ABC/Randy HolmesMetallica is in the middle of their first full-length North American stadium tour in nearly 10 years. The trek is in support of the band’s latest album Hardwired…to Self-Destruct, which means the hard-rock legends now have 12 more songs to play live — but that makes coming up with a set list that much harder.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Metallica breaks down their summer tour set list. They’ve been opening shows with their song “Hardwired,” the opening track from the current album.
“It’s the realization that, ‘I hope my kids have a safe place on this planet,’ mostly as a parent but also as a human maturing,” frontman James Hetfield says of the track. “It’s realizing that all of this stuff is out of my control, and yeah, maybe we’re f*****.”
A few songs later, Metallica performs “Fuel,” accompanied by 40 feet of fire shooting up from both sides of the stage. “It’s just cool to feel the heat of it,” says Hetfield. “It makes you feel more alive.” Ironically, Heftfield suffered second and third degree burns onstage in 1992 when a pyro stunt went wrong.
The set includes a number of Metallica classics, including “Master of Puppets,” “Sad but True” and “One,” but Hetfield’s favorite moment of the show comes when they bring out giant drums for the Hardwired track “Now That We’re Dead.”
“I don’t know if it works or not, but I love it, and it’s fun, and I’ve dreamt about doing something like that for a long time,” he says. “It’s been on my list of ‘Things to do live’ for a long time, and it’s finally, finally come to fruition.”
Of course, Metallica ends the show with “Enter Sandman.”
“It’s just kinda gotta be at the end,” says Hetflied. “It’s that song.”
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