Go behind the scenes at Metallica’s Hardwired London show

Metallica perform at London's House Of Vans
Metallica perform at London's House Of Vans (Image credit: Getty)

Metallica have released a video showing behind the scenes footage from their show at London’s House Of Vans.

They played at the intimate venue beneath the city’s Waterloo Station on November 18 to just 600 fans to launch their highly anticipated 10th studio album Hardwired… To Self-Destruct.

James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo played a two-hour, 15-song set on the night which included classic track The Four Horsemen from the band’s 1983 debut album Kill ‘Em All.

The show also marked Hammett’s 54th birthday, with the Metallica guitarist plastered with foam pies during Seek And Destroy – a moment that was also captured in the clip.

Hardwired… To Self-Destruct has topped charts in dozens of countries across the world, with drummer Ulrich saying that he’s only listened to the record a handful of times – but enjoyed it most when he heard it while out driving with his wife a few weeks ago.

Ulrich said: “We got three-quarters of the way into the record. We went to a place, had a couple beverages, then we drove back and listened to the last two or three songs. It was like, ‘This is pretty good.’

“Every time I listen I’m like, ‘This is pretty fucking good, actually.’ I’m feeling, as I’m starting to get a little distance, that this record may be better than I was aware of.”

The band continue to add dates to their WorldWired tour, which is expected to run for at least two years. The latest addition is a second appearance in Mexico on March 3. They’re the cover stars of the latest edition of Metal Hammer, on sale now in print and via TeamRock+.

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Scott Munro
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Scott has spent more than 30 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving to the e-commerce team in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, scouts out the best deals for music fans and reviews headphones, speakers, books and more. He's written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog and has previous written for publications including IGN, the Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.