Since bursting onto the music scene in the early 1980s, heavy metal band Metallica has become one of the most successful bands not just of their genre, but of all time. Known as one of the founding “big 4” bands of thrash metal—alongside Anthrax, Megadeth, and Slayer—Metallica has acquired a rabid fan base who have helped the group become one of the best-selling bands in history. Over more than 30 years, Metallica has released 10 studio albums, with their last 6 all debuting at number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. They’ve won 9 Grammy Awards, including 6 for Best Metal Performance for singles such as “Stone Cold Crazy,” “Better Than You,” and “My Apocalypse.” Named by Rolling Stone as one of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, the band continues to sell out tickets for concerts all across the world.
Formed in Los Angeles in 1981, Metallica first came together when drummer Lars Ulrich put an ad in an LA paper looking for musicians to play with. The following year, they recorded their first original song, “Hit the Lights” and soon began opening for bands like British heavy metal group Saxon. Their debut album, Kill ‘Em All, was released in 1983 to critical acclaim and has since been regarded as a groundbreaking record for the genre thanks to its mix of British heavy metal riffs and hardcore punk tempos. Over the next 3 years, they released 2 more albums with their third, Master of Puppets, being described as a masterpiece and one of the most influential metal albums of all time. Internal struggles within the band have led to several members coming and going, but today the group consists of original members Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield, along with Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo. The band has continued to tour and record, and in 2009, Metallica was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Fame. They began their most recent tour in 2016, which will travel across North America into 2019. Grab tickets today to see this legendary group in cities like Minneapolis, Winnipeg, Las Vegas, Portland, Sacramento, and Nashville.
