SETTLE THE SCORE
Lars, Kirk, Rob and conductor Edwin Outwater take us through some of S&M2’S most epic moments THE ECSTASY OF GOLD
The orchestra gives Metallica’s hallmark intro piece a whole new lease of life, while composer Ennio Morricone’s passing earlier this year gives it some extra sentimental value, too.
KIRK: “That track has been played at every single Metallica gig since I’ve been in the band, so to see the orchestra play it was huge. Ennio was the master: a masterful composer and an incredible musician, and he will definitely be missed. May he rest in peace.”
THE CALL OF KTULU
Metallica’s big, epic instrumental was the perfect choice to open the original
S&M – and it worked so well they decided to repeat the trick 20 years later. EDWIN: “I think it features the orchestra so strongly, it’s such a gradual build, and it’s one of the more busy, virtuosic charts for the orchestra. I think it shows what the band and the orchestra can do together, and I’m not surprised it started the set again.”
THE MEMORY REMAINS
The crowd singalongs have made this classic one of the most reliable live songs in the band’s arsenal, and the Chase Center didn’t hold back for this special rendition. The famileh delivered.
LARS: “The fans wouldn’t stop singing! We’ve played The Memory Remains a few times, and it’s always beautiful when the fans sing it out, but this particular night they just kept going. They very well may still be singing over there now.”
THE OUTLAW TORN
Arguably the greatest song from the vastly underutilised Load era, this near-10 minute banger made a welcome return to the set and sounded nothing short of gigantic.
LARS: “Outlaw Torn is always an interesting endeavour. It’s such a moody piece and a fairly significant undertaking in almost 10 minutes, and so whenever, we play that and it somewhat stays within the boundaries of acceptability, that’s always good!”
SCYTHIAN SUITE
Perhaps the most surprising moment of the show was the orchestra reappearing after the interval to play this high-octane Sergei Prokofiev classical piece. EDWIN: “Michael [Tilson Thomas, music director for the San Francisco Symphony] chose the track. I think that particular track is short, it packs in a tremendous punch and it shows the orchestra at its most manic and insane. The orchestra version of heavy metal!”
THE IRON FOUNDRY
A section from Alexander Mosolov’s piece was up next, this time featuring Metallica arriving onstage to join in the fun. Metallica playing classical? Why not? EDWIN: “For us classical guys, that’s a pretty obscure piece. It’s not a well-known piece. It’s also a short and heavy track , but it repeats in a way that made it possible for the band to learn it in not much time. It’s hilarious to me that this piece is now much more famous!”
THE UNFORGIVEN III
This rare Death Magnetic cut provided the most candid moment of the night as James Hetfield, sans guitar, hopped up on stage without his bandmates.
KIRK: “James was very nervous, and deservedly so – he didn’t have the rest of us onstage backing him up, he didn’t have his guitar. So I imagine he must have felt very naked and exposed up there, and he practised a lot. I thought he pulled it off and he pulled it off well.”
ALL WITHIN MY HANDS
You never would have envisioned a St. Anger track making it to an S&M show, but this retwigged, acoustic-heavy version was one of the most welcome surprises of the night.
KIRK: “We rewrote that song on acoustic guitar a few years ago and were pleased with how it turned out. Playing a 12-string acoustic guitar and then playing the solo… that was a bit of a challenge. Twelve strings tears up the tips of my fingers – literally, I cut them up!”
(ANESTHESIA) PULLING TEETH
A hugely emotional moment as orchestra principal bassist Scott Pingel got up onstage to play through Cliff Burton’s classic early instrumental number.
ROB: “I thought it was brilliant. Scott had been working on this for a while, and he came in to our studio and played it for us, and we were all blown away. I was like, ‘You and Lars need to do this – there is nothing I can provide for this arrangement!’”
WHEREVER I MAY ROAM
A huge Black Album anthem that might not be Metallica’s most complex tune, but it’s not without its own, um, unique complications.
KIRK: “The sitar part at the start, it’s a relatively easy part to play, but you only have one chance to play it. So every time I walked up to the sitar in rehearsals, I kept thinking, ‘Don’t fuck it up, don’t fuck it up’… and, of course, I fucked it up every time in rehearsal.”