In the latest Metallica So What! interview with Steffan Chirazi from metallica.com, producer Greg Fidelman talks working with the legendary band on their new album 72 Seasons.

An excerpt below:

SC: How many riff ideas did you listen to in that initial selection process?

GF: “The first process was over 300. Then there was another run, and we went through things that were recorded either at an HQ rehearsal or, more often, in the tuning room during tour rehearsals. Then after that, Kirk sent me, I don’t know, 700 things…”

SC: 700 from Kirk?

GF: “Yes. And Kirk was honest in saying, ‘I can’t do this. I know that’s going to be a bummer, man, but I could use your help.’ So when I told Lars how many Kirk had, Lars was like, ‘I’m not trying to get out of this, but why don’t you go through and knock it down halfway? Just the things you think are promising… split it in half at least. It’ll take us a month to go through that together.’ So I did that. Then once me and Lars had our pile of A-list riffs, I guess I’d call it, we’d pick 10 or 12 for a day.

“Now at this point, I’ve had a couple of guys from the Bay Area visit his house on days when Lars wasn’t around [to set up additional equipment – ED] because everyone was still totally isolated. I could tell them via Zoom that he needed headphones ‘over there’ when he’s at the drum set, there needed to be an iPad over by his hi-hat so I could see him, and he could see me. I needed to be able to hear him talk to me regardless of whether I had Pro Tools open or we were recording. We set up this crazy thing, and it worked. And then we would record! ‘What’s the beat that works with this? I like this one. I like that one.’ We’d do a bunch, literally ten ideas, we’d go through a whole process which I won’t get into here, and then we’d do ten more. That was sort of step two, just Lars, me, and Jason.”

Metallica have checked in with the following update:

"The M72 Montreal Pop-Up Shop opens Thursday! Not only will you be able to shop the basic tour line, but also a range of pop-up exclusives, including vinyl, apparel, accessories, skate decks, YETI x Metallica drinkware, and more! 

Don't forget to pick up a Fan Card during your visit for a chance at a Snake Pit upgrade!"

Metallica's M72 World Tour No Repeat Weekend lands in Montreal on August 11th and 13th at Stade Olympique. Go to this location for details and ticket information.

Metallica made the first of two appearances at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ on August 4th. A complete audio recording of the show is now available for pre-order here. The CD is expected to ship on October 20th, 2023.

You can purchase digital download formats of this show at LiveMetallica.com once they become available.

Fan-filmed video of the entire show can be viewed below, as well as a clip of "Shadows Follow" being performed live for the first time.

The setlist was as follows:

"Creeping Death"
"Harvester of Sorrow"
"Holier Than Thou"
"King Nothing"
"72 Seasons"
"If Darkness Had a Son"
"Fade to Black"
"Shadows Follow" (live debut)
"Orion"
"Nothing Else Matters"
"Sad But True"
"The Day That Never Comes" 
"Battery"
"Fuel"
"Seek and Destroy"
"Master of Puppets"