While still in the final planning and preparation phase for my trip to NY/MA with Christina, my friend Dean reached out and said, “I have a Metallica ticket with your name on it for the Sunday show in Chicago if you can make it.” Within an hour, Dean and I had spoken on the phone and I had flights booked. I cared not that I still needed to get the day after the show off work to travel home thinking, shit man, I will call in sick that day if the boss does not approve my day off request. It was the perfect way to bookend the Friday show in Foxborough with a Sunday show in Chicago. Thankfully, the boss did approve my day off request, but I was going regardless.
It had been several months since I had last seen Dean and after he collected me from the airport we caught up over some Zaca Tacos, his favorite, and I can say they are freaking damn good tacos! After dropping off my stuff at his place we headed to see a local Mötley Crüe cover band (who were really good!) play at The Thirsty Beaver. While the name alone made me laugh, my guess was that the establishment for sure was frequented by those who had just been released from the local jail, as it was a rough crowd. I started chatting with this one guy who commented on my Metallica shirt, no I did not go last night, I just flew in from Florida a little while ago for the show tomorrow. After a little more conversation about Metallica, he begins to open up to me about an abusive relationship he is in. How he met a girl and they procreated twice and then she developed an unmentioned mental illness and began to verbally and physically abuse him. Now this came out of nowhere. It was a really crazy story and I sure hope for the children’s sake there is a happy outcome to the family’s story. Alas, I will never know, as soon after Dean returned to where I was sitting after he made a few rounds of the place and asked if I was ready to head back to his place. My new ‘friend’, standing a couple of feet away, saw me yawn as Dean and I were plotting our escape and offered ‘a couple of bumps’ to help me keep the night going. No thanks man, I have had a long day of travelling, I am ready to call it a night.
After a good night of needed rest, it was a lounge day until midafternoon when Dean’s son Alex, and Alex’s girlfriend Bri, came over to begin the adventure of Alex and Bri’s first Metallica concert. We made our way to the venue via free shuttle busses provided by an iconic rock and roll venue that, after a quick tour through the various floors, Reggie’s definitely requires a return CMO (Chief Metal Officer) visit. It was a total party atmosphere on the bus as we rode to Soldier Field. Metalheads drinking, smoking and singing along to R.E.M. on the radio. Yeah, we asked to change it to Metallica but alas, it was the terrestrial radio and the heaviest tunes the bus could manage at the time, even though any one of us could have just Youtubed a Metallica video, like I said, it was a rolling party. It was interesting to meet an out-of-towner who sat in front of us and Dean struck up a conversation with. Dean was fascinated how this Canadian guy who has never been to Chicago knew about this ‘locals’ info with the busses from Reggie’s when one of Dean’s friends who lives locally had no idea and missed half of Pantera on Friday from sitting in traffic. Simple. We metalheads roll deep! That Canadian guy had been in Foxborough the weekend before so I am sure one of the Chicago locals shared the info.
We arrived at the venue, snapped a group photo and then headed into the stadium. While Ice Nine Kills was on stage, I opted to hit the merchandise stand and acquired a treasured souvenir from the show. We then made our way to check out where our seats were just as Five Finger Death Punch was taking the stage. It was my sixth time seeing Five Finger Death Punch and towards the end of their set I ventured off to try and meet up with some friends who I knew were also in attendance. I was able to meet up with my friend Deb that I had met earlier this year on the Monsters of Rock Cruise and one of her friends. I tried my hardest to meet up with my friend Rob (also a fellow cruiser), but my cell signal in that venue was non-existent and every attempt at connecting to the Wi-Fi network the stadium provides proved futile. Due to no signal, I missed seeing Rob, but no biggie as I will see him at a local show this upcoming weekend in Clearwater, FL.
Nine days later, it was time for the main event once again. When those first few notes of AC/DC came over the speakers, our whole party were already on our feet in anticipation. Dean was singing along and just the electricity level in the stadium went up several notches. “The Ecstasy of Gold” (finally) concludes and Metallica open with an expected “Whiplash” for the Chicago faithful. After some warm-up neck headbanging exercises for that thrash intro to the evening, “For Whom the Bell Tolls” starts and the whole stadium seemed to recognize it at once and it being in my top three Metallica songs I was in pure CMO heaven. For that song to end into the beginning of “Ride the Lightning” my thought was what a freaking opening sequence. Even anticipating those three as the opening songs was nowhere as intense as actually experiencing it, for a second time no less as it was the same sequence opening at the 2023 East Rutherford, NJ show I mentioned prior. I wish they would have kept the energy going right out of the gate, but alas “Until It Sleeps” was next and while not anywhere near my favourite, somewhere out there in the crowd that was the song that person came to hear so I appreciated the moment for exactly that.
