Metallica performed a 16-song set at a surprise show in San Francisco last night (September 16), and you can watch fan-shot footage of the gig here.
The metal superstars announced the gig via social media earlier in the day.
“Hey! Gonna let you in on a little secret,” they declared. “We're playing tonight at The Independent in downtown SF. Grab a $20 bill and get your ass to the box office right now! Proof of vaxx is required to get a wristband and it's gonna sell out fast. One ticket per person, cash only!"
Tickets for the gig reportedly sold out in just 13 minutes.
Those fortunate enough to secure a ticket were treated to a 16-song set from the quartet featuring just two songs - Holier Than Thou and Sad But True - from ‘The Black Album’, which has been given an expansive reissue to mark its 30th anniversary.
Watch fan-shot footage of the gig below:
Surprise Metallica show in SF for 400 fans. Wow! @nbcbayarea pic.twitter.com/K4PrEhWGtbSeptember 17, 2021
One more view of #Metallica playing a surprise show at the Independent in SF. @nbcbayarea pic.twitter.com/7X0iZWsBIcSeptember 17, 2021
Metallica set list at The Independent, September 16, 2021
1. Whiplash
2. Ride The Lightning
3. The Memory Remains
4. Now That We're Dead
5. Holier Than Thou
6. No Leaf Clover
7. Sad But True
8. Moth Into Flame
9. Fade To Black
10. For Whom The Bell Tolls
11. Creeping Death
12. One
13. Master Of Puppets
Encore:
14. Battery
15. Fuel
16. Seek & Destroy
Reflecting back on the phenomenal success his band achieved with their 30-million-selling ‘Black Album’, drummer Lars Ulrich tells NME that it was “a victory for the underdog and the disenfranchised, for all the music lovers that lived on the edge.”
“It didn’t feel we had moved to the mainstream,” he insists. “It felt like the mainstream came to us.”