r/SipsTea • u/StemCellPirate • 17h ago
It's Wednesday my dudes When does Rage Against the Machine go on tour?
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u/Sad_Breakfast4930 15h ago
During the 1991 Gulf War, the band expressed direct criticism of political leadership. During live performances of "One" (a song highlighting the horrors of war), James Hetfield frequently dedicated the song to American politicians and President George H.W. Bush, often criticizing the political rhetoric surrounding the conflict and the human cost of war.
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u/originalfilmscoring 13h ago
It really is mind boggling how he became such a conservative.
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u/Riffliquer 10h ago
He's an old white boomer, who's made tons of money and that's as privileged as it gets. He can afford to be conservative.
If it helps, seems like Lars and Kirk are quite progressive in thinking.
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u/APoolio12 14h ago
Drama over nothing. The REAL Metallica controversy should be over why their tickets cost over $1000.
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u/EfficientDish7 14h ago
The real Metallica controversy is why they allowed Lars to turn the bass lines down in justice for all
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u/TheWizardOfDeez 13h ago
More like why they still allow lars to fuck up on the drums svery night and not find a new drummer who can keep a rhythm. There is a video out there of Joey Jordison (RIP) of Slipknot fame playing an entire concert with Metallica and it's literally so much better. He's playing the parts that Lars wrote, just on time.
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u/Fabulous_Smoke2582 13h ago
Was he rushing or dragging?
https://giphy.com/gifs/ISFvQeB4b8BmRQBnuo40
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u/edison9696 11h ago
I get the chills watching any reminders of Whiplash. His acting performance was insanely scary.
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u/Late_As_Sometimes 13h ago
And Dave Lambardo. Him and Joey were great as substitute drummers for Metallica, when Lars was on the mend.
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u/AyeHaightEweAwl 11h ago
"on the mend" LOL - he was partying too hard the night before.
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u/scubaorbit 14h ago
Are you shitting me? Last one I went to was $80 in the early 2000s. Who the hell pays that much for a ticket? And better yet, who can?
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u/4stringsoffury 13h ago edited 12h ago
It’s the sphere. I believe every ticket sold there has been well above $500 in regards to concerts. The Wizard of Oz plays there daily and the bad seats are still $300.
Edit: there are concert tickets cheaper than $500 my bad. I’ll say Metallica has always had egregious ticket prices, I was just trying to give a reason these were astronomical.
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u/MiserableAdvice468 14h ago
Click that affirm box at check out and pay off that loan for the next 3-5 years lol
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u/UnlitBlunt 13h ago
I got floor tickets for both nights of their M72 tour for 500CAD (250 per show). Different opening bands and different setlist each night, absolutely worth it.
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u/xxGenXxx 17h ago edited 16h ago
We never heard the end of Napster from your subpar drummer.
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u/Altruistic-Dark-6960 17h ago
Bringing up Lars Ulrich and the Napster debate is the ultimate way to derail any Metallica conversation.
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u/Couscousfan07 16h ago
Yep. Commenting now so that I can see all the Lars apologists chime in. My favorite is how his crappy drumming is crappy on purpose - he loses the tempo and plays random fills, all as part of a grand plan.
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u/Millennial_Falcon_85 16h ago
I mean he wasn’t wrong. It’s piracy and the solution to it was streaming which pays artists fractions of pennies which is the worst situation for the artists. The old model of legally selling albums produced great music and fairly compensated the bands.
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u/neekz0r 12h ago
fairly compensated the bands
Fairly compensated the bands? You jest. They typically loaned (called an advance) the money to produce the album, and provided resources to do so. The band had to pay the studio back.
This article describes it, written in 1993 (well before Napster).
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u/TJ_McWeaksauce 16h ago
Metallica during a time of great political and civil unrest: "We're not here to try to influence you."
Metallica when something threatens their already sizable bank accounts: Metallica Anti-Napster Ad
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u/StemCellPirate 17h ago
This is what selling out looks like.
