Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax ??? the "Big Four" of 1980s thrash metal ??? played together for the first time in history earlier tonight (Wednesday, June 16) in front of 81,000 fans at the Sonisphere festival at Bemowo Airport in Warsaw, Poland.
Megadeth's setlist for tonight's concert was as follows:
Holy Wars
Hangar 18
Take No Prisoners
Five Magics
Poison Was the Cure
Lucretia
Tornado of Souls
Dawn Patrol
Rust in Peace... Polaris
Head Crusher
Sweating Bullets
Symphony Of Destruction
Peace Sells
Commented David Ellefson: "Just finished our first 'Big Four' show here in Warsaw, Poland.
"Simply amazing!!
"Anthrax sounded great with Joey Belladonna back on vocals. Slayer did their usual thing of annihilating the place. Metallica are taking the stage now and with about 100,000 people in attendance it's flat-out mind-blowing and huge to be here. Vibes are great amongst all of us and this is a dream come true for the bands, too."
These four legendary acts broke out of the underground thrash movement to dominate the metal world in the 1980s, selling millions of records and packing arenas across the globe. The metal giants have never before all shared the same stage, despite huge demand.
A second "Big Four" appearance is planned for Sonisphere Switzerland two days after the Warsaw concert, with more Sonisphere shows featuring the awesome combo to follow.
The "Big Four" concert on June 22 in Sofia, Bulgaria will find its way to the U.S. via a satellite broadcast. That day's show, as part of the Sonisphere festival, will be beamed to more than 450 movie theatres in more than 140 markets in the U.S., along with cities in Europe, Canada and Latin America.
The concert will be broadcast to theatres in high definition. Delayed screenings are planned for Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.
Metallica's Lars Ulrich said in a statement, "Who would have thought that more than 25 years after its inception, thrash metal's 'Big Four' would not only still be around, be more popular than ever, playing shows together at stadiums all over Europe, and on top of that, coming to a movie theater near you in high definition (for better or worse??!!). Bring it on!"
Pre-Warsaw show photo call:
Megadeth after the Warsaw performance:
