James Hetfield Visits Melbourne Mural Honoring Cliff Burton: ‘An Old Friend’

Metallica frontman James Hetfield has visited a sweet tribute to original bass player Cliff Burton, as the band’s Australian tour continues.

The Enter Sandman hitmakers are currently in Melbourne to perform at Marvel Stadium on Saturday night.

Ahead of the anticipated performance, James headed to Melbourne’s iconic AC/DC Lane, where a mural depicting the band’s founding bass player was being completed.

An image posted to Metallica’s official Instagram page showed James standing proudly next to the mural next to one of its creators.

The mural showed Cliff set against a lightning backdrop and the names of the artists – Maid (Liquid Pastels) and Ling written in Metallica’s iconic font.

‘Visiting an old friend in Melbourne,’ James captioned the image. ‘Fantastic mural.’ 

Cliff Burton was a founding member of Metallica and played on the band’s first three studio albums – Kill ‘Em All, Ride The Lightning and Master of Puppets.

He was tragically killed in 1986 in a bus crash in Sweden while the band were on tour.

The iconic bass player was replaced by Jason Newsted, who served in the role until 2001 before being replaced by Robert Trujillo in 2003.

The post was met with a flurry of comments from Metallica fans, with many praising the artwork.

One fan chimed in with: ‘Even after nearly 40 years, the members of Metallica are still commemorating a lost brother in the most beautiful way. 

‘I truly respect them because they reminded us how important friendship is.’

A trip to AC/DC lane would not be complete without paying homage to iconic frontman Bon Scott.

And James did exactly that, sharing an image that showed him offering up a ‘devil horn’ salute to a bust of the Oz rock legend that takes pride of place in AC/DC lane. 

‘Love James’ fan worship, he’s just one of us,’ one fan commented, while another added: ‘Legends recognising legends.’   

It comes after fans of the metal gods made shocking claims about drug use during the band’s Perth show earlier this week.

Fans took to social media following the show to express their disgust at fellow fans who were allegedly using illegal drugs in the crowd.

Many posted on Reddit claiming they witnessed fans taking methamphetamine, marijuana, and DMT (Dimethyltryptamine) during the band’s set.

‘Whoever was smoking shard [slang for methamphetamine] in the pit at Metallica, seriously get a life,’ one fan wrote.

‘You’re surrounded by about 20,000 other people, including kids, who are trying to enjoy a night out. Take your pipe and shove it up your a***, moron.’

A second claimed that they had also witnessed concertgoers imbibing illicit drugs.

‘We had a woman crouch down before Metallica in GA1 and light a pipe, and it was like a beacon for all the derros to shuffle over and ask for a blow,’ they claimed.

A third agreed, adding: ‘The meth problem in Perth is out of control, and to do that at a crowded concert puts all the people around them at risk. That’s disgusting behaviour.’

Meanwhile, two men were charged after committing a dangerous act at the anticipated gig.

A 20-year-old man from the Bunbury suburb of Carey Park and a 23-year-old man from Australind allegedly scaled the central tower inside the stadium during the band’s set.

The two men have been charged with a trespass offence and have been summoned to appear in court on a later date.