James Hetfield Replaces Metallica Tribute Band’s Stolen Gear

Say what you will about Metallica, but the whole “They don’t care about the fans” argument is bullshit, and this proves it: The PRP reports that when Spokane, WA Metallica tribute band Blistered Earth recently had all their gear stolen, James Hetfield himself saw to it that the filched items all got replaced.

Shawn Murphy, drummer for Blistered Earth, tells mirp411.com:

“From what I understand, it was actually from KATU news [that reported the theft]. That was how it got communicated to those guys [Metallica]. I got a call from a lady from Metallica HQ who said she was trying to contact me to verify who I was. Then from there they got me in touch with Metallica’s manager who asked me to send him a gear list. And so, I did, and it just kind of went from there.”

Naturally, Murphy and his bandmates are beyond grateful for the gesture:

“It’s pretty awesome that they would do that. I guess it was actually James that saw the story on the website for KATU. I don’t how familiar you are with Metallica, or how closely you have followed their career, but it is fairly well documented that they had all of their gear stolen way back in the day, back when they didn’t have money to replace their gear. So, they have a first hand knowledge of how shitty this feels. But, again, I never thought it would come to this!”

This wasn’t a small amount of gear, either — when the band says they had everything stolen, they mean everything:

Guitars (all with cases)
1989 Gibson Explorer
ESP LTD KH 602
2007 Gibson Flying V
Peavey Grind Bass
2016 Rickenbacher Bass

Amps
Line 6 Spider Valve MKII HD100 amp headwith Line 6 FBV Shortboard MKII and Road Case
Mesa Boogie Mark V Amp Head with footswitch
Marshall JCM 800 2203X Tube Guitar Amplifier Head with Road Case
Peavey Series 402 Bass Head
B52 AT412A Guitar Cab
Peavey Bass Cab 15’’
Peavey Bass Cab 4×10’’
Marshall 1960A Guitar Cab

Pedals
Morley Bad Horsie V2 Wah Pedal
Electroharmonix Metal Muff
Boss Super Overdrive SD-1
TC Electronic Polytune
BOSS CH-1 Super Chorus
Fulltone Custom Shop ABY True-Path Pedal
Ibanez Tube Screamer TS-808

Drums
Matching TAMA Granstar kit with 2 kicks, four rack toms, two floor toms, and a snare (all with matching shark tooth lugs), 5 cymbal stands, hi hat stand, throne, and stick bag

Replacing all that shit would obviously cost a pretty penny… but a pretty penny is a drop in the bucket to Metallica. This is a super, SUPER classy move on the part of the world’s biggest metal band. Maybe not enough to forgive them for St. Anger, but still!