Notable Political and Social Songs by Metallica
"One" (...And Justice for All, 1988): An anti-war song inspired by Dalton Trumbo’s novel Johnny Got His Gun, telling the story of a soldier severely mutilated and trapped in his own body during World War I.
"...And Justice for All" (1988): The title track critiques corruption, the legal system, and the abuse of power.
"Blackened" (...And Justice for All, 1988): Focuses on environmental destruction and the threat of nuclear war.
"Disposable Heroes" (Master of Puppets, 1986): Addresses young soldiers being treated as expendable pawns by military commanders.
"Eye of the Beholder" (...And Justice for All, 1988): Examines censorship, state control, and the limits placed on civil liberties and free speech.
"The Shortest Straw" (...And Justice for All, 1988): Touches upon political blacklisting and McCarthyism.
"Fight Fire with Fire" (Ride the Lightning, 1984): Explores the grim reality of nuclear Armageddon.
"Don't Tread on Me" (Metallica / The Black Album, 1991): References the Gadsden flag and American Revolutionary War symbolism, which Hetfield has described as a defiant "don't fuck with us" anthem rather than a partisan or pro-war statement.
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u/Max-_-Power 17h ago
Notice how those songs are 30+ years old. Things have changed for the worse and apparently so has Metallica.
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u/DeadandForgoten 17h ago
What? 1991 was only 9 years ago.
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u/YesPlease_VeryMuchSo 15h ago
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u/ArashikageX 13h ago
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u/howsthisforsmart 12h ago
The episode that meme is taken from aired nearly a quarter-century ago.
You're welcome
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u/medicmatt 9h ago
And the actor is deceased.
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u/8JHF8 6h ago
Both that one and the one above him. They made a really funny movie together in 2000 with Bruce Willis.
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u/grindhousedecore 16h ago
It doesn’t feel that long ago, hearing unforgiven on the radio when it first came out🤦🏻♂️.
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u/bebeidon 13h ago
at most 15 and i'm saying this as a 35 year old man born in 1991 lol
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u/AllIWantForXmasIsFoo 17h ago
they were young and come from poverty.
They've been millionaires now for most of their life.
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u/danknerd 14h ago
Lars is trust fund kid, stop it.
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u/thtamthrfckr 9h ago
Tennis champ Lars?! Cuts to country club picture of him with sweater around his neck
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u/sma_nor 16h ago edited 15h ago
Exactly.. And the Black Album was when they started seeing mainstream success. No member had even turned 30 at that point. Doesn't take much to connect the dots on how we got here.
Obligatory "fuck you Lars" for what you did to Jason.
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u/Size---Queen 17h ago
It's most likely a large percentage of their audience is MAGA and he doesn't want to piss them off because they will stop going to shows and buying their stuff.
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u/Phoenix_Rising42069 16h ago
If they alienate over half of their current listener base, who’s gonna pony up for the $5000+ seats at The Sphere?!?
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u/MrBurnz99 15h ago edited 12h ago
This is the real reason. They know that their fan base is like 70-30 MAGA.
Making a political stance about almost anything would have those wrinkled alcoholic boomers throwing a hissy fit.
Hatfield could say i think war is bad and our politicians shouldn’t be selling insider trading information to the highest bidder, and there would be boomers shooting the black album with an AR-15.
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u/sc1onic 15h ago
Metallica is way way way bigger than Maga crowd. Especially when they tour the world to packed stadiums.
I think they just got extremely safe, maybe because they probably vote Republican.
As a metallica Stan I've been repeatedly disappointed by James. Their last best work was load/reload from late 90s.
All he had to do was shut up and not put down other artists standing on business and supporting Palestine and other causes.
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u/NotOneWoodpeckerBut2 16h ago
They have many fans from many sides of the spectrum, stands to reason many will be one side of the fence, and conversely many the other side of the fence. They're kind of a big deal.
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u/ncbraves93 11h ago
Not to mention most their fans aren't even in America, but of course it all comes down to maga in reddits shivering, every single time. Like we get it.
