Oregon Music News: Oregon’s all-genre music magazine since 2009

12/06/2018

Metallica at the Moda Center on 12-5-18 Photos

By BRENT ANGELO //

Metallica formed in the early eighties and was fueled by its fast guitar playing, heavy bass and thundering drums. The band featuring James Hetfield (vocals, guitar), Kirk Hammett (lead guitar), Cliff Burton (bass) and Lars Ulrich (drums) gained an underground following and would gain critical success. 1986’s Master of Puppets for example is regarded as one of the best metal records ever made.

While on tour and in support of that album, the band would suffer a crushing blow with the tragic death of Cliff Burton in a terrible tour bus accident. Metallica would rebound with the addition of Jason Newsted and released ….And Justice For All. Their song “One” would bring them to masses on MTV and would gain them more fans. It was Metallica’s 1991 self-titled “Black” Album that would really send the band to the top. The album has sold over 15 million in the US and well over 20 million copies worldwide. The band would get some criticism for its new-found success. The Black Album would see interesting departures from Metallica’s well-known style and sound with songs like “Nothing Else Matters”.

The band was taking chances and not listening to anyone, but themselves. The band would follow with the albums, Load and Reload in the late 90s, got some backlash with St. Anger, released a documentary, “Some Kind of Monster” and with their current release find themselves back on top with Hardwired…to Self-Destruct.

Metallica just bought their Worldwired tour in support of Hardwired to the Moda Center treating fans to songs going all the way back to their very beginning. “Seek and Destroy” got mosh pits in high gear early in the set. The show was in the round and gave fans their big show with an up-close intimacy. Metallica’s stage setup seemed simple but was far from it. Songs like “Fuel” brought massive fire, “Moth Into Flame” one of tonight’s highlights brought very cool imagery done with drones and overhead rigging played nice visuals throughout the show.

After the fan favorite, “Fade to Black”, Portland got a little local treat from guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo. Kirk started playing the sax part of Quarterflash’s “Harden My Heart” that went into the two covering Poison Idea’s “Taken By Surprise”. The set would feature other fan favorites like “Master of Puppets” and played rarer songs like “No Remorse”. “Enter Sandman” would close out this tour de force.

Metallica is a band that was built on metal. Over the years, the band has seen death, addiction, marriages lost, in-concert accidents, but these guys have remained strong through it all from the love and dedication of their fans. There is a real connection between this band and its audience. It's special and the Portland show was a great example of that.

There is a symmetrical respect and appreciation on both sides. Metallica’s music has really evolved over the years, but their fans have showed their loyalty through the years. These once hard rocking teenagers have grown and matured but continue to take chances and even give back. Their charitable deeds have been seen in recent years even playing shows in acoustic settings. After selling over 125 million albums worldwide, Metallica remains one of rock’s top bands. The Portland Moda show was a sold-out show for good reason. After more than 35 years, this band was and still is one of the best live rock bands in concert.


Metallica WorldWired Tour
Portland, Oregon, Moda Center 12-5-18

Setlist
Hardwired
Atlas, Rise!
Seek and Destroy
Holier Than Thou
Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
Now That We're Dead
Creeping Death
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Fade to Black
Kirk Hammett & Robert Trujillo pay tribute to Portland’s own
Kirk played the sax part of Quarterflash’s “Harden My Heart” then they did
Poison Idea’s “Taken by Surprise” https://youtu.be/oeQZhlVnWN4
No Remorse
Moth Into Flame
Sad But True
One
Master of Puppets
Encore
Spit Out The Bone
Nothing Else Matters
Enter Sandman


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Comments

Yo mama

Metallica has a professional photographer. We don’t need to see your amateur snapshots. The “review” seems to have been written by an elementary school child. Stop wasting space with this garbage.

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