Lars Ulrich admitted it was “bonkers,” adding: “It was quite possibly the nuttiest setlist of the By Request tour.”
Metallica: Live in Munich, Germany - May 31, 2015
We’re back in Germany once again for what bassist Robert Trujillo called “one of the best setlists ever.” And it’s hard to disagree, as the band rolled out Metal Militia, Disposable Heroes, Frayed Ends Of Sanity AND Lords Of Summer for the first time.
Metallica: Live at House of Vans London - Nov 18, 2016
Metallica launched their Hardwired… To Self-Destruct album with an amazing show in front of just 600 fans at London’s House Of Vans back in November 2018. Introducing the performance, Rob Trujillo said: “It’s an incredible show to see and it really kicked off the Hardwired tour – it was the launch pad for what we were about to experience over the next three years. Great memories.”
Metallica: Live in Mexico City - Mar 3, 2017
This performance from Mexico City turned out to be the final chapter in the Metallica Mondays series. It was filmed in Mexico on the second show of a three-night run, with the trio of concerts the first time that the WorldWired stadium stage was used.
Metallica: Live in San Francisco - Aug 12, 2017
Metallica’s homecoming show from the Outside Lands festival from 2017 was a cracker. Golden Gate Park was rocking from the start, with the band deciding to broadcast this particular performance in April as the park celebrated its 150th anniversary that month.
Metallica: Live in Paris, France - Sep 8, 2017
For the next show, we’re staying in 2017 and the band’s show from Paris a month on from their San Francisco concert. The set saw Metallica playing a number of classic cuts including For Whom The Bell Tolls, Creeping Death, Sad But True, One and Enter Sandman, with this choice the second Metallica Mondays broadcast.
Metallica: Live at Slane Castle, Ireland - June 8, 2019
Metallica kicked off Metallica Mondays in style with this blistering performance from Slane Castle, Ireland, from the summer of 2019. Introducing the series, the band said: "Here’s to looking back on this period soon with a renewed appreciation for all the amazing times together with our extended Metallica family around the world."
Metallica: Live in Manchester, England - June 18, 2019
Just a few days after Metallica's Irish show, they travelled across to England. However, rather than some nice, early summer weather, the band – and fans – were drenched amid torrential downpours. Rob Trujillo said: “It was a kick-ass show. My memories of it are pretty clear. It was an infamous rainy gig – just pounding rain. It was great for the photo op, but memorable – just very powerful to be playing out there."
As you know, since the summer of 2017, Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo have been taking part in live ‘doodles’ - little snippets of music associated with the city or country they’re playing in. We’ve mapped every single one of them out for your viewing pleasure. So pull up a seat, sit back and click away.