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u/Torrey58 16h ago
This is the most likely scenario, they are smart enough not to alientate their most loyal crowd, being a rock band from the 80s guess who that is.
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u/neddiddley 15h ago
I don’t have an issue with the “we just want to put on a good show and let you escape the real world for a couple hours” part. I do question the need to call out other entertainers making a different choice. Given the position of some of the more high profile cases of this of late, it can be interpreted as him viewing that specific stance as “bullshit” whether it was his intent or not. In other words, he’s saying it without actually saying it.
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u/Jumpy-Surround-9238 15h ago
System of a down are also known to be bootlickers now (except Serj I believe).
We always used to mock people for not understanding the lyrics to their favorite bands. Seems though a lot of them didn't understand what they wrote anyways.
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u/4CrowsFeast 11h ago
SOAD have some great songs with some great messages. But they're mostly successful at being critical of corruption, and broad topics like anti-war and governments overreaching their powers, which anyone with common sense should be opposed to.
They were never really solution oriented and are often just wrong on things. Science, for example, is a great song musically, but has an overall pretty terrible message of spirituality being more important than science. When I was younger I tried to justify the song being critical of the damages created by scientific advancements, like damage to the environment, but the song doesn't really go into detail about any of those things. Again, the band is generally very broad with their lyrics and gives you emotional impact with the intensity of the music itself and creating feelings of defiance and opposition.
The more I've listened to this song over the years, the more I feel like I've misattributed deeper meaning to the song as cognitive dissonance to justify liking it, and it actually is just a pretty moronic concept and message. If they managed to go into deeper depth in the actual damages resulting from technology, than I think it might get a pass, but the entire theme of faith trumping science is pretty poor considering the two aren't exclusive, unless you're a religious extremist.
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u/Couscousfan07 16h ago
Got old. Plus I don’t think James wrote those - Lars did.
What’s amazing is that he didn’t have to say shit - he felt so strongly about this that he was compelled to make a statement
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u/Dry_Play2206 16h ago
Lars and James work on songs together and have a long standing agreement to share writing credit. But Lars rarely if ever writes lyrics.
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u/Fanhunter4ever 16h ago
They made a declaration when sued Napster and lobbyed for hardest IP laws
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u/quentdawg420 16h ago
Napster did leak an unfinished album for free. And they weren’t wrong with the sentiment about music streaming completely changing the music industry. Sure, they’re huge and they don’t need more money but no one is gonna work for free, someone has to pay the roadies that move and set up their gear, and it affects smaller artists since no one buys music anymore. Artists used to make most of their music from record sales, now it’s concerts and merch. That’s why concerts and what not are so expensive
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u/xraygun2014 13h ago
The Grateful Dead built a unique, highly profitable touring business model based on low ticket prices, high show volume, direct fan engagement, and independent merchandising.
They were the #1 highest-grossing touring act in North America in 1993.
While encouraging and enabling bootlegging of their shows.
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u/themaskedcrusader 15h ago
Ride the lightning is about a guy on death row and the hypocrisy of the death penalty. "Who made you God to say I'll take your life from you"
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u/Impressive-Panda527 16h ago
How old are you OP?
People have been calling Metallica sell outs for more than 30 years,
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u/Lilja-Logason 17h ago
Lars has said in one of their films that he is left wing considering he's from Denmark and James has always been Republican so they make it clear they don't like to talk about politics in the band.
It's possible James wrote a political song they could all get behind and so did it.
Just because it's James is republican doesn't mean he's still MAGA or agrees with every policy they have.
Another example is Clint Eastwood. Everyone assumes he's Republican or MAGA but looking over his past he supported gay marriage and his politics is closer to Libertarian if anything. He's also voted democrat in the past.
Life isn't black-white, Dem-MAGA.
I say this as a Brit fan with no skin in this dichotomy. I just think people are far more complicated than everyone acts.
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u/Accurate-Toe1894 14h ago edited 13h ago
I assumed Clint Eastwood to be Republican because he very famously spoke at the Republican National Convention in 2012....Also Donald Trump's historically been very wishy washy on gay rights, at times courting their vote. There's also loads of gay Republicans and supporters of Trump.