Lars’ drum kit rotated from the far right to the far left of our seats as the band launched into ‘the new stuff’ as I heard someone in the crowd say at one point during the three songs played from the new album. Lux Æterna started off this ‘quarter’ of the show as the mathematician in me called it. “Screaming Suicide” was next and I really like that one off the new 72 Seasons release. Now we were jamming again. Followed by this evening’s “doodle’ with Kirk and Rob paying homage to Ministry and their rendition of “Just One Fix” which I thought was awesome. I was surprised by how unfamiliar it seemed to those around us. Closing out the second quarter was “The Day That Never Comes“, again the lone Death Magnetic selection of the evening. Tonight’s fifteen-song setlist touched upon eight of their studio releases and honestly, Metallica has such a deep discography they could have played all night. That led into the anthemic and heavy “Wherever I May Roam” which had the neck exercises in the crowd going again.
The second half of the show started off with the fantastic instrumental “The Call of Ktulu” and once completed James dedicated their performance to Cliff Burton. Now Lars’ drum kit was to our near left and when “The Unforgiven” started, I knew we had to be in for a hell of a finish if we are getting this level of ballads for the evening. Still, Metallica presents and delivers their material at an unmatched level but I am here for the crunch, the thrash and the heavy. One last song from the new release, the one song off the new release I had not heard in its entirety, yet, “Inamorata” was dedicated to an eight-year-old fan in the Make-A-Wish program who was at the show as guest of the band this evening.
The final quarter erupted back to their thrash days with “Fight Fire with Fire“. This led into “Moth Into Flame“, their selection this night from their last release, Hardwired… to Self-Destruct, which I have previously written that “Moth” could easily be a bonus track on Metallica’s 1983 debut release Kill ‘Em All as it had that raw edgy crunchy sound that I love so much. This led into what some might consider another ballad, “One“, was presented in such spectacular fashion with the sounds of the music video’s depiction of a war-torn battlefield with simulated battle sounds from opposing sides of the stadium then nearing the ringed center where James was illuminated for his guitar intro. Sadly once “Enter Sandman” started I knew the evening was coming to a conclusion. I held onto every note I could until the stadium lights came on to signify the show was actually over as the crowd was hungry for just one more song. You guys have enough music, you can play all night remember…?
This was my fourteenth time seeing Metallica and twice in the past nine days. Ask my friends, in the days after the Chicago show I was ready to try and get to at least one of the Minneapolis shows the next weekend, but darn adult life and work responsibilities got in the way. I had left my bags packed (minus the dirty clothes) from this trip as a just in case, this Chicago concert was that kick ass and I immediately wanted more and to go again. Our ride back to Reggie’s was not nearly as entertaining, as there was no drinking this time around because no one was allowed to leave the stadium with open containers of alcohol. But that does not mean it was whisper quiet on the drive back. Quite the opposite! We had all just seen a kick-ass Metallica show! Our ride back to Dean’s house was quite entertaining hearing everyone’s enjoyment of the show.
We all remembered the part where James recognized a young fan holding up a sign saying it was her eighth birthday. He waved hi and said, “Hey, how’s it going? It’s your birthday? You’re 8 years old? And you’re in the front row at a Metallica concert…that’s a good dad right there…”.
I did not want to return home to work and responsibility. I appreciated the life-reflective conversation Dean and I frequently engaged in during my visit. We had a lot of laughs, he had a great time seeing his son, Alex, enjoying himself the way that he did at the show. Dean said he would be back down in Florida soon and that we would get in a show during his visit. He dropped me off at the airport and I noticed at least a dozen Metallica shirts proudly adorned by the faithful. There were three on my flight alone.
It was an absolutely epic eleven-day adventure with two Metallica shows in two different cities. Epic enough I was ready to make it three weekends in a row before out of control me realized it just was not possible. I will say, the younger generation was well represented at both shows – I saw kids that had to have been under ten years old and my guess is the top of the age range would reach at least eighty. Easily three generations were on hand in some instances. It makes me imagine looking back, I would have been the coolest kid in elementary school to have said I went to a Metallica concert with my dad and my grandpa.
I have seen four shows on this tour in three different cities and I can say it is quite an awesome experience. Metallica is still at the top of their game live. Their new music for the last two releases take me back to the old days of them sounding heavy and hungry. I sure hope it is not another six-and-a-half-year wait before we fans get a new album. I really look forward to seeing how the band is going to top this immense tour and patiently await my fifteenth Metallica concert. This is a fascinating article on the massive logistical production that goes into the Metallica M72 stadium tour, from concept and design to implementation: Metallica M72 World Tour.
Setlist for Metallica, August 11, 2024:
Whiplash
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Ride the Lightning
Until It Sleeps
Lux Æterna
Screaming Suicide (Followed by Ministry’s “Just One Fix” doodle by Kirk & Rob)
The Day That Never Comes
Wherever I May Roam
The Call of Ktulu (Dedicated to Cliff Burton)
The Unforgiven
Inamorata (Dedicated to an eight-year-old fan in Make-A-Wish program)
Fight Fire With Fire
Moth Into Flame
One
Enter Sandman
Randy \m/
CMO
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Metallica in Foxborough by Randude Cook.
