Simon Rushworth
@ Newcastle Metro Radio Arena, March 3 2009
Four masters, thousands of puppets and all of us hanging on every one of James Hetfield’s carefully chosen and perfectly delivered words.
This was about as close to the ultimate Metallica show as it is possible to get and 13 years after the thrash metal megastars last treated a Newcastle crowd to their arena show it was only unlucky for those unable to beg, borrow or steal a ticket for the hottest rock gig of the decade.
But this wasn’t all about the fifth biggest selling act of 2008. First up were The Sword and as fans of the NWOBHM celebrate its 3oth anniversary with suitable gustoe it’s worth noting that without that guitar-driven movement bands like this just wouldn’t exist.
For the first three songs it seemed they never did as lead singer John D. Cronise couldn’t make himself heard above an awful mix and it was only when the band ripped into epic standard Maiden, Mother & Crone that a laid back crowd realised they were witnessing something very special indeed. One day this fervent four-piece with a rhythm section to die for will be very big news. And that day must surely be soon.
But if The Sword seemed somewhat uncomfortable dotted about the massive Metallica stage then seasoned pros Machine Head appeared right at home in front of an expectant arena crowd on a platform hewn for legends. No matter that this was the band’s second support slot at the Arena in three months – the quality of the set even eclipsed that which warmed up Slipknot’s crowd in December.
In truth Metallica fans were always going to be more receptive to Machine Head’s intoxicating brand of power metal and a near full house appeared to love every minute. Halo has surely etched its name into metal history as one of the most magical songs of the genre and long after the rest of us have stopped caring for heavy rock this standout track from The Blackening will be blowing away generation after generation.
If Machine Head really are a band on the brink of implosion with in-fighting and indiscipline threatening their very future then it didn’t show tonight. On this evidence this is a band playing at the peak of their powers and not too far off an arena tour of their own.
So what of Metallica? First off this was far and above a better set than that witnessed at Leeds last summer. Featuring more of triumphant comeback album Death Magnetic and enough of the crowd-pleasing classics it was impossible to find fault with a truly blistering show.
Of the new material there’s no doubt which tune has the potential to go down in history as one of the band’s best ever. A baying Newcastle crowd was treated to a stunning version of The Judas Kiss and played live there is no doubt this modern epic has the quality to stand comfortably alongside the very best from Metallica’s classy back catalogue.
The End Of The Line and Cyanide were delivered with similar zeal but fans who had been moshing for dear life to Machine Head almost seemed in awe of the evening’s headliners. Plenty of clapping but a paucity of pit action reflected the fact that this was a spectacle that nobody – not even the bare-chested hoodlums – wanted to take their eyes off.
Ear-bleeding versions of Harvester Of Sorrow and Sad But True kept the second generation of Metallifans happy and One was, well, One. Immense, emotional, uncompromising – it didn’t need the cliched pyro to stand alone as a band-defining anthem the like of which we might never see again.
Nothing Else Matters made the hairs stand up on the backs of aching necks everywhere but the encore was a different matter altogether. Whiplash and Seek And Destroy, played back-to-back with terrifying professionalism, set the seal on something very special indeed. In 1996 Metallica whipped a Newcastle Arena crowd into a frenzy and 13 years on they still have what it takes to make metal history. It was a sell out but this was no sell-out – let’s hope it never will be where the mightiest thrash metal band in history is concerned.
Simon Rushworth