Metallica announce 12th studio album ’72 Seasons’
Heavy metal gods Metallica are back to announce their 12th studio album, 72 Seasons. The new album will be the band’s first studio project since 2016’s Hardwired… to Self-Destruct.
Produced by Greg Fidelman, 72 Seasons will align with the precedent set by most of Metallica’s post Black Album material by clocking in at over 77 minutes. The 12-track LP will be released in formats including 2LP 140g black vinyl and limited edition variants, CD and digital copies.
“72 seasons. The first 18 years of our lives that form our true or false selves,” is how James Hetfield described the ethos behind the band’s new album. “The concept that we were told ‘who we are’ by our parents. A possible pigeonholing around what kind of personality we are. I think the most interesting part of this is the continued study of those core beliefs and how it affects our perception of the world today. Much of our adult experience is reenactment or reaction to these childhood experiences. Prisoners of childhood or breaking free of those bondages we carry.”
To preview the upcoming release, Metallica have released a brand-new single, ‘Lux Æterna’. Filled with breakneck rhythms and shredding guitars, the new single leans heavily on some of the band’s punk rock roots. Lars Ulrich’s bass drums sound a little too accurate to be natural, but Hetfield’s voice sounds like it’s in pristine condition.
Strangely, Kirk Hammett appears to be a bit off his game on the guitar solo, throwing in seemingly-random runs that descend and swirl without a solid sense of direction. While it’s technically proficient, it also sounds a bit like a parody of a shredding solo. Hammett has an uncanny ability to pull magic out of just about any Metallica song, but the solo in ‘Lux Æterna’ is unlikely to go down as one of his best.
To support 72 Seasons, Metallica is planning to stay on the road throughout most of 2023 and 2024. That includes stops all over the world, kicking off in Amsterdam on April 27th and finally coming to a halt in Mexico City in September of 2024. A portion of proceeds from every ticket sold will go to the band’s All Within My Hands foundation. Supporting acts for the tour include Five Finger Death Punch, Ice Nine Kills, Volbeat, Wolfgang Van Halen’s Mammoth WVH, Greta Van Fleet, and the newly-reformed Pantera.
Check out ‘Lux Æterna’, plus the tracklisting for 72 Seasons and Metallica’s forthcoming tour stops, down below. 72 Seasons is set for an April 14th release.
72 Seasons tracklisting:
- ’72 Seasons’
- ‘Shadows Follow’
- ‘Screaming Suicide’
- ‘Sleepwalk My Life Away’
- ‘You Must Burn!’
- ‘Lux Æterna’
- ‘Crown of Barbed Wire’
- ‘Chasing Light’
- ‘If Darkness Had a Son’
- ‘Too Far Gone?’
- ‘Room of Mirrors’
- ‘Inamorata’
Metallica ‘M72 World Tour’ 2023-2024 dates:
April 2023
- Thur 27th Amsterdam NL, Johan Cruijff Arena
- Sat 29th Amsterdam NL, Johan Cruijff Arena
May 2023
- Wed 17th Paris FR, Stade de France
- Fri 19th Paris FR, Stade de France
- Fri 26th Hamburg DE, Volksparkstadion
- Sun 28th Hamburg DE, Volksparkstadion
June 2023
- Fri 16th Gothenburg SE, Ullevi Stadium
- Sun 18th Gothenburg SE, Ullevi Stadium
August 2023
- Fri 4th East Rutherford, NJ MetLife Stadium
- Sun 6th East Rutherford, NJ MetLife Stadium
- Fri 11th Montreal, QC, Stade Olympique
- Sun 13th Montreal, QC, Stade Olympique
- Fri 18th Arlington, TX, AT&T Stadium
- Sun 20th Arlington, TX, AT&T Stadium
- Fri 25th Inglewood, CA, SoFi Stadium
- Sun 27th Inglewood, CA, SoFi Stadium
September 2023
- Fri 1st Glendale, AZ, State Farm Stadium
- Sun 3rd Glendale, AZ, State Farm Stadium
November 2023
- Fri 3rd St. Louis, MO, The Dome at America’s Center
- Sun 5th St. Louis, MO, The Dome at America’s Center
- Fri 10th Detroit, MI, Ford Field
- Sun 12th Detroit, MI, Ford Field
May 2024
- Fri 24th Munich DE, Olympiastadion
- Sun 26th Munich DE, Olympiastadion
June 2024
- Fri 7th Helsinki FI, Olympic Stadium
- Sun 9th Helsinki FI, Olympic Stadium
- Fri 14th Copenhagen DK, Parken Stadium
- Sun 16th Copenhagen DK , Parken Stadium
July 2024
- Fri 5th Warsaw PL, PGE Narodowy
- Sun 7th Warsaw PL, PGE Narodowy
- Fri 12th Madrid ES, Estadio Cívitas Metropolitano
- Sun 14th Madrid ES, Estadio Cívitas Metropolitano
August 2024
- Fri 2nd Foxborough, MA, Gillette Stadium
- Sun 4th Foxborough, MA, Gillette Stadium
- Fri 9th Chicago, IL, Soldier Field
- Sun 11th Chicago, IL, Soldier Field
- Fri 16th Minneapolis, MN, US Bank Stadium
- Sun 18th Minneapolis, MN, US Bank Stadium
- Fri 23rd Edmonton, AB, Commonwealth Stadium
- Sun 25th Edmonton, AB, Commonwealth Stadium
- Fri 30th Seattle, WA, Lumen Field
September 2024
- Sun 1st Seattle, WA, Lumen Field
- Fri 20th Mexico City MX, Foro Sol
- Sun 22nd Mexico City MX, Foro Sol
- Fri 27th Mexico City MX, Foro Sol
- Sun 29th Mexico City MX, Foro Sol
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out New Music Newsletter
All the latest New Music from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.