Metallica agree to play Christchurch concert in September

BY VICKI ANDERSON

BREAKING NEWS: Get out your black t-shirt - Metallica is coming to Christchurch after all.

And even better, South Island fans get to see them here first - a month before their sold-out Auckland shows.

Following a campaign by die-hard Christchurch fans over the internet, including setting up a Facebook page which attracted more than 20,000 members - the top-selling heavy metal band has announced a show in Christchurch, on September 22.

Metallica sent this message through its fanclub this evening:

"Sometimes You Do Get What You Want! You asked (OK, demanded!) and we heard ya. 

"When we got wind of the massive petitions for us to come to Christchurch, New Zealand we just had to check it out  and wow, the number of requests were overwhelming. 

"So, the moral of the story is to be careful what you wish for  because 'Tallica is coming to Christchurch on September 22 at CBS Canterbury Arena.''

Christchurch Metallica fans set up petitions to bring the band south after it announced two shows in Auckland earlier this year.

When she started the Facebook page, Metallica fan Andrea Gromm said: ``I think if we make enough noise they will come to Christchurch''.

When phoned by The Press and told the good news today, Gromm was ecstatic.

"I'm sure I won't be the only Metallica fan jumping on the couch tonight'', she said, while jumping on her couch.

Is there a catch? Yes. Metallica's production team have scoped out the CBS Canterbury Arena and, no matter how hard they tried to re-configure it, the venue just isn't equipped to handle the in the round Death Magnetic show that they've been "carting around the world''.

That's not going to stop them coming here, they say, but they do want fans to know that their Christchurch show won't feature the full set-up that their two sold-out Auckland concerts at Vector Arena on October 13 and 14 will boast.

But, Metallica say: "It's gonna be us and you, old-school club style in an arena making a whole lot of noise together, and that's what counts.''

Metallica will now begin the first leg of their Australasian World Magnetic Tour in Melbourne on September 15 and 16, before heading onto Sydney on September 18, then to Christchurch on September 22.
They then head to Japan before returning to Australasia in October and November for their 15 sold-out arena shows.

Performing for more than two hours, Metallica will feature material drawn from throughout their career including their current album, Death Magnetic.

Metallica is the fourth highest-selling music artist since the SoundScan era began tracking sales in 1991, selling a total of 100 million albums worldwide and 52,271,000 albums in the United States alone.

The band has released nine studio albums, two live albums, two EPs, twenty-four music videos, and forty-five singles.

The band has won nine Grammy Awards.

The band's 1991 album, Metallica, sold over 15 million copies in the United States, and 22 million copies worldwide.

* Tickets to the Christchurch show go on sale, 9am, Thursday, July 15 through 0800 Ticketek or ticketek.co.nz.

MyTicketek presale commences midday, Tuesday, July 13 until  5pm, Wednesday, July 14.

Tickets are limited to four per buyer. Tickets purchased through unauthorised outlets or on auction sites may be cancelled without refund and the bearer will be refused entry.

Tickets purchased to Metallica's Vector Arena shows in October cannot be refunded or exchanged for tickets to the CBS Canterbury Arena show.

Watch Metallica perform Wherever I May Roam at Stuttgart, Germany, in May 2009:

- © Fairfax NZ News