The prices of admission tickets for Metallica’s concerts in Finland vary from well over a hundred euros to almost six hundred.
Finnish heavy music fans got a reason to flex their neck muscles furiously on Monday, when the American metal giant Metallica announced that they will be performing a concert in Helsinki in June 2024.
The band will perform at the Olympic Stadium on two nights, June 7 and 9, as part of their M72 world tour promoting their new album.
This time, concert tickets are sold for both gigs at the same time. Two-day tickets for both gigs will go on sale this week on Friday, December 2nd, and tickets for the single gig won’t go on sale until January.
– Metallica has always offered value for money, has bought cheap or expensive tickets, says Burgess.
– Somewhere it was suspected that those one-day tickets might remain for January at all. Personally, I would have bought both anyway, says Erolahti.
Fans believe tickets will sell
Regular two-day concert tickets in the lower and upper stands cost 129–260 euros. You can get to the field for 212 euros, and the snake pit field intended for true fans for 562 euros.
In addition, there are exclusive special packages on sale, with prices ranging from just under 500 euros to almost 3,200 euros.
According to Burgess, the prices of the stadium tickets seem reasonable, because the prices of concert tickets have risen a lot in recent years anyway. He believes that there is also enough demand for more expensive tickets.
– A hundred gigs is fine. For some it is too much, some are ready to pay much more, he says.
According to Burgess, the upcoming concerts will differ from the previous ones in that Metallica will sell discount tickets to people under 16 years old. In addition, the snake pit, popular with true fans, will be sold for money this time. In the past, snake pits have been accessed mostly through raffles and fan club memberships.
– It can change the atmosphere of the snake pit, but this too remains to be seen. And seeing Metallica from any place always gives you a different perspective on the concert.
Getting a ticket depends on preparation and luck
Metallica has performed in Finland a total of 21 times, the most recent of which were concerts in 2019 and 2018.
According to Burgess, it is typical for Finnish Chapter members to buy tickets as soon as possible. This is how he intends to act himself.
– From my boyhood years, I get used to the excitement of whether I will get tickets or not, even if I know I will get to the concert, says Burgess.
Hanna Erolahti advises to check that the necessary passwords and login information are already in memory before booking the tickets. The rest is up to luck.
– I almost miss the days when we went to the ticket booth at six in the morning in the freezing cold to queue for tickets. Now it’s a bit more uncertain with this information technology, but there’s no need to queue in the freezing cold, says Erolahti.
The members of the Finnish Chapter often also travel abroad after Metallica.
– Some might buy a ticket for, say, a concert in Gothenburg and think about a ticket for the concerts in Helsinki later, says Burgess.
Hanna Erolahti has been a fan of the band from Los Angeles for over 30 years. He has seen the band in Finland and abroad a total of twenty times.
– We have been to concerts abroad with my best friend, and nowadays my daughter is also excited to go along. But domestic concerts always have their own atmosphere, says Erolahti.
The Finnish Chapter is a communal activity
Steve Burgess is the main founder of the Finnish Chapter, which started in 2005. The group is one of the largest Metallica Chapters, or fan groups, that can be found around the world.
– This is really a communal activity. Album listening, cabin trips and of course gigs. And when Metallica fans arrive here from abroad, we can support them with the firsts and the last of the fan base, says Burgess.
During their world tours, Metallica often finds time for little Finland as well. Burgess thinks that the relatively large fan culture in Finland is one of the reasons for this. Metallica can count on their concerts in Pohjola selling out.
Burgess himself fell in love with Metallica when he was about ten years old, through one of the band’s most famous songs, *Enter Sandman*.
– I borrowed the cassette of the *Black* album from a friend and listened to it in bed with earplug stereos. I still get goosebumps when I remember that moment.
Hanna Erolahti discovered the band in the late 1980s through the *Kill ‘Em All* debut album. The album’s song *Seek and Destroy* has been Erolahti’s phone ringtone for as long as he can remember.
– Today, *For Whom the Bell Tolls* is my favorite song, says Erolahti.
The new single was listened to immediately
Yesterday, Monday, the band released a new single *Lux Æterna* as a taste of their upcoming album. Erolahti and Burgess listened to the single immediately.
The song sank in for both of them. The tempo hasn’t dropped over the years, even though the band members are already in their sixties.
– It was a positive surprise. The second time I listened, I already felt good, and I’m looking forward to the new album. It seems promising, Erolahti reflects.
Burgess praises that the band has managed to keep their feet on the ground over the years.
– The heart is involved in Metallica’s music. As the Kill ‘Em All album song *Whipplash* sings: But we’ll never stop, we’ll never quit, ’cause we’re Metallica.
Metallica’s M72 world tour starts in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, in April 2023 and ends in Mexico in September 2024. In Europe, the tour stops in a total of eight countries.
According to the concert organizers, the two concerts at the Olympic Stadium will be different in terms of content. The band’s new album *72 Seasons* will be released in spring 2023.
*You can discuss the topic on 2.12. until 11 p.m.*