Met in New Jersey
Hello Metfam!
We're starting tour season again! It's my favorite time of the year! Not only do we get to travel and see the greatest band alive but also because I get to see old friends and make new ones. I was especially excited to see my good friend Carol, whom I haven't seen since the Hollywood Florida show and met back in Brazil last year. She migrated to the US almost a year ago and has been working hard to achieve a better life and to experiencing more live music, particularly Metallica. As an immigrant and someone who loves going to concerts, I understand the sacrifices you have to make to make it all happen, especially in the beginning. Despite facing difficulties, Carol was able to buy the coveted "I Disappear" ticket, previously known as the Black ticket. Which gives you early access to the floor at any of the M72 shows in North America in 2023 (yeah, exceptions apply). But this is just one slice of the journey. The rest involves traveling, finding a place to stay, taking time off from work, and managing your budget. All of this is for the love of this amazing band and the love they give back!
I arrived in New Jersey around 5:30 am on Friday after taking a red-eye flight from Los Angeles. I was tired and sleep deprived, but I was also excited. After a short Uber ride, I knocked on my hotel room where I found a group of old friends who were also excited and ready to line up. As weary as I was, I decided to join them out of curiosity. I wanted to see who else would be there early in the morning. I grabbed the film camera my brother sent me and tried it out for the first time. It had been over 20 years since I last shot a full roll of film, so it was quite exciting for me. We arrived at the venue and I saw quite a few die-hards, the ones that wait for hours to be close to the action. Waiting in line all day is exhausting , but also rewarding. You get to meet, talk and share with a lot of people, there’s always a sense of camaraderie. After a couple of hours, I realized that I couldn't stay any longer. I was desperate for some rest, so I went back to the hotel and took a nap
Carol picked me up later, and we lined up to get our "I Disappear" laminates. It was joyful to see even more familiar faces and keep introducing Carol to the MFF world. Coming into the stadium I wondered if they made any changes to the stage after the European tour, the consensus among the people that attended those shows was that the stage (Ethel) was huge and perhaps too big, that’s what I thought when I saw them in Hamburg, I knew Lars mentioned it would feel smaller in the states ‘cause the stadiums are narrower but not only did it look smaller, I think they shrunk it a little bit, or at least that's how I felt it, I told Carol about the rail areas and viewing points and agreed to go by the dip in the middle, the floor was pretty empty so I went around to take some pics, say hi to more people to then come back to my spot. Mammoth sounded great! and I’m starting to like it more but PANTERA! (yeah I know, I know) damn! That was a good show! I was really looking forward to seeing them and didn’t disappoint one bit!! but we are here for Metallica so let me break it down, Creep will always be a great opener, but I do miss the days when the opening track of the new album was the opener for the new live shows, it’s not a complaint at all, I quite enjoy the way is structured and the no repeat weekend is a great opportunity to hear rare songs like the next 3 in the setlist, Harvey, Holier and King Nothing, the slot with the new songs is one of my favorites, they blend so well! one of my expectations was to hear a couple new of songs from the new album on this leg of the tour and boy did they deliver, enter SHADOWS FOLLOW! a song that rapidly rose to be one of my favorites on this album and I knew it would be a banger live! The ones that stood out after that were obviously: Orion and the Day that Never Comes, (throw Death Magnetic songs my way any day!)
Side note: I strongly believe they will stick with these new two (Shadows and Too Far) for this leg of the tour and introduce two more next year in Europe, for a total of 10 songs out of 12 in the new album, with the hope of having all 12 played live by the end of 2024, however, the last statement might be a bit of a stretch as everyone is eager to hear Inammorta but I get the feeling they wanna hold that one in the back pocket for a while. Nonetheless, they seem very excited about all the new songs, and hopefully, we'll get to hear all of them performed live, just like they did with "Death Magnetic."
On Saturday, our plan was to sleep in and then go to the pop-up store. After that, we had the opportunity to go to the bookstore where Ross was signing his photo book. Fortunately, we were able to peek through the front door and take a look inside and saw Rob and Kirk sharing stories. However, the highlight of my day was when I saw both OTTTO and BASTARDANE perform together again on the same stage. It brought back wonderful memories and I was extremely happy! Both of them had badass sets, and I would highly recommend seeing them if you have the chance.
Sunday was similar to Friday except for one thing - I slept really well. Carol and her friend Beatriz came to pick me up, and then we all went to get Meg, who also made a new friend named Ash. The girls were taking over! We saw Overkill by the parking lot and then Ice Nine Kills and Five Finger Death Punch inside the stadium. Both bands put on a great show, but once again, it’s all about the Tallica boys. This time, we ended up by James' side for a different experience. The lights went down, there was a rumble, and "A Long Way to the Top" started playing. Acting like a maniac! WHIPLASH!!
What an electric and energizing opener! love it every single time! then the one-two punch of Bellz and Ride! knocked you right out! they were relentless! The chant on memory and the celebration of live music that is Lux AEterna were also incredible. To top it off, we were treated to another Live debut with the song "TOO FAR GONE" That’s 8 out of 12 72 Seasons songs checked!! the ones that stood out after that were Ktulu, Blackened, and Whiskey! the last one was extra fun with the beach balls, despite a malfunction in one of the towers causing some of the balls to not fall. Sadman closed the show , we hugged, we laughed, we jumped and headbanged; then our Metallica weekend was over.
Thank you for an incredible weekend yet again Metallica.
My next stop is Arlington TX! see you guys then!!
Enjoy the photos!
