Kirk Hammett injures his leg onstage during Master of Puppets – and barely misses a beat
The guitarist suffered an apparent knee twist during Metallica’s June 16 show in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Credit: Joonas Turunen/YouTube
By now, Metallica have their live shows down to a fine art. But that’s not to say the occasional hiccup doesn’t ever happen.
Case in point: during one of their back-to-back shows in Gothenburg, Sweden last month, guitarist Kirk Hammett appeared to suffer an onstage twist of his knee, as shown in newly surfaced front-row fan-shot footage from the event.
The incident happened on June 16, when the metal titans were tackling Master of Puppets, the final song from their 16-track setlist at the Ullevi Stadium.
In the video below, Hammett can be seen apparently twisting his right knee during the song’s chorus, before tentatively hobbling around testing if it’s safe to continue performing.
While he’s clearly in pain, Hammett soldiers on, seeing out the chorus, before taking a quick break from playing during the subsequent main riff to massage his knee, before picking up his part again from the second verse.
After continuing to play for a good two minutes following the initial injury, Hammett steps down from the stage to have his leg looked at by a member of the crew – conveniently during the song’s clean break – played by James Hetfield – before climbing back onstage moments later apparently healed.
While likely the result of a cramp, fans have commented on the speed of Hammett’s recovery. “I want what ever that was put in his knee. He bounced back quickly,” one writes.
Prior to Master of Puppets, Hammett sailed through Metallica’s performance at the Ullevi Stadium unencumbered. Their set was rooted in their classic material, with tracks including Creeping Death, Harvester of Sorrow, Fade to Black, Nothing Else Matters, Sad But True and Seek & Destroy.
The band treated fans to three tracks from their new album 72 Seasons, though: its title track, If Darkness Had a Son and Sleepwalk My Life Away.
Before Metallica took to the stage, guest appearances came from both Volbeat and Wolfgang Van Halen’s Mammoth WVH.
For a full list of upcoming dates on the M72 tour, head to Metallica’s website.