Metallica – Aviva Stadium – Live Review – 21/06/26
by Killian Laher

Metallica – Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Sunday 21st June – 2nd night of the No Repeat Weekend

Probably music’s biggest metal band, Metallica attracted a fair bit of comment for how this tour was packaged, selling two-day tickets and promising no repeat songs between the two gigs.  50,000 people packed into the Aviva Stadium to catch the show.  After a powerful set by Gojira, it was left to the headliner to take the stage and right from the start they had the crowd eating out of their hands, barreling through Whiplash and For Whom The Bell Tolls.

A towering version of Ride The Lightning was an early highlight, frontman James Hetfield growling “now it’s time to DIEEE!!!!”  A snatch of Dirty Old Town went down well, but it was the classics the audience were here for.  Fade To Black and Unforgiven pleased the power ballad fans, while all and sundry belted out the lyrics to their rendition of Whiskey In The Jar.

It was a really slick operation and a ruthlessly professional performance by the band.  While their most-loved material is more than thirty years old, age has not dimmed the allure of it.  An awesome version of One excelled, before they finished with the inevitable Enter Sandman.  Far from going through the motions, the band clearly love playing the material live, and the fans were not disappointed.

Setlist

It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll) – (AC/DC song)
The Ecstasy of Gold – (Ennio Morricone song)
Whiplash
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Ride the Lightning
Until It Sleeps
Lux Æterna
Screaming Suicide
Kirk and Rob Doodle (Ewan MacColl‘s “Dirty Old Town”)
Fade to Black
Wherever I May Roam
The Call of Ktulu
The Unforgiven
Whiskey in the Jar – ([traditional] cover) (preceded by “…And Justice For All” tease)
Blackened
Moth Into Flame
One
Enter Sandman