Linkin Park‘s Mike Shinoda recently took a trip down memory lane, reflecting on the band’s experience touring with metal giants Metallica in 2003 as part of the acclaimed “Summer Sanitarium” package. Speaking with DJ EFN and N.O.R.E. on their “Drink Champs” podcast (presented by Revolt), Shinoda described it as one of Linkin Park‘s most memorable and successful touring ventures.
“That was one of the best tours,” Shinoda stated (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). “We did a tour with them. We’ve done a lot of shows with them, but we did a whole summer tour with them at one point, and it was — top three tours that we did with anybody.” The powerhouse lineup for that summer trek also included Limp Bizkit, Deftones, and Mudvayne, during a period Shinoda noted was “just at the end of like the ‘nu metal’ thing.”
Despite being in the middle of a stacked bill, Shinoda recalled Linkin Park rising to the occasion. “Since we were in the middle of the bill, it felt like we were underdogs a little bit, but we weren’t,” he explained. “We knew we were coming with a really big show, and just the performance — we were on fire. We just felt great. And the fans loved our music. And so every single one of those shows, we went in [and] we killed. It was just so much fun.”
A significant aspect of their success on that tour was winning over Metallica‘s notoriously tough audience for opening acts. Shinoda elaborated on this challenge: “I don’t know if you know this, but [Metallica] fans can be very rude to their openers. There was one show — this is a very common thing for their shows — their fans will show up and turn their back to the stage to the performer and put their middle fingers up, and they’ll throw beers at the stage while you’re performing.”
However, Linkin Park managed to avoid this hostile reception. “And we didn’t get any of that,” Shinoda confirmed. “It was incredible. They did not do that to us.”
While the “Summer Sanitarium” tour of 2003 is a fond memory, Metallica continues to command massive audiences worldwide with their current “M72” global tour.
Metallica “M72” Upcoming 2025 Tour Dates:
May:
- May 23: Philadelphia, PA – Lincoln Financial Field
- May 25: Philadelphia, PA – Lincoln Financial Field
- May 28: Landover, MD – Northwest Stadium
- May 31: Charlotte, NC – Bank of America Stadium
June:
- June 3: Atlanta, GA – Mercedes-Benz Stadium
- June 6: Tampa, FL – Raymond James Stadium
- June 8: Tampa, FL – Raymond James Stadium
- June 14: Houston, TX – NRG Stadium
- June 20: Santa Clara, CA – Levi’s Stadium
- June 22: Santa Clara, CA – Levi’s Stadium
- June 27: Denver, CO – Empower Field at Mile High
- June 29: Denver, CO – Empower Field at Mile High2
July:
- July 5: Birmingham, England – Villa Park
November:
- Nov 1: Perth, Australia – Optus Stadium
- Nov 5: Adelaide, Australia – Adelaide Oval
- Nov 8: Melbourne, Australia – Marvel Stadium
- Nov 12: Brisbane, Australia – Suncorp Stadium
- Nov 15: Sydney, Australia – Accor Stadium
- Nov 19: Auckland, New Zealand – Eden Park
December:
- Dec 3: Sakhir, Bahrain – Beyon Al Dana Amphitheatre
- Dec 6: Abu Dhabi, UAE – Yas Island – Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix
