The Big 4 shows have been some of the biggest metal concerts known to man.
While the titans of thrash metal once shared a stage, Scott Ian isn’t holding his breath about getting together soon.
When talking with Metal Edge, Ian said that Metallica were the elephant in the room saying,
“I don’t think Metallica need to do that right now. They’ve got so much coming up in the next two years.”
Although it’s not impossible for a Big 4 show to happen, Ian thinks that it might come up when Charlie Benante hangs out with Metallica on their next tour as Pantera’s drummer saying,
“Charlie can ask Lars when he’s out with him in August. Yeah, I saw Dave Mustaine was kinda fishing for some of that. I mean, I don’t know.”
Out of the non-Metallica bands, Mustaine has been vocal about bringing the thrash legends back together saying,
“I really think it’s time for the guys in Metallica to step up and us do one last round, see if we can get Slayer to come out of retirement and do a ‘Big Four’ passing of the torch to the new ‘Big Four’. It would remain to be seen who they are.”
Since Metallica are crisscrossing the globe with their latest tour, Ian is thinking that it will be a little while before any Big 4 opportunity comes up,
“Here’s the thing: Metallica just announced their ’23 and ’24 plans. If the ‘Big Four’ was to ever happen again — in any capacity — it’s certainly not going to be before ’25 now, because they’ve already announced their plans. So, there you go. Anyone who has a question about the ‘Big Four’, hold that thought until 2025.”
While it might not seem realistic, Kirk Hammett had warmed up to more Big 4 shows in 2017 saying,
“I see those shows as kind of like a celebration of the music that we all make and the audience embracing what we’ve done. And why not have more of that?”
New Big 4 shows might not be likely in the next few years, but it’s not impossible either.
The One Anthrax Song Scott Ian Refused to Play On
Scott Ian Reflects on Working With the Late Joey Jordison and Paul Gray: ‘I cherish the time I had with them on this planet'