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u/Hot_Anybody8244 13h ago
Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson, and a pretty good amount of other outlaw country artists were VERY left leaning for their day and most would still qualify as left leaning today
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u/MStockard 12h ago edited 12h ago
Honestly, wtf is this "they used to be pretty left 40 fucking years ago, so they totally can't be far right maga shitheads now"
Saying you don't want to be involved in politics IS a political stance when ignoring politics is giving power to extremists and influencing the world.
Dude is just a coward and doesn't want to say his views out loud because he knows it'll tank their record sales and ruin whatever "legacy" they have left.
Do they even have a half decent, or recognizable song in the new millennium?
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u/Ewoksintheoutfield 15h ago
This is a fair take, but I think people are rightly criticizing Hetfield because he didn’t need to say anything. By criticizing people who are speaking out about political issues, he is taking a side.
We are also in a political moment in America where Americans are being threatened into silence and complicity. Artists and creators stand to lose a lot of fans and money by speaking out, and even worse they could become a target of the US justice department. People like Mrs Rachel and Macklemore need to be celebrated for taking these risks and carrying on the American tradition of using our first amendment rights to speak truth to power.
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u/EndGrainGlueKook 15h ago
Exactly, James is the one who made it something and did what he said they don’t do. He could have just said “thanks for coming, be good to each other, be safe” yada yada and nobody would have thought about politics at all, he brought up politics.
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u/Tsar-A-Lago 13h ago
And basically characterized a lot of people's pain and anguish as bullshit and noise. And in the same breath, refusing to elaborate on that, or defend anything that he's couched here. Pretending to be above it.
In this moment, and in this context, when nobody asked you, that's a political statement.
James Hetfield is the greatest rhythm guitarist who ever lived, and I'm always gonna love Metallica. But this is pretty weak shit.
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u/Scatterspell 11h ago
I agree with everything but Hetfield being the best rythym guitarist. Not even in the top 10. He's great but not the best.
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14h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Notte_di_nerezza 14h ago
They also tend to talk plenty of politics--social issues, veterans' issues, the economy. It's when someone talks about issues in a way they don't like--minority rights, civilian casualties, corporate welfare--that they don't want to talk about "politics."
It's a bias I've seen on both sides of the spectrum, but by God do the MAGA crowd really mean "Don't talk about politics I don't like."
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u/yourfavteamsucks 13h ago
Yup. I remember 20 years ago Billy Corgan saying "we don't have the moral authority to tell you how to vote. We're a rock band". Guy is a libertarian free market capitalist now (aka delulu)
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u/ApolloGR3 15h ago
Yeah it’s just weird he felt the need to make such a comment at all
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u/soullessginger88 14h ago
After watching their cry session in front of congress, I'll never care to watch/listen to them again. They sold out a LONG TIME AGO.
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u/OscillatorVacillate 13h ago edited 11h ago
Hetfield has always been an asshole, when Layne Staley had to cancel concerts due to his heroin addiction James stood on stage mocking him ,drunk btw. The irony
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u/JustAnotherFNC 12h ago
He didn't speak up with this message when Kid Rock was posing in the White House. The same Crack Rock that toured with him in 2000.
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u/lol_AwkwardSilence_ 11h ago
Yeah, if you're going to make a public statement saying "dont speak up," maybe do the best time isnt when the conversation is about a US-funded ethnostate committing genocide.
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u/Barthomal 14h ago
I agree, he shouldn't have said anything. I don't think this is new for Hetfield, I'm certain I've heard him echo the same statement over the years. It's never been a problem before but tensions are currently pretty high. If you want to remain apolitical and inclusive right now then I think it would be far better to just shut up and keep on keeping on.
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u/OtherUserCharges 16h ago
You must have missed Clint Eastwood having an argument with a chair at the RNC. It’s one of the stupidest things I had ever seen at the time.
