Watch Metallica Perform ‘Whiplash’ at X Games
Metallica brought metal thunder to the X Games with their June 6th performance in Austin, Texas. Now, fans can glimpse the band’s pre-show process and a pummeling version of their thrash-metal classic “Whiplash,” as Blabbermouth reports.
The clip opens with meet-and-greet footage of bassist Robert Trujillo, drummer Lars Ulrich and lead guitarist Kirk Hammett before transitioning into the tuning room, where frontman James Hetfield goofs around and improvises riffs. “Do we have some old-school Metallica family members here? You know this one!” the singer yells as they crash the stage. The quartet perform “Whiplash” – a highlight from the band’s 1983 debut LP, Kill ‘Em All – with their usual intensity, peaking with Hammett’s breakneck solo.
A fan-filmed video of the 14-track set is available below. The show features Metallica classics like “Fuel,” “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” “One,” “Master of Puppets,” “Enter Sandman” and “Seek and Destroy.”
Metallica recorded the X Games show and are selling digital copies – in MP3, FLAC, Apple Lossless and HD formats – at the Live Metallica website. In a joint effort with ESPN and Circuit for the Americas to assist victims of recent flooding, the band is donating all money from download sales to the Central Texas Red Cross. All versions cost $5 through July 15th.
Last week, the band released more X Games footage: a wah-wah-heavy Hammett and Hetfield guitar duet of “The Star Spangled Banner.”