Bad Wolves – FIRST CONCERT EVER

In this First Concert Ever segment, John Boecklin of the metal band, Bad Wolves, talks about his first concert ever. You can check out the feature, after the break.

As a child, I had attended many mandatory concerts with my parents such as Jimmy Buffett, BB King, blues and folk festivals etc, but the first REAL concert that I chose to go to was Metallica June 11th, 1994 at the Great Woods venue in Mansfield, Massachusetts.

The concert was dubbed “The Shit In The Sheds Tour”, a massive outdoor summer shed tour at the tail end of Metallica’s “Black Album” tour cycle. Support came from Suicidal Tendencies and Danzig. A friend and I were one of the first to arrive up in the lawn and we were right up against that rail beyond ready for this. Metallica, in a nutshell, was my reason for living at this point.

I remember it vividly. They opened up with “Breadfan”, a cover song from the band Budgie. A deep cut 97 % of the audience didn’t know at the time but no one cared. This was right at the cusp of Metallica trying new things image-wise. Jason had shaved his head, Kirk new dreads, and James had a full-blown skullett. Although a lighter Metallica was on the horizon, this was a slam heavy set:

“Breadfan” (Budgie Cover)
“Master of Puppets”
“Wherever I May Roam”
“Harvester of Sorrow”
“Welcome Home (Sanitarium)”
“The God That Failed”
“Kill/Ride Medley”
“For Whom The Bell Tolls”
“Disposable Heroes”
“Seek & Destroy”
Guitar Solo (Kirk Hammett)
“Nothing Else Matters”
“Creeping Death”
Bass Solo (Jason Newsted)
“Fade to Black”
“Whiplash”
“Sad But True”
“One”
“Enter Sandman”
“So What?” (Anti-Nowhere LeagueCover)

To me, it was like being in the room with Batman or something. These guys were so important to me and popular to the world it felt like they weren’t real people. Just superheroes. Certainly one for the books and never forgotten.

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