Metallica hosted its third annual Helping Hands charity concert and auction on Friday night (Dec. 16) at Los Angeles’ Microsoft Theater, offering up a host of musical surprises in the process.
Metallica’s 14-song setlist began with five acoustic songs: “Blackened,” “The Unforgiven,” covers of Thin Lizzy’s rendition of the traditional “Whiskey in the Jar” and that group’s “Borderline,” plus a version of UFO’s “It’s Killing Me,” according to Setlist.fm. The band also performed its new single “Lux Æterna” live for the first time since its Nov. 28 release. The latter is the lead track from Metallica’s upcoming album 72 Seasons, due April 14. It’s the group’s first LP since 2016’s Hardwired … To Self-Destruct.
For the penultimate song of the evening, Metallica welcomed St. Vincent for guitar and vocal assistance on “Nothing Else Matters.” San Francisco multi-instrumentalist Avi Vinocur also guested on “All Within My Hands.” Friday night’s show, which streamed on Paramount+, featured Jimmy Kimmel as emcee and Greta Van Fleet as the opening act.
The charity concert and auction benefit Metallica’s All Within My Hands foundation. Established in 2017, it has contributed $12 million to fighting food insecurity, providing disaster relief, and building sustainable communities through workforce and community college programs. The auction runs through Dec. 20 here.
Beginning on April 27, Metallica will launch its two-year M72 World Tour. Support will come from the new iteration of Pantera, Mammoth WVH, Five Finger Death Punch, Architects, and Ice Nine Kills.
