May 1st, 2003: On this day 13 years ago Metallica played at San Quentin State Prison
Metallica have always been a band that puts a great deal of effort into their live shows.
James Hetfield has a number of songs in his repertoire that he always looks forward to playing live, not just because of how good the band sound when playing them, but also because of how much of a response they get from the crowd. When you have such a strong affinity for going on stage, there are going to be certain moments you look forward to more than others.
“Other songs, I mean, I enjoy playing ‘St Anger’, it really allows me to get pissed off and get it done, [it’s] very therapeutic for me,” said James Hetfield, “Boy, I love playing ‘I Disappear’, love playing ‘No Leaf Clover’, love playing ‘Jump In The Fire’, these are the songs that we’ve just kind of pulled out of the hat recently. Always loved playing ‘Fuel’, and, you know, I enjoy playing ‘Hit The Lights’, too.”
Metallica are such masters of the live show that when they went on the road with Guns N’ Roses, Slash found himself embarrassed to be around them. This was during a period when Guns N’ Roses were falling apart at the seams, which meant poor live performances and arriving late on stage. That sloppiness held up against Metallica simply didn’t compare.
“It was a very tense time – a major straw on the camel’s back for me and for everybody in our camp,” recalled Slash, “It was actually a huge issue for me because I’d lost face with everyone in Metallica. We didn’t keep our promise to them, the fans, or to ourselves to put on the best show possible. I felt like an ass and I couldn’t look James, Lars, or anyone from their band in eye for the rest of the tour…..”
Of course, while Metallica have always prided themselves on their ability to put together a kickass rock show, the band also realise that their music can tap into something a lot deeper in listeners as well. While thrash metal is hardly the genre that a lot of people turn to when it comes to choosing something heartwrenching to put on, some of their songs resonate on an emotional level with people, and that feeling is just as important as any gig.
Hetfield always felt it with the song ‘Nothing Else Matters’, which he wrote about missing his partner while on tour, but that people have interpreted to cover themes of love and loss. Music’s power to connect with emotion is unlike any other art form, and so Metallica have always tried to use that when making music. Perhaps one of the greatest examples of as much was 13 years ago to the day when the band performed at San Quentin State Prison.
The band played a 10 song set at the prison, but the purpose of the gig wasn’t just to say they had performed there. Instead, they were recording the music video for ‘St Anger’, and wanted to try and make the song’s themes of isolation, anger and confinement really land with the inmates. Metallica didn’t make any money from the gig either, as they decided to donate their entire fee (a hefty $10,000) to the prison’s baseball field.
This was like any regular Metallica set, as the band rattled through performances of songs such as ‘Enter Sandman’, ‘Creeping Death’ and ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’; however, it was also so much more than that. Live music can give you energy and act as a release, but the theme of certain songs can tap into something deeper. Metallica tried to achieve both of these things on May 1st, 2003, as they played their hits, but then also reeled out a new song which talked about confinement.
Whether or not they achieved in connecting with those that they performed to is up for contention, but kudos to the band for trying.
