 | Written by Alex Stojanovic METALLICA w/ Pantera and Suicidal Tendencies @ Rogers Centre Toronto, ON, Canada April 24, 2025 Every year has a bunch of tours going on all across the world, but when the mightiest metal band of all time comes through town, and even if you have to fork out a mortgage for tickets, you somehow always need to find a way to witness the majestic live spectacle of Metallica. It should almost be a law. Having already cemented their place as the leaders of the pack after Black Sabbath decades ago, Metallica still contain the magnetic power of attracting new fans of all ages with timeless music. Even if they didn't get the new extension of life, thanks to Stranger Things, they'd still have all the power in the world to attract massive amounts of people to the giant stadiums and fill them up without issue. |
As I've mentioned many times before, Metallica were the band that turned me into a metalhead back in 2004 upon first hearing "Wherever I May Roam", so anytime they come through, I make the rule to myself to go and see them while they're still alive and kicking. As bands of that stature reach the 40-year mark, you never know how much life could be left in them, so seeing Metallica is an opportunity that's not to be wasted. Even just once is enough, because once they're gone, you're never going to see them again, and you'll be kicking yourself for the rest of your life that you skipped out on those opportunities.
Continuing the M72 Tour in support of 72 Seasons two years after it came out, as well as their No Repeat Weekend concept where they take over a stadium with two nights over the span of three days, with the middle day serving as a day off, and delivering two entirely different setlists with no repeats of songs over each night, and different support acts from one night to the other, and a giant in-the-round stage with the legendary snake pit in the middle, Toronto became only the third Canadian city so far to be chosen on their third round of North American dates, having already done Montreal in 2023 and Edmonton in 2024. The main portion of tickets were to serve as 2-day passes where you get two shows for the price of one, but there was also the option for people to just attend a single night of their choosing. They returned to the Rogers Centre for the first time since 2017 on April 24 and 26 with Pantera and Suicidal Tendencies supporting on night 1, and Limp Bizkit and Ice Nine Kills supporting on the second. This review will only focus on the first night, because as much as I would've liked to go to both nights, I unfortunately couldn't get the time away from work for the second night, and if I may also add, I'm on a bit of a budget.
Starting off the night were Suicidal Tendencies. I just have to say that it must always be great for Rob Trujillo to be on tour with his former band from the 90s, especially with his former bandmate Mike "Cyco Miko" Muir, as well as his son Tye, who has been playing bass with them since 2021. This is a band that I've of course been very familiar with ever since I became a thrasher back in high school over 15 years ago. However, something about Mike Muir as a vocalist just did not resonate with me. His voice just never hit my sweet spot. However, I knew about their songs and what they were called. They definitely take the crown for the most energetic band. At 62, Cyco Miko still runs and moves on stage like a 20-year-old punk with more fire and fury than most guys half his age. The rest of the band, including Tye, longtime guitarist Dean Pleasants and relatively new guitarist Ben Weinman of Dillinger Escape Plan, and of course last year's newcomer on drums: Jay Weinberg (Slipknot), matched the energy levels displayed by Cyco Miko as they tore their way through classics like "You Can't Bring Me Down", "Join The Army", "Send Me Your Money"', "Freedumb", "Subliminal", and they closed with "How Will I Laugh Tomorrow".
Taking things up another notch next was Pantera, making their third appearance in Toronto as part of their celebration tour that began in 2022, and I'm lucky to have witnessed their previous two shows, which were phenomenal. Now, they were obviously not at physically energetic as Suicidal, but the overall crunch went up quite a few notches, as expected with Pantera. The band entered the stage and kicked it off with the vulgar (see what I did there?) one-two punch of "A New Level" and "Mouth For War", before going into the Far Beyond Driven triple shot of "Strength Beyond Strength", "Becoming" and "I'm Broken". The middle of the set was the tribute segment for Dimebag and Vinnie Paul with "Cemetery Gates" playing with the video montage, before continuing and ending the Far Beyond portion with "5 Minutes Alone". Phil Anselmo constantly motioned the crowd for participation with his iconic underbite mouth position and hand gestures, which Zakk Wylde, Rex Brown and Charlie Benante all delivered the goods.
