Executing a great arena rock show is a difficult task. First of all, a band has to have music substantial enough to warrant a more than 20,000-person audience. But second and almost more important, the musicians have to find a way to turn the typical, impersonal arena into an intimate, or at least entertaining and spine-tingling show.
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Metallica
The Palace of |
Metallica did play a decent set, running through recent radio favorites "King Nothing," "Hero of the Day," and "Until It Sleeps," along with some of the obligatory classics like "One," "Seek & Destroy" and "Fade to Black." Opening with a brief jam and then breaking into "Last Caress" with the house lights still up, the band surprised a few people with its less-than-traditional concert kick-off.
Dressed in their new alterna-gear and with short hair, the Metallica members looked a bit silly, mainly because we know them as the long-haired metal guys they used to be. Guitarist Kirk Hammett and drummer Lars Ulrich showed off their recent body piercings, while vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield sported a chain wallet for whatever useful reason - not that he ever goes out in public where he'll be pick-pocketed, but maybe he just likes to stay close to his money.
After "Caress," the band broke into more of its legendary thrash metal with the classic "Creeping Death," "Sad But True" and "Ain't My Bitch," the best track from the band's latest album, "Load." Hetfield was energetic and sharp as usual, as was Ulrich's pounding beats and weird facial expressions.
The awkward arrangement of the stage, however, made it difficult for the entire audience to see Hetfield, Hammett and bassist Jason Newsted at the same time. While at conception a stage the size of a basketball court set in the middle of the arena may have sounded like a good idea, it turned out to be disastrous. Hetfield could only sing to any section of the crowd for less than a quarter of the time, while most of the arena got to see his back for the majority of the show.
While Hetfield did run up and down the metal scaffolding for the entire set, it was annoying that he was turned in the opposite direction so frequently. Almost more important, Hetfield frequently found himself out of breath or missing lines while running around the set. The band tried to have at least one member playing to a section at all times, but being so far apart from each other affected the visual picture that they are a band - a single cohesive unit that has to work together and play together.
Being so far apart also affected Metallica's performance. They weren't as solid as they could have been, and sounded like quite a different band from their tight-playing early metal days. Most of the songs sounded fine, simply not-too-impressive. The irony of the matter is that on the Lollapalooza tour last summer, without all the frills like the basketball-court-size stage and the extravagant lighting and staging, Metallica was tight and thrilling, the way the band used to be.
Perhaps the most exciting part of the performance was during "Master of Puppets" in the encore. There was an explosion in the tech area of the stage that had to be put out with fire extinguishers while Metallica continued to play. During the next song, "Enter Sandman," one of the light towers on the stage began sparking and had to be lowered and extinguished.
A few minutes later, the entire set was exploding and came crashing down with fire and smoke. Best of all, there was a guy running around the stage engulfed in flames. What appeared to be the most spontaneous part of the show turned out to be a contrived Metallica trick. How funny to parody Hetfield's unfortunate incident with a pyrotechnic cannon in 1992, when the frontman was severely burned and the band had to cancel shows on their tour with Guns N' Roses.
After the explosions were cleaned up, the band returned for a couple more songs from their early garage-days era. They tried to play off the catastrophe that had just taken place as real, but it was quite obviously a farce. The band began playing on traditional garage-style amps, an attempt to prove they were still that same old Metallica. That didn't last for long, and the soundsystem kicked in after a few minutes to finish off the show with the newer, Bob Rock-produced Metallica.
Other signs of the modern Metallica could be seen in the T-shirts, toned way down from the skulls and violent vintage Metallica tour shirts the "bad" kids used to wear in high school. (Picture: A hand sticking up out of a toilet holding a knife with the words: "Metal up your ass.")
Although the performance seemed forced and contrived and below the band's ability, Metallica still performed an entertaining show. Maybe if the group put as much effort into its music as it put into its set and schtick, Metallica would be able to rock like it used to.
Metallica vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield performs at The Palace of Auburn Hills on Sunday.
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| Metallica at The Palace (from left): Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich and Jason Newsted. | ||