Metallica won’t just be riding the lightning this summer in Europe.
The legendary heavy metal act will be taking electric and hydrogen trucks on the European leg of its ongoing M72 World Tour this summer, according to Jalopnik. The vehicles, which are built by Italian manufacturer Iveco, will ferry the band’s gear between 14 concerts across the continent.
For the second year in a row, Metallica’s caravan will be joined by Iveco’s battery-electric and hydrogen fuel cell heavy-duty trucks, the S-eWay and S-Way, as it travels between Munich, Warsaw, and Madrid. Although specs have not been made available, the former has an estimated range of more than 300 miles, while the latter has a range of 944 miles. Since last summer, Iveco has unveiled a new hydrogen-powered fuel-cell model with a range of 497 miles. It is unclear if that truck will accompany the band on tour.
The low- and zero-emission Iveco trucks and vans Metallica will use on the M72 tour
Iveco
Iveco won’t just be providing heavy-duty trucks for the band, though. Metallica will also make use of the automaker’s all-electric shuttle buses for on-site transportation at the different venues, which should help lessen its carbon footprint some while its on the road in Europe.
Metallica, as its most diehard fans will often remind you, is more than just a band. Because of this, each of the trucks accompanying the group’s caravan will be done up in a special livery inspired by the artwork for its most recent album, 72 Seasons. The grille of each vehicle is adorned with the same logo the act has been using since the early 1980s and the rest of the vehicle is finished in matte black with splashes of neon yellow.
This isn’t the first time the quartet of James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich, and Robert Trujillo have shown their support for environmental causes, or, at the very least, reducing its carbon footprint. Last year, the group became the first musical act to perform on all seven continents when it performed inside a dome near the Carlini Scientific Base in Antarctica. The band played without traditional amplification to reduce any negative impact on the local ecosystem, while the entire production was powered by generators that ran on a sustainable blend of jet fuel.
