Rock legends Metallica have cancelled their upcoming stadium tour of Australia and New Zealand just weeks before it was due to begin.

In an emotional note to their Aussie fans, the remaining band members have revealed that frontman James Hetfield has entered rehab for his ongoing addiction issues, forcing the cancellation of the tour that was due to start on October 17.

The band’s Australian tour promoter Live Nation say that, while all tickets will be refunded, they are working with Metallica to secure new tour dates.

media_camera Metallica singer James Hetfield. Picture: Getty

The cancellation came with a personal note from three of Metallica’s four members, explaining the reason for the abrupt move:

“A note from Lars, Kirk, and Rob:

We are truly sorry to inform our fans and friends that we must postpone our upcoming tour of Australia and New Zealand.

A Note from Lars, Kirk, and Rob



We are truly sorry to inform our fans and friends that we must postpone our upcoming tour of Australia and New Zealand.



(1/6) — Metallica (@Metallica) September 28, 2019

As most of you probably know, our brother James has been struggling with addiction on and off for many years. He has now, unfortunately, had to re-enter a treatment program to work on his recovery again.

We fully intend to make our way to your part of the world as soon as health and schedule permit. We’ll let you know as soon as we can.

Once again, we are devastated that we have inconvenienced so many of you, especially our most loyal fans who often travel great distances to experience our shows. We appreciate your understanding and support for James and, as always, thank you for being a part of our Metallica family.”

media_camera Metallica fans will have to wait a little longer to see them.

Hetfield’s past addiction issues were well-documented in the band’s warts-and-all 2004 documentary Some Kind of Monster. In a 2017 interview, the rocker discussed being 15 years sober, saying “fear” had been a big motivator in giving up drugs and alcohol.

“Losing my family, that was the thing that scared me so much, that was the bottom I hit, that my family is going to go away because of my behaviors that I brought home from the road,” he said.

During that same interview, Hetfield, who has three children with wife of 22 years Francesca Tomasi, said he’d found entering a treatment facility to be incredibly beneficial.

“What worked for me was 7 weeks someplace, like basically tearing you down to bones, ripping your life apart, anything you thought about yourself or what it was, anything you thought you had, your family, your career, anything, gone. Strip you down to just, you’re born. Here’s how you were when you were born, you were okay, you were a good person, let’s get back to that again, then they slowly rebuild you.”

The band’s Aussie fans have flooded social media with comments after the shock announcement — and while they’re sad they won’t be seeing the band as planned, there is an outpouring of support for Hetfield.

“Sad to miss out on seeing Metallica but wishing James all the best for his recovery journey,” wrote one fan.

“Sign of a real man; seeing a problem and actually working on it. People may be pissed about $300 but the band is missing out on millions, so maybe put that into perspective if you’re a bit ticked. Rock on James,” wrote another on Facebook.

“Get well soon James. Don’t be too hard on yourself, you’re human, mistakes happen. You’ll be back when you’re ready,” tweeted another fan.

media_camera Fans are sending their support to Metallica frontman James Hetfield (far right) today.

Another wrote: “The Metallica fans here on twitter are supporting James from all over the world. You guys have brought people together through your music and the least we can do is give you love and support during tough times. We love you and are rooting for you, James.”

Metallica’s ‘WorldWired’ Australian tour was announced in March this year, with the band due to perform the first show of the tour at Perth’s Optus stadium on October 17. It was to be the first of eight stadium dates across Australia and New Zealand, including a night at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium and two dates at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium.

All dates are now listed as ‘postponed’ on Metallica’s official website, while Live Nation lists the same dates as ‘cancelled.’ Heavy metal band Slipknot, who were due to support Metallica on the tour, have not yet publicly commented on the cancellation.

All tickets purchased to the shows in Australia and New Zealand will be fully refunded — refund information can be found here (Aus) and here (NZ).

The tour would have been Metallica’s first to Australia since 2013 and first shows in New Zealand since 2010.

More details on how to obtain your refund are below.



AUS - https://t.co/IYnOmWBul6

NZ - https://t.co/hUpUolbNfj

Enhanced Experience & Black Tickets -https://t.co/xUyPNK0j8y



(6/6) — Metallica (@Metallica) September 28, 2019

Hours before the announcement, Metallica had posted a tribute to the band’s former bass guitarist Cliff Burton on the 33rd anniversary of his death.

Blurton died on September 27 1986 when Metallica’s bus crashed and flipped in Copenhagen as the band toured in support of their third album Master of Puppets.

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Originally published as ‘Devastated’ Metallica cancel Oz tour