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u/BigDaddySteve999 14h ago
Yep, Clint shares the most important thing with Republicans: anger that a black man became President.
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u/Yommination 12h ago
A black man getting into office freaked out right wingers so much that they decided to go full mask off fascist. It broke what was left of a huge portion of the country's brains
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u/tr1mble 16h ago
Didn't Clint Eastwood do that debate or something with a empty chair while acting like it was Obama?
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u/Notte_di_nerezza 14h ago
And then people just happened to hang chairs from their trees? Yeah, that happened.
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u/Randomcommenter550 11h ago
He is one of the many old white men who's brains broke when a black man became a major party Presidential candidate.
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u/Silent_Ad8059 16h ago
Eastwood used to be fairly left-wing but he went full James Woods after Obama got elected.
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u/Le-Charles07 14h ago
Iirc, he's always been a fiscal conservative libertarian and has never been considered "left wing".
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u/Memerandom_ 15h ago
I dunno, I tend to remember Clint talking to an invisible person at the RNC that one time more than anything else.
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u/Event-Forsaken 17h ago
People are complicated, but on the other hand DJT is president again, so it's not that complicated.
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u/j0hnnyWalnuts 16h ago
You are correct - Hatfield showed his disdain for the fight for our country, our citizens, and our democracy.
Don't be like James.
Don't patronize the multi-millionaire right wing musician.
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u/Pale-Document-8619 15h ago
Yes, it does mean James is MAGA, these days you claim Republican YOU MAGA.
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u/redhafzke 15h ago
Let's be real 80's Metallica was peak and I dare to say everything after that
got worsenever reached that. Sure they got more successful and the production of their albums was great but that's about it... the songs themselves were missing something.→ More replies (8)8
u/Cocosito 15h ago
Don't forget they were the tip of the spear back when file sharing was conversations
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u/KR4T0S 17h ago
He is a registered Republican BTW. Republicans are very shy about politics at the moment, easier to avoid the subjects than admit they voted in a moron.
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u/Klutzy-Weakness-937 17h ago edited 17h ago
These are all universal political topics but they don't influence you towards any party.
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u/Otherwise-Bad-7352 16h ago
Those songs are political only in the shallowest sense. They are not very deep.
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u/JimmyFontana1000775 17h ago
They were always touching political and social themes but never sided politically with any politic or political part
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u/Davycrockettjones 16h ago
I’m not a huge Metallica fan, but I imagine he’s saying with like overt political statements and such, not like songs written about politics.
To me, I don’t mind them doing this. I wish more influential people who weren’t very knowledgeable about certain issues would shut up about it.
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u/Sugar_Mushroom_Farm 15h ago
I agree. I think he basically means he isn't going to endorse/slam a particular political party or person before/after/during the concert.
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u/No_Philosopher2716 16h ago
The point he was making is that they're only going to play their music & not preach their politics on stage
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u/dogfacedponyboy 15h ago
He’s saying fans don’t wanna hear millionaire musicians up on stage, preaching political bullshit when they came to escape and rock out at a concert. To your point, let the songs speak for themselves.
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u/scorchedarcher 15h ago
I think it's justified for anyone to use their platform to bring attention to things they find important.
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u/Advanced_Zucchini_45 15h ago
I think the point he's trying to make is that it's hypocritical to say there's something wrong with a musician bringing up politics while they have a bunch of songs that are clearly political themselves
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u/Schnorch 15h ago
That doesn't make sense. That's literally what he did with his statement. If it were just about escapism and entertainment, he wouldn't have had to say anything at all. That's what a lot of artists do.
But in this case, he forced a clear political statement down people's throats.
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u/Excellent_Spend_2024 15h ago
Exactly! This hypocrite is making a political statement just like Ed Sheeran did - there are no two sides to corruption. You're either four it or against it. And if you have nothing to say than you're a coward who's for it.
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u/dewag 13h ago
If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.
