2011 was quite a year for Metallica and the Big Four of metal, which was obvious considering the big tour every die hard metal fan had been praying for since the dawn of time finally came together.
Finally in America, Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax and Megadeth all played together in Southern California and New York after playing in Europe, and all shows reportedly went well.
Unfortunately, that’s apparently all there’s going to be, which to some extent seems odd because the bands apparently got along well, and according to KJ Doughton, who knew all the bands from way back in the day, they never played better.
But as Slayer guitarist Kerry King told Classic Rock, he doubts there will be any more Big Four gigs because, “If you look at how much work went into making it all happen in the first place, then I really doubt we can do the same thing again.
“You had four headlining bands touring together and that takes so much organizing,” King continued. “I know there are some parts where they’re angry not to have gotten the chance to see it. The Bay Area will probably never forgive us. And we could go on and on doing it for ages.But I honestly doubt we can get our schedules to coincide like that again.”
Still, you never say never, and bands have people to do all the organizing for ’em, and if happened successfully before, no reason it can’t happen again. (Like the saying goes, it ain’t rocket science.) Considering all the behind the scenes diva nonsense that could have gone on between band members and management, it’s a miracle things went as smoothly as they did.
With both the Big Four and the Metallica 30th anniversary shows, they were a celebration of the bands that revolutionized modern metal, special events that those who attended will tell their grandkids about for sure.
Lars Ulrich told The Pulse of Radio, “It’s pretty amazing, if you think about it, that it’s the first time basically in 25 or 30 years that the four of us actually played shows together. So it was a lot of fun, a lot of memories, a lot of fun times – new fun times, and fun times talking about the old fun times…it was a winner on every front.”
