Metallica Re-Added to 2020 Louder Than Life Festival, Will Reschedule South American Tour

Here’s some surprising and unsurprising news from Metallica…

First, the unsurprising new: the band’s tour of South America, originally scheduled to take place next month, has been postponed until December in light of that pesky ongoing global health epidemic.

Now, the surprising news: the band has been re-added to this year’s Louder Than Life Festival, which will take place in Louisville, KY this September. Specifically, the band will play on a newly-added date — Thursday, September 17 — which launch the fest a day earlier than originally planned. You likely recall that the band previously dropped off the Sonic Temple and Louder Than Life festivals due to mandatory “sobriety weekends” that are part of James Hetfield’s ongoing recovery process.

Here’s the announcement from the band:

“Greetings… not from our usual HQ haunts, but this time from our living rooms, bedrooms, and basements. As many of you know, in our nearly forty years of touring, we’ve had a few mishaps along the way: broken bones, trashed appendixes, a pyro mishap, backs thrown out, crazy weather, food poisoning (beware of the oysters!), and even one way next-level anxiety attack! None of it has ever stopped us, but this is obviously a very different time, and leaving the house now literally means taking your life in your hands. Unfortunately, in these surreal times, that means we have to stay away from each other for the foreseeable future before we can start thinking about ‘Tallica Family reunions around the world.

“We’re all putting safety first, self-isolating and socially distancing, but not forever! With that said, the South American shows originally planned for April are in the process of moving to December; Greta Van Fleet is going to stay on board to take this ride with us, and we’ll be hitting each and every city, but a few venues may have changed. We’ll be back later this week with the new dates and details about tickets, venues, and everything you need to know to help you make plans.

“For those of you in the States, you know that we have some festival dates planned in May and unfortunately the news is not quite as good. With heavy hearts, we’re here to let you know that Epicenter in Charlotte, Welcome To Rockville in Daytona, and Sonic Temple in Columbus have all been cancelled. There is one bright note; Louder Than Life in Louisville (September 17-20) has ADDED a date and we’re excited that we’ll once again be able to partake in the festivities as we’ll be hitting the stage on Thursday, September 17th to kick off what will be four days of live music and good vibes. Additional headliners for the remainder of Louder Than Life will be announced at a later date. Please head over to DannyWimmerPresents.com for all the information. Details regarding refunds and exchanges for the May shows will also be available there starting Thursday, March 26th.

“Finally, to our friends in Australia and New Zealand, please know that we have not forgotten and you’re still in our hearts and minds. We will make it to your part of the world as soon as we can. We promise!

“We’ll sign off for now by sending you our love during these trying times. Here’s to looking back on this period soon with renewed appreciation for all the amazing times together with our extended Metallica Family around the world. For now, go hang with your significant others, kids, pets, parents… whomever you have in your space. Create your playlists, watch some movies, try some old-fashioned board games, and most importantly, stay safe. We’ll keep in touch!”