It's simple. This is Metallica. The biggest, most badass band around.
It has been 20 years since the release of Symphony and Metallica, and now we see the band going for round 2 with the San Francisco Symphony.
Of course, Michael Kamen sadly passed away in 2003 (has it really been so many years already?) and we see conductor Edwin Outwater at the helm, with special appearances by legendary SF Symphony conductor Michael Tilson Thomas.
I wasn't sure what to expect. Were they just redoing the original setlist? Would they play some different material?
And would they still sound as good, twenty years later? Oh my God, yes! They sound just as good, and at times even better! James' vocals have not changed a bit and in many cases, he sounds even better than ever.
I loved that they played some of the better songs from the '99 performance, but also played some of their new stuff.
My favourite song from '99 was always The Outlaw Torn - I just loved James' vocals on this - so I LOVED that they chose to do it again for S&M2.
The tribute to Cliff Burton gave me goosebumps. Wow. And don't get me started on the rendition of Unforgiven III. Truly amazing.
The symphony even gets a chance to shine on it's own with a "rock-free" performance. Truly, S&M2 offers everything.
I can't wait to own a copy of this and watch the two back to back.
Twenty years on and their music hasn't aged a day.
