Local Heroes Metallica Announce 2 December Chase Center Concerts Marking 40th Anniversary
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Iconic Bay Area band Metallica on Wednesday announced it would headline a pair of special December shows at the Chase Center in San Francisco to mark the group's 40th anniversary.
The band sent out an email to people signed up for its Fifth Member fan club Wednesday morning announcing the two shows on December 17 and 19 as well as posting information on its official website. The announcement promised two different live sets from the band with tickets only available for purchase from members of the fan club.
"As hard as it is to believe, the band will be turning the big 4 – 0 this October. It's a wild thing to wrap our heads around… it feels like just yesterday that we were hitting the stage playing our first show at Radio City in Anaheim, CA, in the spring of 1982!" the announcement began before providing details on the upcoming anniversary concerts.
Though the group was founded by guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich in Southern California (second guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist Ron McGovney rounded out the early line-up), Metallica would establish deep Bay Area roots after recruiting bassist Cliff Burton, who stipulated that the quartet relocate to the Bay when he joined in 1982. After the acrimonious departure of Mustaine, the band further solidified its Bay Area ties by adding local product and Exodus guitarist Kirk Hammett.
The band pioneered an aggressive sound that was labeled "thrash metal" and gradually rose to become one of the most popular rock acts on the planet. Metallica reunited with the San Francisco Symphony in September of 2019 for the inaugural concert at Chase Center. Those performances were filmed and recorded for S&M2, a sequel to the band's earlier collaboration with the symphony in 1999.
The band is appearing at a number of music festivals this fall including Aftershock 2021 in Sacramento. Information on purchasing 40th anniversary concert tickets and travel packages can be found at Metallica's website.