The set then returned for triple shot from Vulgar Display Of Power with "This Love", "Fucking Hostile" and "Walk". Things came to a close with the medley of the "Domination" breakdown and "Hollow", followed by "Cowboys From Hell". The only problem for me was that, minus about three songs, the setlist was exactly the same as it was the previous two times. I certainly hope that the next time they come through, they find some other interesting cuts to swap out with some of the other's they've been playing this entire time. I totally understand that when you're opening for Metallica, you gotta focus more on the well-known stuff anyway, but I'm just saying that it would be nice to hear them bring some cuts like "Primal Concrete Sledge", "Drag The Waters", "Rise", "Slaughtered" and even the full version of "Domination" on a future headline run. Plus, change up the running order of the songs.
It was now time for the moment Torontonians have been waiting for since 2017, and that is the return of the kings: Metallica. As per tradition, "It's A Long Way To The Top" gave the crowd the warning that showtime was imminent, and the iconic, goosebump-inducing intro of "Ecstacy Of Gold" set the atmosphere for the legendary tunes we were about to get treated to, which started off the immense one-two punch of "Creeping Death" and "Harvester Of Sorrow". Given that they're doing no repeat songs over the 2-night stint, it gave the opportunity to introduce a few more deep cuts than per usual, while still holding the mandatory ones in their proper places in the setlist. As James Hetfield used his god-like voice and stature to welcome everyone to the show, they launched into a favourite from the Load era with "King Nothing", which was a nice surprise.
Speaking of surprises, the setlist contained quite a few from different eras, like "Holier Than Thou", "The Day That Never Comes" and "Orion". They dedicated the latter to Cliff Burton, which gave everyone chills. I personally thought that they should've put a picture of Cliff on the screens during that song. However, the biggest surprise for me personally was when they launched into "Fight Fire With Fire". Since they're touring behind 72 Seasons, they threw in a handful of cuts from that album, including the title track, "If Darkness Had A Son" and "Shadows Follow". One element that's become tradition now is a doodle between Kirk Hammett and Rob Trujillo in the middle of the set. When it comes to the setlist staples, we were treated to "Nothing Else Matters", "Sad But True", "Fuel", "Seek & Destroy" and to no one's surprise, the grand finale was "Master Of Puppets". Personally, I was also glad to have attended the first night because I didn't have to hear "Enter Sandman" because I'm honestly so sick of that song.
In terms of sound, given that the Rogers Centre is giant, it didn't come as a surprise that the sound was a bit on the echoey side, and Lars Ulrich's drums lacked punch. However, it also depends on where in the venue you're sitting because that also plays a big factor into one's perception of the sound. Either way, Metallica delivered the goods once again with a setlist that made both casuals and die-hards fully satisfied. Now, if they could only live up to the challenge of not ignoring Toronto for another 8 years.
Continuing the M72 Tour in support of 72 Seasons two years after it came out, as well as their No Repeat Weekend concept where they take over a stadium with two nights over the span of three days, with the middle day serving as a day off, and delivering two entirely different setlists with no repeats of songs over each night, and different support acts from one night to the other, and a giant in-the-round stage with the legendary snake pit in the middle, Toronto became only the third Canadian city so far to be chosen on their third round of North American dates, having already done Montreal in 2023 and Edmonton in 2024. The main portion of tickets were to serve as 2-day passes where you get two shows for the price of one, but there was also the option for people to just attend a single night of their choosing. They returned to the Rogers Centre for the first time since 2017 on April 24 and 26 with Pantera and Suicidal Tendencies supporting on night 1, and Limp Bizkit and Ice Nine Kills supporting on the second. This review will only focus on the first night, because as much as I would've liked to go to both nights, I unfortunately couldn't get the time away from work for the second night, and if I may also add, I'm on a bit of a budget.
Starting off the night were Suicidal Tendencies. I just have to say that it must always be great for Rob Trujillo to be on tour with his former band from the 90s, especially with his former bandmate Mike "Cyco Miko" Muir, as well as his son Tye, who has been playing bass with them since 2021. This is a band that I've of course been very familiar with ever since I became a thrasher back in high school over 15 years ago. However, something about Mike Muir as a vocalist just did not resonate with me. His voice just never hit my sweet spot. However, I knew about their songs and what they were called. They definitely take the crown for the most energetic band. At 62, Cyco Miko still runs and moves on stage like a 20-year-old punk with more fire and fury than most guys half his age. The rest of the band, including Tye, longtime guitarist Dean Pleasants and relatively new guitarist Ben Weinman of Dillinger Escape Plan, and of course last year's newcomer on drums: Jay Weinberg (Slipknot), matched the energy levels displayed by Cyco Miko as they tore their way through classics like "You Can't Bring Me Down", "Join The Army", "Send Me Your Money"', "Freedumb", "Subliminal", and they closed with "How Will I Laugh Tomorrow".
