Metallica are the latest group coming to the Sphere in Las Vegas, the band confirmed on Wednesday, marking the first heavy metal act tapped to play the high-tech venue since its opening in 2023.
The rock icons will play eight shows at the venue on October 1 and October 3, October 15 and October 17, October 22 and October 24. Tickets will go on sale on March 6 at 10 a.m. PST.
“About 12 seconds into the opening night of Sphere with U2 back in ‘23, I thought ‘We have to do this, it’s completely uncharted territory,’” Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich said in a statement. “This residency gives us another chance to reinvent how we interact with our fans in a live setting. We are beyond excited to share this with the world in six months time, and way fuckin’ psyched to go next level!”
The residency will continue the band’s “No Repeat Weekends” tradition Metallica had adopted in recent years, where they won’t repeat songs between their Thursday and Saturday dates, ensuring unique shows depending on which concert you attend.
Metallica’s proven willing to take to new live platforms in the past, having done an immersive concert experience through Apple Vision Pro last year as well.
“What’s so good about this is that you can really feel the live music, and you can feel the interaction between the fans and the band,” Trujillo told the The Hollywood Reporter last year of the Vision Pro show. “You can look in the fans’ eyes, it’s like you can almost touch it.”
Aside from Metallica, other acts slated to play the Sphere this year include No Doubt, Eagles, Kenny Chesney, Backstreet Boys, Illenium, Phish and Carín León. The Sphere’s other main attraction is its Wizard of Oz experience, which has become a significant moneymaker for the venue, surprassing $260 million in ticket sales back in January.