For some fans, a dream came true in 2010: 'The Big Four' announced that they would perform several concerts together. 'The Big WHAT?!' — well, 'The Big Four,' Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax, who in the early 1980s transformed 'The New Wave Of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM)' into thrash metal. Let's take a closer look at these bands...
Metallica
Especially from KILL ‘EM ALL (1983) to AND JUSTICE FOR ALL (1988), Metallica showed how to create a new genre called 'thrash' from the bedrock of bands like Maiden and Priest and constantly reinvent it.
It all began when Metallica decided to kick out guitarist Dave Mustaine. He later founded Megadeth, and in 1983 James Hetfield and co. hired Kirk Hammett (Ex-Exodus). The band lived for a while in a New York factory building, coincidentally the same building where Anthrax had their rehearsal space. In 1986, the two bands toured together for the first time. That year, Metallica decided to redistribute their sleeping bunks in their tour bus using playing cards. Cliff Burton drew the ace of spades, slept in Hammett’s bunk by the window — and died on September 27, 1986, after being thrown out of the window. Many bands would probably never have recovered from such a blow — not so Metallica, who with DEATH MAGNETIC (2008) and HARDWIRED… TO SELF-DESTRUCT (2016) have shown that they are still the Gods Of Metal.
Metallica's Setlist at the "Tour of The Big Four"
- Creeping Death
- For Whom the Bell Tolls
- Fuel
- Harvester of Sorrow
- Fade to Black
- That Was Just Your Life
- Cyanide
- Sad but True
- Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
- All Nightmare Long
- One
- Master of Puppets
- Blackened
- Nothing Else Matters
- Enter Sandman
- Am I Evil? with Dave Lombardo (Slayer), Megadeth, and Anthrax
- Hit the Lights
- Seek & Destroy
Slayer
Along with Anthrax, who often tended more towards power and speed metal, and Megadeth, who are technically very ambitious and melodic, Slayer is THE band that defines classic thrash metal 100% and has remained true to their style over the years. You just buy the pure aggression in their sound, riffing, and vocals. Within seconds, you can identify them because of their songwriting, the classic 16th "Ufda" beat on the drums, and especially the guitar solos that are played five times faster than the rhythm and start with the distortion effect, followed by more vibrations before ending with a "Wah Wah". Allegations that the band might be sympathetic to certain ideologies (provoked by songs like "Angel of Death", questionable symbols like the Reichsadler, and the fan club "Slatanic Wehrmacht") are regularly denied by the band members. They rather suggest that their songs should be understood as documentaries that have no ideological background. Jeff Hanneman (main songwriter of Slayer, who died in 2011 from necrotizing fasciitis) once described himself in an interview as a "California punk" with no political ambitions.
Slayer's Setlist at the "Tour of The Big Four"
- World Painted Blood
- Jihad
- War Ensemble
- Hate Worldwide
- Seasons in the Abyss
- Angel of Death
- Beauty Through Order
- Disciple
- Mandatory Suicide
- Chemical Warfare
- South of Heaven
- Raining Blood
Megadeth
Three things differentiate Megadeth from the other three bands of the "Big Four": technically sophisticated instrumental passages, riffing that perfectly transitions, and solos that are simultaneously fast and melodic. Dave Mustaine (frontman) was a member of Metallica from 1981 to 1983 and was eventually replaced by Kirk Hammett. Since then, the Megadeth boss apparently hasn't been on good terms with his former band. Rumors suggest this may be one reason why the "Big Four" configuration won't come together a second time. Kerry King of Slayer played the first five concerts with Megadeth before dedicating himself fully to Slayer again.
Megadeth's Setlist at the "Tour of The Big Four"
- Holy Wars… The Punishment Due
- Hangar 18
- Wake up Dead
- Head Crusher
- In My Darkest Hour
- Skin o’ My Teeth
- À Tout le Monde
- Hook in Mouth
- Trust
- Sweating Bullets
- Symphony of Destruction
- Peace Sells/Holy Wars Reprise
Anthrax
Without Anthrax, terms like "moshing" and "moshpit" probably wouldn't exist today — so thanks to the defining songs "Caught In A Mosh" (translated as "caught in the crowd") from the album AMONG THE LIVING (1987) and "Milano Mosh" by the band S.O.D. (a side project of Anthrax guitarist Scoot Ian). Initially inspired by the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, Anthrax was significantly involved in the development of thrash metal. Several key musicians like Dimebag Darrell of Pantera, Dan Spitz of Overkill, Ross Friedman of Manowar, Andreas Kisser of Sepultura, Jon Dette (ex-Slayer), or Jonathan Donais of Shadows Fall were part of the band at various times.
Anthrax's Setlist at the "Tour of The Big Four"
- Play Video
- Metal Thrashing Mad
- Play Video
- Medusa
- Play Video
- Refuse/Resist
- (Sepultura cover) (partial)
- Play Video
- I Am the Law
After the tour, Tom Araya of Slayer revealed that the configuration will not happen again in the future. It's a shame, really — but we still revel in the memories of this great tour and hope that we will at least see the bands individually more often!"
