Well, people usually say Metallica didn't put up anything new in 8 years and forget about Lulu. Collaborations and projects like that usually just end up in studio and rarely get live performance. That being said, it is a one-off project, but still it's also some kind of Metallica's "new material". And it's awfull. I forced myself several times to hear the whole album and just couldn't make it. It's that bad.
But I would like to rant a litlle about their touring:
I saw them in '09 promoting DM, it was an indoor gig, stage in the center, awesome concert. Saw them one year later, stadium gig, also awesome concert. I think the second one was also being anounced as DM tour, but the thing is (and this is what I like about them) they keep changing the setlist from gig to gig. So no matter what gig you attended on that tour you're going to hear some "deep cuts". Even if the second gig was the same DM tour, setlists between those 2 gigs were really different. After that one (in 2012 if I'm correct) they had Black album 25 anniversary tour, with Snake pits and so on. Again something different. And then comes the next 3 years where they played the same songs that people already heard in last 4 years with the same production. And this is the reson:
I will aplaud them for trying to do something new, but that eventually backfired on them at the end. Orion+more festival and the movie was a complete financial catastrophy. At that point even Lars said they were in the red and had to keep touring to balance things out. And then they did Metallica by request (which in some cities ended with the same setlist that it was a year or two in that same city) and Lords of Summer tour, again - the same setlist that was 5-6 years ago with the new song (which is boring IMO). Metallica, at this point, can announce a gig anywere in the world and sell out 20,000 with no "actual reason" (no new album, no anniversary album) and people will come just because "it's Metallica". And that's lame, IMO. I do understand decision to just keep touring for 2-3 years to rise up financialy but it seems like they had no idea how to make that tours interesting.
I skipped the Black album anniversary because that isn't really my cup of tea, but was planning to see them both in '14 and '15. On by request tour in '14 the gigs that I've wanted to see had 2 songs that I haven't heard on previos 2 gigs (a week-two before the gig setlist was almost complete, there were no major changes on most of the gigs), and in '15 tour, reviewing the past dates and setlists I've come to conlcusion that the gig I'm planing to go to is going to have maybe 1 song that I haven't heard on previous gigs and I was right. So why would I pay big bucks to see almost "exactly the same" gig (same stage production, one different song in setlist) that I've seen 3-4 years ago? I've only did that once and was Roger Water's the Wall but that was a one off project and at least first time was in arena, second time on stadium. Metallica, being big as they are, should somehow confirm their "greatness" at least with the shows, if they're not putting any new albums. But last 3-4 year their tours were a complete boredom, atleast IMO.
