Yesterday (December 13th), Metallica held their fourth Helping Hands Concert & Auction, at the YouTube Theater in Los Angeles. As always, 100 percent of the proceeds went to All Within My Hands, the non-profit the thrash OGs founded in 2017, “dedicated to creating sustainable communities by supporting workforce education, the fight against hunger and other critical local services.”
Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, this year’s benefit event featured opening performances by the all-star quartet of Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani and Kenny Aronoff, as well as classically trained violin-and-cello duo SistaStrings. But the night belonged to the headliners, of course.
As at the previous Helping Hands show, held in 2022, Metallica played a unique two-part set — the first part, acoustic; the second, electric. The acoustic performance saw the metal titans joined by backup musicians Avi Vinocur and Henry Salvia, as well as the aforementioned SistaStrings, and also featured the debut of a cover of Bachman–Turner Overdrive’s “Away From Home” The electrified segment, meanwhile, boasted a cameo by Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament, who jumped onstage for a ripping rendition of “Hit the Lights.”
Check out the full setlist below, and fan-filmed footage above and below. Pro-shot video of the event will premiere on YouTube December 19th.
Metallica 2024 Helping Hands Concert & Auction setlist:
Acoustic
01. Low Man’s Lyric (with Avi Vinocur and Henry Salvia; first performance since 1998)
02. Helpless (Diamond Head cover) (with Avi Vinocur and Henry Salvia, first performance since 2018)
03. Away From Home (Bachman-Turner Overdrive cover) (with Avi Vinocur and Henry Salvia, live debut)
04. If Darkness Had a Son (with SistaStrings, Avi Vinocur and Henry Salvia, live debut of acoustic rendition)
05. Nothing Else Matters (with SistaStrings, Avi Vinocur and Henry Salvia)
Electric
06. Orion
07. The Shortest Straw
08. Until It Sleeps
09. Screaming Suicide
10. The Unforgiven II (with Avi Vinocur, first performance since 2015)
11. Fuel (with Avi Vinocur and Henry Salvia, new arrangement)
12. Hit the Lights (with Pearl Jam’s Jeff Ament)
13. Master of Puppets