-Geddy Lee
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u/NeptuneOverlord43045 14h ago
The irony is that it would have been fine if he just didn’t say anything at all. No one would have noticed or cared. But by making this statement he is signaling that it’s a deliberate choice to remain silent.
This is like if I walk into work today and during the meeting I make an announcement “I just want you all to know you don’t need to worry about me sharing my opinions on rape, genocide, or the Epstein files. Unlike some employees here who have thoughts on those subjects, you’ll never hear mine, don’t worry.”
That would be very weird for me to do, and I think people would question my motivations for saying that. Am I saying that because I know my opinions on rape, genocide and Epstein class child abuse is unpopular and controversial? I could’ve just continued to not talk about those things at work as I have been for my entire life and no one would have cared.
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u/Harkonnen_Dog 17h ago
“A mass hysteria
A megalomania
Reveal dementia…” - The Shortest Straw, Metallica, James Hetfield
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u/belikeron 17h ago
I know I love Metallica and Papa Het but that's a.non answer because they saw what happened to the red headed pariah after the Macklemore fumble.
Also it's hard to give a shit about anything and to he mad when you're angry because of taxes on your half a bill instead of against injustice lol.
On the bright side since shit is so fucked and the kids are so angry some awesome fucking thrash has been coming out. Keep it metal kids!
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u/MartianCaveman 14h ago
What were the first four albums, then?
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u/Long-Zombie-2017 11h ago
Political messaging in art and soapboxing from the stage instead of performing are two very different things
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u/M1ghtySheep 17h ago
I love how mad people get when celebrities preach about politics then get equally mad when they dont
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u/GrodyHighroller 16h ago
Fans dont want to hear celebrities opinions, they want to hear their own opinions coming out of a celebrities mouth.
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u/Nimrod_Butts 14h ago
Meanwhile op is talking about rage against the machine, while morello didn't vote for Harris in 24. Per the usual it's all just performative bs
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u/Wadiyatorkinabeet 16h ago
I think in this instance people are more mad that they are saying they won't be political, but Metallica has 30 years of being political. So it isn't about them not being a political band and just wanting to entertain, its that they don't want to be political because they agree with what is being done.
Essentially, be consistent or shut up from the get go and Metalicca have never shut up, but now they are also not consistent.
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u/NeoMoose 16h ago
I care about Metallica's political opinions about as much as the average redditor's political opinions.
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u/HenriettaSnacks 14h ago
Just gonna push the goomba fallacy without taking a single second to think. Keep making the world the same place it is 👍. Or maybe it's different people saying different things?
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u/PrestigiousOne5959 16h ago
Here’s an idea then dont say anything?
Publicly announcing you’re not taking a stance is a stance.
His statement is obviously a dig on people like Macklemore who says political stuff during shows. So this is not a neutral position
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u/officialmacdemarco 15h ago
The amount of people who don't understand this idea is depressing.
Actively making a point of being "non political" by snidely interrupting your show to say as much is a political statement because of the very obvious subtext of the moment.
If they were really all about the music and staying perfectly neutral they wouldn't have said shit.
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u/That1guyuknow16 15h ago
"if you choose not to decide you still have made a choice"- Rush 'free will'
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u/NoEmployer2140 17h ago
Um, when did anyone ever give a shit what Metallica’s political opinions are anyway?
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u/Raulr100 16h ago
All of their best albums(the ones from the 80s) are VERY political which just makes this quote even more bizarre.
The band which became famous for singing about climate issues, the justice system, the military industrial complex, the death penalty, etc. telling people to leave politics out of music.
Alrighty then.
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u/Hyperion262 17h ago
The funniest thing is he’s said something similar at the end of all Metallica gigs for like 30 years at this point.
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u/Casual-Lurker 14h ago
Sorry, but Metallica HAS been political. Some of their songs are for SURE political.
This is just James being a coward.
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u/misterxboxnj 12h ago edited 12h ago
When did James Hetfield turn into Paul Sr. from American Chopper?
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u/sleafordbods 14h ago
The picture in this post added the word [political] to the sentence. I was at this show and this wasn’t the vibe of this statement at all.
