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Go inside METALLICA's pop-up store in Helsinki, Finland

07-06-2024

To coincide with METALLICA‘s two concerts at Helsinki Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, Finland this coming weekend, a pop-up shop opened on Wednesday, June 5 at Wanha Satama, Pikku Satamakatu 3-5 and will remain open until Sunday, June 9 at 7:00 p.m. A fan-filmed walkthrough video of the pop-up shop can be seen below (courtesy of The Squirrel).

This year’s exclusives include “72 Seasons” splatter vinyl, a screen-printed poster and event tee by Ken TaylorLovenskate skateboards with art by Pitchgrim, limited-edition band portraits by Lee Jeffries, a Cliff Burton poster and t-shirt from Mick Cassidy, brand-new Squindo-designed shirts, Metallica x IVECO apparel, plus a full selection of classic merch and accessories.

Don’t forget to pick up an #M72FanCard during your visit for a chance to win Snake Pit passes and one of Morley‘s Cliff Burton tribute “Power Wah-Fuzz” pedals.

There will be a limited daily quota of vinyl, posters, and skateboards on sale, and each will be limited to one per customer. Plus, look out for a random foil amongst the posters.

In support of METALLICA‘s latest album, “72 Seasons”, the band has been playing two-night, no-repeat shows in each city— first in Europe , then in North America and now back in Europe — as part of the “M72” tour. Each concert sees METALLICA performing on a massive ring-shaped stage, with the Snake Pit in the center, and four drum sets which are equally spaced out around the circular stage so drummer Lars Ulrich can get closer to the audience at various points in the show.

According to BillboardMETALLICA‘s production travels in 87 trucks — 45 for the band and its setup, plus two groups of 21 each for the steel stage and towers. There are 130 people in the band’s crew, plus 40 steelworkers, local hires and truck drivers.

METALLICA‘s manager Cliff Burnstein told Billboard that between 80% and 90% of fans at each concert attend both shows.

In a recent interview with The New York TimesMETALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich spoke in more detail about the “M72” stage production, saying: “This is the first time we’ve done a 360-degree stage in a stadium setup. We tried to crack the code on that for years. Everything that we had done always had a center point. We were going down this rabbit hole a year ago, and all of a sudden it was, like, ‘Well, hang on, why does the band have to be in the center?’ And then it was, like, ‘What’s the opposite of the band being in the center?’ And that would be the fans being in the center. And that’s when we came up with the doughnut concept, where you play on the doughnut itself and then the fans are in the doughnut hole. And then, well, where do the drums go? Then the concept of the four drum kits — one drum kit in each of the four different directions — came up, and then it sort of went from there.”

He added: “You know, all this (expletive) makes a lot of sense when it’s in an e-mail or it looks really good on a napkin. Nine months later you’re in the first venue trying to figure out what the (expletive) you’re doing.”

The “M72” tour launched in late April 2023 in Amsterdam.

Opening acts include FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCHICE NINE KILLSMAMMOTH WVHPANTERAARCHITECTSGRETA VAN FLEET and VOLBEAT.

A portion of proceeds from the shows go to METALLICA‘s All Within My Hands foundation, which seeks to assist and enrich the lives of members of the communities who have supported the band and combat food insecurity; provides disaster relief; and bestows scholarships.

METALLICA released their 14th album ’72 Seasons’ in April 2023 

Speaking on the concept of the album title, Hetfield says: “72 seasons. The first 18 years of our lives that form our true or false selves. The concept that we were told ‘who we are’ by our parents. A possible pigeonholing around what kind of personality we are. I think the most interesting part of this is the continued study of those core beliefs and how it affects our perception of the world today. Much of our adult experience is reenactment or reaction to these childhood experiences. Prisoners of childhood or breaking free of those bondages we carry.”

The complete track listing for “72 Seasons” is:

  1. 72 Seasons
  2. Shadows Follow
  3. Screaming Suicide
  4. Sleepwalk My Life Away
  5. You Must Burn!
  6. Lux Æterna
  7. Crown Of Barbed Wire
  8.  Chasing Light
  9. If Darkness Had A Son
  10. Too Far Gone?
  11. Room Of Mirrors
  12. Inamorata

Says METALLICA: “The album package was once again conceived and art directed by our good friend, acclaimed designer David Turner and his team. David, who won a Grammy for his work on ‘Death Magnetic’, is the man behind the look and feel of all of our recent releases, including ‘Through The Never’‘S&M2’, and ‘Hardwired’.”

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