James Hetfield used Metallica's show at the Las Vegas Sphere on Saturday night to draw a line between the band and performers who bring politics onto the stage. Speaking to the crowd, the 63-year-old singer said Metallica was not there to influence fans with "bulls---" and added that the band's purpose was "love, energy and heavy music."
Hetfield also thanked the audience for making the trip, saying that unless they lived in Las Vegas, they had come a long way to spend time with Metallica and that the band was grateful for their travel, money and time. It was a direct appeal to the people in front of him, and it landed in a moment when concert politics were already under a bright light.
The immediate backdrop was the removal of Macklemore from the remaining scheduled performances on Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour last month after he repeatedly called for "Free Palestine" and performed "Hind's Hall." Macklemore had also performed the song while opening for Ed Sheeran at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and the fallout spread farther when the remaining opening acts and supporting musicians later pulled out in solidarity with him.
That is what gives Hetfield's comments their edge. He did not name Macklemore or any other artist, but he made his point by contrasting Metallica's message with what he described as outside noise. At the same time, the story around him was built on a very public dispute over whether musicians should bring political statements to concerts at all, which made his refusal to do so part declaration and part rebuke.
Hetfield's remarks do not appear to have changed Metallica's own path, and there is no sign in the record here of any immediate response from the artists caught in the wider dispute. What they do make clear is that the argument over politics at concerts is not fading; it is now reaching one of heavy music's most recognizable frontmen on one of the biggest stages available.
