Metallica is currently on their M72 World Tour, and the band has presented a “No Repeat Weekend” at every stop which sees the group play two completely different sets two nights apart in the same city.
Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider was asked for his opinion on the concept on a recent episode of the “Should It Out Loudcast,” and he didn’t seem to think it was that good of an idea for Metallica to delve further into their catalog.
“Well, I wasn’t aware they were doing that, and credit to them, but I think it’s kind of self-serving,” Snider said.
“And it really only appeals to a small percentage of the crowd. The majority of the people going to these shows — and not just Metallica; this also applies to bands like KISS and Twisted — they’re there for the hits. The percentage of people who know the deeper cuts and are willing to accept not hearing ‘Enter Sandman’ one night, that’s a very small bunch of people.”
Snider said Twisted Sister tried to include deep cuts in their first reunion show back in 2001 and “it was just dead.”
“After that, the guys said, ‘All right. No more putting that stuff in the show,’ because it’s really self-serving; it caters to a very small part of the audience,” Snider said.
“Unless you’re buying (tickets to) both (nights) — and that’s maybe the idea… You know, shake ’em down, get ’em to buy both tickets so they’re hearing every song ’cause they’re diehards. But Metallica’s audience has grown so far beyond just hardcore fans. They have hits. And then I harken back to when Iron Maiden toured. Remember they played the entire new album; they refused to play any of their hits. Audience was furious. Bruce (Dickinson) was yelling at the crowd because they weren’t getting into it. It was self-serving to do that. And the next year they came back, and it was the biggest hits only, ’cause they had to make up for that.”
“I’m just being honest,” Snider continued. “Yes, the hardcore [fans] love to hear those extra songs, those special songs. The majority aren’t hardcore, and they are filling up that arena, they’re filling up that festival. They’re here to hear the big songs, and that’s when they light up, and you could see their reaction.”
“I would often joke, ‘Okay, we did the two big ones. You can go home now.’ I would say to the crowd, ‘Go home. Get an early start.’ I’d tell the audience, ‘You can leave now because you beat the rush at the parking lot. Now it’s time for the real fans who still…’ ‘Cause we do ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ and ‘I Wanna Rock’. Like, ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’, we do [that as], like, seventh song in the set. And people would think… and I’d say, ‘Good night,’ and I’d walk off and I’d come back out. But there’s people who say, ‘Why aren’t they saving that for, like, a third encore?’ No. Let’s get it over with. If that’s what you’re here for, I don’t want you to wait and stand around board. I’d rather have you leave and make room for the other people who are really into this.”
Snider later backtracked somewhat in a post on X saying his comments weren’t meant as an attack on Metallica. “No need to call me, James (though I always love hearing from you). Read the article NOT just the headline. I wasn’t attacking @Metallica. It was a broader discussion on heritage artists playing new music and the majority of the audiences lack of interest. #sadbuttrue”.