Taking things up another notch next was Pantera, making their third appearance in Toronto as part of their celebration tour that began in 2022, and I'm lucky to have witnessed their previous two shows, which were phenomenal. Now, they were obviously not at physically energetic as Suicidal, but the overall crunch went up quite a few notches, as expected with Pantera. The band entered the stage and kicked it off with the vulgar (see what I did there?) one-two punch of "A New Level" and "Mouth For War", before going into the Far Beyond Driven triple shot of "Strength Beyond Strength", "Becoming" and "I'm Broken". The middle of the set was the tribute segment for Dimebag and Vinnie Paul with "Cemetery Gates" playing with the video montage, before continuing and ending the Far Beyond portion with "5 Minutes Alone". Phil Anselmo constantly motioned the crowd for participation with his iconic underbite mouth position and hand gestures, which Zakk Wylde, Rex Brown and Charlie Benante all delivered the goods.
The set then returned for triple shot from Vulgar Display Of Power with "This Love", "Fucking Hostile" and "Walk". Things came to a close with the medley of the "Domination" breakdown and "Hollow", followed by "Cowboys From Hell". The only problem for me was that, minus about three songs, the setlist was exactly the same as it was the previous two times. I certainly hope that the next time they come through, they find some other interesting cuts to swap out with some of the other's they've been playing this entire time. I totally understand that when you're opening for Metallica, you gotta focus more on the well-known stuff anyway, but I'm just saying that it would be nice to hear them bring some cuts like "Primal Concrete Sledge", "Drag The Waters", "Rise", "Slaughtered" and even the full version of "Domination" on a future headline run. Plus, change up the running order of the songs.
It was now time for the moment Torontonians have been waiting for since 2017, and that is the return of the kings: Metallica. As per tradition, "It's A Long Way To The Top" gave the crowd the warning that showtime was imminent, and the iconic, goosebump-inducing intro of "Ecstacy Of Gold" set the atmosphere for the legendary tunes we were about to get treated to, which started off the immense one-two punch of "Creeping Death" and "Harvester Of Sorrow". Given that they're doing no repeat songs over the 2-night stint, it gave the opportunity to introduce a few more deep cuts than per usual, while still holding the mandatory ones in their proper places in the setlist. As James Hetfield used his god-like voice and stature to welcome everyone to the show, they launched into a favourite from the Load era with "King Nothing", which was a nice surprise.
Speaking of surprises, the setlist contained quite a few from different eras, like "Holier Than Thou", "The Day That Never Comes" and "Orion". They dedicated the latter to Cliff Burton, which gave everyone chills. I personally thought that they should've put a picture of Cliff on the screens during that song. However, the biggest surprise for me personally was when they launched into "Fight Fire With Fire". Since they're touring behind 72 Seasons, they threw in a handful of cuts from that album, including the title track, "If Darkness Had A Son" and "Shadows Follow". One element that's become tradition now is a doodle between Kirk Hammett and Rob Trujillo in the middle of the set. When it comes to the setlist staples, we were treated to "Nothing Else Matters", "Sad But True", "Fuel", "Seek & Destroy" and to no one's surprise, the grand finale was "Master Of Puppets". Personally, I was also glad to have attended the first night because I didn't have to hear "Enter Sandman" because I'm honestly so sick of that song.
In terms of sound, given that the Rogers Centre is giant, it didn't come as a surprise that the sound was a bit on the echoey side, and Lars Ulrich's drums lacked punch. However, it also depends on where in the venue you're sitting because that also plays a big factor into one's perception of the sound. Either way, Metallica delivered the goods once again with a setlist that made both casuals and die-hards fully satisfied. Now, if they could only live up to the challenge of not ignoring Toronto for another 8 years.
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