It was more like this: “thank you very much for spending your time and money to be here.l we really appreciate it and we will try our best to show you a good time-we are not trying to be influencers and preach to you about whatever, we are here to celebrate love and heavy music, so let’s have some fun tonight. 1-2-3- go-music starts”
In response to that, a very excited happy crowd were cheering and applauding- the show was very cool because the sphere is nuts with the massive visuals
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u/GiveMeSomeShu-gar 11h ago edited 9h ago
Why do you want to hear Metallica's view on politics? Sure, bands like Rage Against the Machine are inherently political and that's fine, but not everyone has to be. All this insistence on politics and us vs them is so toxic. Metallica is a band - that's all, and not a very political band.
Edit: Guys, there was a time when we weren't so divided and everyone didn't make politics so important to their identity. Social media is dividing us. Stop worrying about what Metallica thinks and get off your lazy butt and vote if you actually care (and I know a lot of you couldn't be bothered to vote last time).
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u/RobinBobin83 10h ago
Metallica definitely is a political band. They have plenty of songs and lyrics that were politically motivated. Metallica has always only cared about their bag.
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u/ElvgrenGil 15h ago
I guess all of their older songs that were pretty explicitly anti-war were apolotical right?
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u/TimerPoint 13h ago edited 8h ago
This post and its comments just is a fine example of what an whiny echo champer reddit has became.
He says stuff like this during nearly every show, but now that the whole Macklemore shit happend it's highly problematic and blah blah blah.
Yes, some of their songs have a political message but that doesn't mean that they need to lecture their audience during every single show what's good and what's bad as if they're talking to fucking infants. Their political stance, if anyone cares, is written in their songs. Either you understand it or don't, it's up to you.
It's as if Kanonenfieber, or any other obvious anti-war band who's songs are primarily about the war, pauses inbetween their songs to tell the crowd that war is bad, mkay? Killing people is bad, mkay?
If bands or artists wants to make political statements it's their right. If bands or artists don't want to make political statements it's also in their right. It's their decision if they want to entertain or lecture their audience who paid an arm and a leg for a ticket. It's not up to a bunch of basement dwellers and self proclaimed music journalist to decide what they have to say and what not.
But hey, keep yelling on your hobbyhorse while jerking each other off for orange internet points.
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u/Express-Shoulder6174 11h ago
The only people who care about this stuff are the terminally online.
Ask 100 people on the street what they think about Metallica’s stance, then compare those to Reddit comments.
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u/Block444Universe 13h ago
Written in their songs and their actions. They have had a ton of charity efforts, supporting schools and educational programs and catastrophe relief.
Learnt from the Napster failure and were among the first big bands to release their entire back catalogue to Spotify
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u/BDLD23 16h ago
James is conservative. Kirk and Lars are liberal. Nobody knows much about Rob.
Probably would have been better for James to not disparage other artists. The statement was thanking fans for coming to a resort location for the Vegas residency. Could have chosen his words better for sure.
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u/brainiacpimp 17h ago
Look Metallica is just not wanting to speak out against a government that will not give a fuck about their freedom of speech and actually attack back. It was cool when other administrations would not hinder their freedom of speech but we can’t expect these tough guys to actually fight a tough battle so they are letting the true fighters in Macklemore and Ms. Rachel lead the charge…WTF timeline we live in.
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u/congteddymix 16h ago
Macklemore and Ms.Rachel are at least 20 something years younger(I am not taking the time to look up anyone’s ages sorry) then any of the members of Metallica. Stands to reason they have given up giving a fuck about stuff other then money like a vast majority of the musicians that are 60+ now.
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u/Whipitreelgud 16h ago
If I am at a concert I want them to play the music and have a 90 minute escape from the constant political newsfeed.
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u/nurturedom0613 12h ago
Oh got it; “Master of Puppets” was just about an ACTUAL puppeteer. “Blackened” was about some Salmon James had for dinner. And “You Must Burn” was actually about some leaves they piled up for a nice neat little bonfire.
