‘Metallica S&M 2’ Opens SF’s Chase Center With Class, Energy

What better choice to open the brand-new $1 billion Chase Center than hometown heroes Metallica, who delighted diehard fans with the added bonus of re-creating the Symphony & Metallica performance of 20 years ago and even added a second date solely for fanclub members two days later.

Opening the set with the signature Ennio Morricone “The Good, The Bad & The Ugly” score widely used by the band, but on Friday night performed live by the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, led by Michael Tilson Thomas, the true metal gods opened the show with a dramatic rendition of the menacing “Call Of Cthulhu” from 1984’s Ride The Lightning, one of the band’s early thrash masterpieces, giving way to the fist pumping, anthemic “For Whom The Bell Tolls” to deafening roars from the capacity crowd. 

“How fucking cool is this? We have a new, world-class arena in our back yard. Fuck yeah,” drummer Lars Ulrich told the crowd after a brief intermission. “I just want to thank Joe Lacob and Peter Guber and the rest of the Warriors organization, including Eric Bresler and Jennifer, who are the real reason we’re here. Thank you for inviting us to your San Francisco and Bay Area celebration party. There’s no other place on the planet Metallica would rather be right now than with you.”

The show is surely a triumph for the new arena and executive director Eric Bresler, as opening night, at least to the fans in attendance (including Metallica managers and Q Prime heads Cliff Burnstein and Peter Mensch), went off without a hitch. Burnstein told Pollstar during the show that the ticket sales and gross for the brand-new arena would surely be a record (as no other shows had taken place yet), but one that may hold for quite a while.

– Chase Center
opening night with Metallica Sept. 6

Fans came from far and wide to see the one-time-only event, with flags from Chile, Mexico and Russia proudly on display and fans chanting and reciting lines to their favorite songs, including Reload’s “The Memory Remains,” Master of Puppets’ epic title track and show closer “Enter Sandman,” which surely has entered the canon of not only classic metal but pop culture by now. They also eagerly waited in long lines to buy exclusive merch, with the queue winding around the arena concourse for what seemed like the entirety of the show. 

Somber moments were afforded on Friday night, largely thanks to the symphony’s presence, including a cello bass solo in honor of the band’s “fallen brother,” as described by frontman James Hetfield described, Cliff Burton, who died in a tour bus accident in Sweden in 1986. The somber, droning cello gave way to a fuzzed-out rendition of Burton’s recorded “Anaesthesia Pulling Teeth,” garnering roaring approval from the crowd and eventually joined by Ulrich for a pounding jam that ended to a standing ovation.

– Chile To Self Destruct

Playing in the round and with each member able to hit the microphone facing either quadrant of the audience, the new S&M shows are being filmed for theatrical release for a one-day screening to take place in October.

The band’s long-running “Worldwired To Self Destruct” tour recent wrapped its North American run and continues to South America in October, bringing along rising rockers Greta Van Fleet. The tour has played stadiums and arenas on all parts of the globe since kicking off in 2016, racking up more than 4 million tickets sold and $426 million grossed on 141 shows, according to Pollstar research, solidifying the band’s rightful place as one of the biggest on the planet.