Metallica’s Robert Trujillo on New Apple Vision Pro Concert: “It’s Like You Can Almost Touch It”

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Metallica has taken live show experiences to an unprecedented level of intimacy by offering a virtual concert via Apple Vision Pro, allowing fans to be virtually on stage during performances and feel incredibly close to the band.

The show, officially launched for Apple Vision Pro users on Friday, features high-tech footage gathered by Apple during last year’s Mexico City stop for Metallica’s M72 tour. This immersive experience positions viewers in various spots, such as within the crowd, above the stage, and even behind Lars Ulrich’s drum kit, offering a close-up view to spot even the tiniest specks of dirt on the high hats.

On a Friday at the Apple Store in Los Angeles’s The Grove, Metallica’s bass player, Robert Trujillo, astonished two unsuspecting fans who were demonstrating the show. Unbeknownst to them, Trujillo was seated right beside them, listening to the performance through headphones. When their six-minute demos concluded, the bassist revealed himself to the delighted fans.

Trujillo explains to The Hollywood Reporter that what makes this experience special is the palpable energy of live music. You can sense the connection between the audience and the band, and it’s as if you could reach out and almost touch it because you can see the fans’ expressions directly.

Metallica’s performance is the newest addition to a series of musical experiences that Apple has designed for their Vision Pro collection. Previously, they have created experiences with artists such as Alicia Keys, Raye, and The Weeknd. For Metallica, this experience condenses their full concert into approximately 25 minutes, featuring three songs: “Whiplash,” “One,” and “Enter Sandman.

The demonstration Apple provided on Friday seems quite impressive, offering viewers a deeply immersive experience that was previously unattainable. However, with the headset priced at $3,500, it’s unlikely many fans will be able to fully enjoy this presentation. For those who don’t own a headset, there’s an opportunity to watch “Whiplash” during a demo at an Apple Store.

Trujillo reminisced about the initial occasion when he and the entire band viewed their studio session in the Bay Area for the first time, remembering James Hetfield mimicking drumming to the tunes while he observed himself performing.

He admits that he started improvising and mimicking an electric guitar without a real instrument, finding himself doing it quite spontaneously. He believes that anyone watching this video will have a similar response, even if they’ve never seen Metallica or are unfamiliar with their music – the energy of the performance is so captivating that it’s difficult not to get drawn in.

The Vision Pro exhibition isn’t just Metallica’s unique digital-first music event; they also performed a concert within the widely played video game Fortnite last year. As Trujillo explains, “We like to explore new things and take risks. We approach each opportunity with an open mind. In the past, we’ve participated in Guitar Hero, collaborated with orchestras, which might have seemed unconventional in the early ’80s. Now, as we grow older, we appreciate diverse experiences even more. Experiences like this fit perfectly with our current mindset; we’re quite open to these kinds of projects.

Since Trujillo has witnessed his band performing in this manner, he reflects on how incredible it would have been if such concerts existed back then, decades ago.

He describes it as being quite a tangible encounter in many aspects. If only I could have experienced this during my childhood in the 1970s, when I was captivated by bands like Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, he expresses. The idea alone of witnessing Jimi Hendrix play guitar, with him just a few feet away, is something I can barely fathom.

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2025-03-15 07:24