Metallica Quake: metal legends cause earthquake at show in Virginia - what did they play?

• Metallica have become the latest group to record ‘seismic activity’ during a concert.
• The band rocked not only Lane Stadium last week, but the ground fans were walking on also.
• It’s the latest earth tremor to occur at a concert, but does it beat Taylor Swift’s current record for strongest magnitude?

Metallica have been known to create seismic shifts within the metal community, but after this weekend, the metal legends can claim they also cause seismic activity.

As reported by Billboard, the metal greats are currently on their M72 tour across the United States, stopping off at Lane Stadium in Virginia last week (May 7 2025), where the band performed all their smash hits.

But it was one track in particular that led the Virginia Tech Seismological Observatory to confirm that seismic activity was felt during the band’s performance of Enter Sandman, with 60,000 fans jumping to the classic track.

According to a report that was published on Virginia Tech’s website, the band performed the opening track from their 1991’s Black album which led to shaking in Lane Stadium “so hard it registered on the Virginia Tech Seismological Observatory’s helicorder.

Nothing compares to experiencing it live, but this multi-camera video shared by the band comes pretty close.”

Speaking about the magnitude of the tremor however, research associate Martin Chapman was quick to point out it ‘would have been less than 1.0” and that it would be ‘too small’ to be felt a mile away.

It becomes the latest show in recent history to register crowd interaction as seismic activity: Taylor Swift's Eras Tour in Seattle (2023) reportedly produced vibrations equivalent to a 2.3 magnitude earthquake, while a Foo Fighters concert in Auckland (2011) caused strong, low-frequency tremors.

Similarly, a Travis Scott concert in Rome (2023) generated tremors likened to a 1.3 magnitude event, raising concerns about potential damage to ancient structures, and Garth Brooks concerts at various locations have also resulted in detectable seismic activity.

Even Bruce Springsteen's performance in Barcelona (2016) was enough to set local seismometers in motion.

What did Metallica play at their ‘Metallica Quake’ performance?

According to Setlist.FM, the band performed the following set:

• Creeping Death
• For Whom the Bell Tolls
• Ride the Lightning
• King Nothing
• Lux Æterna
• Screaming Suicide
• The Day That Never Comes
• Fuel
• Orion
• Nothing Else Matters
• Sad but True
• One
• Seek & Destroy
• Master of Puppets
• Enter Sandman

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