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u/Moodaduku 9h ago
Copied from another of my comments from yesterday:
Are we talking about James Hetfield, from
the fucking narcsMetallica, that threw a big hissy about Napster and people downloading their music, which the RIAA then used as momentum to sue students and families?Fuck, and I do mean this sincerely, James Hetfield.
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u/Iggy_Slayer 15h ago
I have no problems with that stance.
I have a problem with them saying this. By doing this you've now taken a stance and made it political. Criticizing other people's politics is politics. If you want to have that stance then just shut up and play your songs.
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u/Existing-Brain2792 9h ago
Real Metallica doesn't give a shit about your politics!
Just don't pirate anything. They get bigly MAD!
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u/Dapper-Appearance-42 15h ago
God I hate this man so much. I remember back in the '90s. Alice In Chains was on tour with Metallica. Lane Staley was in the middle of active addiction and wound up bailing on the tour. Metallica did not handle this professionally at all. They went up on stage mind shooting at their arms with a needle and said" oh I can't tour. I can't tour. I'm too sick." When fans started booing them for this behavior, they threatened to leave the stage.
Then they had a nerve to write a song about him and how awesome he was after he passed. I highly doubt any money made from that song went to the charity set up by Lane Staley's family to help people in active addiction. And all that's on top of their anti-piracy Napster bullshit.
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u/Little-Woo 13h ago
They also made jokes about Kurt Cobain's suicide immediately after he died
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u/ryanoh826 13h ago
Meanwhile, Layne Staley punched a N@zi fan on stage during a show in Stockholm.
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u/bubblewrapture 15h ago
Metallica is a bunch of narcissistic cunts. People who like them are gay for narcissists
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u/MarbleDesperado 15h ago
Stop looking to musicians for political guidance or expecting them to use their platform in the way you want. They’re famous and influential because they make music, not because of their political knowledge. Make decisions based off facts and expert opinions and if you want to be influential, build your own platform.
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u/ApolloGR3 15h ago
Nobody’s looking to Metallica for political guidance. We’re pointing out their hypocrisy and lies.
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u/wtbgamegenie 15h ago
Metallica has been very political when it suits them. For them to make a statement about how they’re not going to be political like that’s some sort of accomplishment makes them look like hypocritical jerkoffs. That’s also a fuckin political statement in the first place. They could’ve just played the show and shut the fuck up. That would have actually been apolitical.
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u/CHobbes_ 17h ago
Corporate rock band since 2000. They are not musicians anymore, they are soulless entertainers
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u/dick_jaws 15h ago
This guy was on Joe Rogan crying about how he was singled out in his neighborhood for being conservative. What a douche. We know you were conservative monopolistic douchebags with what you did with Napster. What a bunch of dicks.
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u/DelusionalVikingFan 15h ago
I'm old enough to remember them testifying in front of congress...but okay.
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u/StroodleNoodles 14h ago
Weren’t these CLOWNS bitching and moaning to the Government and politicians about Napster back in the early 2000’s?
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u/Lost-Soft-8913 15h ago
I'm sure the sellout boomers who haven't made a good album in 20 years have amazing politics
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u/Dazzling-Read1451 13h ago
Yeah, but they’re still selling out stadiums. Not sure what your point is. There are lots of liberal boomers.
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u/poolsidecentral 13h ago
They are entertainers not scholars/intellectuals. Why is anyone listening to any entertainers advice?
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u/Powerful_Document872 17h ago
Celebrities tend to be self absorbed and deeply stupid. I never understood why anyone would give a fuck about their opinions.
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u/Harkonnen_Dog 17h ago
Rage Against the Machine was always political though.
Metallica wasn’t, but don’t forget about
Leper Messiah
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The Shortest Straw
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…And Justice for All
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u/Nanashi_Kitty 8h ago
"If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice" - Rush (Freewill)
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u/NoArm7707 17h ago
Why would I care who some entertainer votes for???? They don't live in the real world, they live a fantasy world and have no idea about real problems.
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