Relive Metallica's 2006 Performance of 'Master of Puppets' Album

After two months off the road, Metallica returned to the stage on June 3, 2006, in Nürburg, Germany, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the release of Master of Puppets at the Rock am Ring festival. It was a huge show with two encores and 19 songs that not only covered the entirety of Master of Puppets, but plenty of other albums from Metallica's career.

Because of the Master performance, there were plenty of "firsts" at the show, too, including the first time "Disposable Heroes" was played in Europe in nearly 13 years, the first time "Orion" was ever performed live in full and the first time the whole album had ever been performed.

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The next day, June 4, they traveled to Nuremberg to perform at Rock im Park, and once again, they performed Master in full. Two days later, on June 6—yes, 6-6-06—they found themselves in Berlin performing at the Waldbühne theater and they decided to pull out the legendary album for another night of celebration.

During the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Metallica launched #MetallicaMondays, sharing full concerts online for fans to enjoy in the safety of their homes. The June 6, 2006, concert was part of that series and you can check it out in the video below.

Watch Metallica's Full Live Show in Berlin, Germany on June 6, 2006

It was another massive, 19-song, two-encore set, this time including a cover of The Ramones' "Commando"—openers Avenged Sevenfold helped out with the background vocals—as well as the debut of a brand-new song. Fans may recognize the new song, in part, as "The End of the Line," which would come out a couple of years later on Death Magnetic. "We don't even have a title for it," James Hetfield said, which was met with tremendous applause.

Fans can stream and download Metallica's shows from 2006—including the previously mentioned Germany gigs—at LiveMetallica.com and via nugs.net.

10 Facts About Metallica's 'Master of Puppets' Only Superfans Would Know

In so many ways, Metallica would never be the same after Master of Puppets hit the streets on March 3, 1986.

Because fans already know a lot about the record—like how the title for "Leper Messiah" was inspired by lyrics to David Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust" or that "The Thing That Should Not Be" has roots in H.P. Lovecraft's writings—we decided to dig deep into the history of Master of Puppets to pull out 10 facts that only superfans would know.

Some of Our Favorite Live Photos of James Hetfield

Covering nearly 20 years of performances, the below photos display why James Hetfield is one of the best frontmen in rock and roll.

Each shot shows his raw energy, intensity and overall fun spirit at Metallica's live shows. If a photo is worth a thousand words, we know these shots are worth thousands of Hetfield's growls.