Metallica’s James Hetfield said Turnstile rejected the chance to tour with the legendary metal band.
The Enter Sandman rockers are fans of the hardcore punk band, whom they approached about opening their gigs for the M72 tour, but the BLACKOUT hitmakers ultimately declined.
On a recent episode of his SiriusXM radio show Riff Life, James, 63, said: “We have seen them live, we wanted to get them on tour, and they said no. They’re doing good on their own already.”
Despite the rejection, he went on to gush over Turnstile’s live performances.
James added: “But man, what a vibe they bring. They are so fun. Go see them play if you can. Just like many, many bands, they sound great on their records and recordings, but man, when you see them live, you totally get it.
“We’ve hung out with them a bit. Super cool guys, super fun. They’ve got a gal in the band now playing, which is fun.”
Turnstile is made up of Brendan Yates (vocals), Franz Lyons (bass), Daniel Fang (drums), Pat McCrory (guitar) and Meg Mills (guitar).
Metallica, formed of James, Lars Ulrich (drums), Kirk Hammett (lead guitar) and Robert Trujillo (bass guitar), kicked off their Life Burns Faster concert residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas last month, and it runs into early 2027.
The residency marks the latest large-scale project from a band that has spent the past two years touring the world on their M72 run, which has drawn more than four million fans across Europe, North America, the Pacific Rim and the Middle East.
At the Sphere, the group will perform material from across their catalogue, with the venue’s technology, including its wraparound LED display, immersive audio system and 4D effects, used to reframe their live show in a new way.
And that has caused Lars, 62, to admit performing at the venue is exciting and daunting in equal measure.
In July, he appeared on 65-year-old U2 guitarist The Edge’s SiriusXM radio show Close to the Edge, and said: “This is something else.
“This is another level. And so to be able to do that here is so exciting.”
Lars went on: “It’s going to be challenging, and obviously, I think like everybody else I’ve talked to about it, it’s overwhelming and f****** intimidating.”
The musician explained that they are stepping outside of their comfort zone.
He said: “But hopefully when we step out on stage that first night, we’ll have it somewhat together. That’s a place, maybe, we don’t end up in often enough because we have a tendency to put ourselves in environments that we completely control and know. And so I think it’s really good to be able to throw yourself for the loop like that.”
Remarking on U2’s shows there, Lars added: “I was there opening night and was so just f****** awestruck, inspired, energised – all of it.
“It was just, like, ‘Holy s***, this is somehow another frontier.’”