Metallica set to be the “first hard rock band” to play at Saudi Arabian festival
“We’re not done with 2023 just yet, as an amazing opportunity has just come our way to perform at a major festival that we have never played in a part of the world we rarely get to visit.”
Image: Scott Legato / Getty
Metallica are set to become the first metal band to play in Saudi Arabia at MDLBeast’s Soundstorm Festival in Riyadh this December.
The show will mark their last performance of 2023, but the band are due to continue their M72 no-repeat weekends touring stint in the new year. The global tour is in support of their latest studio album, 72 Seasons, which landed in April this year.
Alongside the thrash metal legends, the lineup heavily consists of artists under pop and electronic dance genres. Some of the biggest names set to perform include the Black Eyed Peas, Calvin Harris, David Guetta and more.
Metallica are set to perform on the first day of the festival, which runs from the 14-16 December this year. Last year’s event saw crowds of over 600,000 people in attendance.
“We’re not done with 2023 just yet, as an amazing opportunity has just come our way to perform at a major festival that we have never played in a part of the world we rarely get to visit,” the band writes on their official Facebook page. “We’re excited to announce that on Thursday, December 14 we’ll be the first hard rock band to ever play at MDLBeast’s Soundstorm Festival in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.”
We’re not done with 2023 just yet, as an amazing opportunity has just come our way to perform at a major festival that…
Posted by Metallica on Monday, November 27, 2023
Saudi melodic death metal band, Immortal Pain, became the first to perform heavy metal music at a large public event in the country last year. The band, who sing original songs in English, performed in a concert on the second day of Comic Con Arabia at the Jeddah International Exhibition and Convention Center in 2022, as reported by Arab News.
Find out more about Soundstorm festival via MDLBeast. You can also view all of Metallica’s 2024 live dates on their website.