The intensely ritualised choreography of the standard summer stadium show has one inbuilt structural issue, which is especially obvious when occurring this far north – and it is the fact that it takes place mostly during the hours of daylight. This is of perhaps minor significance for a breezy pop concert, when the powder-puff skies align more closely to the music. When it’s Metallica, however, and the first two songs in the set are called ‘Creeping Death’ and ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’, the lack of an appropriately lowering mise-en-scène threatens to suck much of the (melo)drama from proceedings.
In the event, on a warm Thursday night in Glasgow, it’s fair to say that Metallica managed to circumnavigate this natural handicap. They were so ridiculously, gloriously OTT, it was as though a great velvety blanket of darkness was slipped across the sun for a couple of hours.
The intense growl’n’pummel of America’s most venerable metal band has never really been my thing, but up close it was impossible not to be impressed by the way the machine operated, both musically and in terms of making such a vast spectacle a genuinely inclusive event for 50,000 people.
The band performed in the round, with a cluster of fans permitted (no doubt at significant cost) to congregate in the snake pit at the centre of the ringed stage. This proved an ingenious setup, allowing the musicians to feed off the energy of a small crowd while the rest of the audience fed off the energy of both, assisted by the huge video screens that made everything feel much closer. The band members switched positions on the circular stage every so often to ensure that they reached as many corners of the stadium as possible; drummer Lars Ulrich moved between four drum kits, which made practical sense, although I would have quite enjoyed the prospect of the rapid F1-style breakdown and set-up of the kit between songs.
The set spanned their entire career, from 1983’s ‘Seek & Destroy’ to the frankly unhinged title track of 72 Seasons, released in 2023, and delivered a generous serving of big-show moments: flame-throwing pyrotechnics during the punishing ‘Fuel’, a blazing ‘King Nothing’, as well as a brief respite from the onslaught in the form of a light-hearted Caledonia-themed interlude, something which is apparently now legally enforceable for any global artist visiting Scotland. At this point, may I advocate for the retirement of ‘I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)’ as the cover version of choice for this slot? I have witnessed Robbie Williams, the Killers, Bryan Adams et al. trot out the Proclaimers’ slam-dunk crowd-pleaser at big gigs – and now Metallica. No more, please. Elvis Costello has recently been leaving the stage to the strains of Andy Stewart’s ‘Donald, Where’s Your Troosers?’, which seems altogether more subversive.
Each big song was mightier, louder and more ludicrous than the one before
Ulrich – the lively ‘personality’ of the band, contrasting with the more stoic demeanour of singer and guitarist James Hetfield – stood on his drumkit to conduct the heaving masses in the pit during the fluid, brooding balladry of ‘Nothing Else Matters’. And when the sun did finally take its bow and the shadows lengthened, a mournful ‘The Unforgiven’ provided the perfect soundtrack. Do they work out these things with the Met Office, I wonder?
This show was the latest stop on the ‘No Repeat’ tour. Whenever Metallica perform two consecutive concerts in a single city – as they will in London this weekend – they promise to play a completely different set on both nights, as well as feature different support acts. Depending on your levels of cynicism, this is either a savvy way to ensure that the same people buy tickets for two shows, or a smart way of keeping the grind of touring fresh and interesting.
Glasgow was a one-night-only date, which was good news for the fairweather Metallica fan, because it meant all the big songs made an appearance and most of them came in a huge rush at the end: ‘One’, ‘Seek & Destroy’, ‘Master Of Puppets’ and ‘Enter Sandman’, each mightier, louder and more ludicrous than the one before. The effect on the crowd was of mass delirium. Darkness met darkness and it felt pretty good.
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