The bassist Rob Trujillo became a member of Metallica in 2003, joining the original and classic members Lars Ulrich (Drums), James Hetfield (Vocals and guitar) and Kirk Hammett (Guitar). They are certainly the biggest Heavy Metal act in the world right now that are still touring. They are always playing in stadiums and big arenas for millions of fans.
But they don’t have to rehearse that much before a tour like Trujillo explained in an interview with Toby Morse (Transcribed by Ultimate Guitar).
Rob Trujillo reveals how Metallica prepares for tour
“It’s not, like, next-level. I know there’s some other bands out there that’ll go for a month. I don’t know if it’s Iron Maiden or somebody, I think they go pretty hard. But we may do a week when it’s all said and done if you took all the days.”
“Even with the production, we try to get a sound check before, to test the stage. At least the stage we have now, because it’s big, and there’s a lot of things that can happen. So, we have to ensure all those things are working, and you also want to get what they call your sea legs — just to navigate a vessel. That stage is like a vessel.”
He continued:
“He’s (Lars Ulrich) also keeping tabs on, like, ‘What did we play here last time?’ Or, ‘What deep cuts did we play? Because maybe we don’t want to play those this time.’ So, he’s thinking a lot about this stuff, and we’re, maybe, thinking about that stuff less.”
“Lars is really great at putting a show together, and James, obviously, he’s really focused on the details and the music and parts. So, yeah, it’s a good balance with those two guys,” Rob Trujillo said.
Metallica will continue on the road in 2025 promoting their latest album “72 Seasons”, released in 2023.