Robert Trujillo is boxin’ up his heavy metal history…
The 57-year-old half-Mexican American musician and songwriter and his Metallica band mates are giving fans a deep dive into their history with a new career-spanning portal, The Metallica Black Box.
The project will feature “memorabilia, photographs, sketches, clothing and footage straight from our personal collections, hoarded over the last 40 years,” according to the band.
“We’ve been incredibly fortunate to travel to all corners of the planet, meet so many amazing people, and do things we once only dreamed of,” said the band in a statement. “And when you’ve been around for 40 years, you manage to collect a few things! Along the way, the four of us have hung on to many keepsakes, photographs, articles of clothing, sketches, and so much more, stashing these items away in attics, garages, and storage spaces. But no more as we’re excited to launch The Metallica Black Box! Debuting with The Black Album Exhibition, The Black Box will offer an ongoing deep dive into every era of our career from the early ’80s garage days up to today and beyond.”
Years in the works, the band said they are now officially “unboxing” their collections to pull their favorite, most significant and personally meaningful artifacts in a collaboration with Inveniem and Definitive Authentic.
Among the promised features on the site — both virtual and physical — will be weekly livestream events, limited signed memorabilia and “progressively deeper” dives into their vaults.
More artifacts are slated to post before the end of the year as part of the Black Album Exhibition — a 30th anniversary celebration of the band’s self-titled album — and 2021 will bring new exhibits, including a 40-year retrospective and showcase of the many collaborations with graphic artists they’ve worked with during their four-decade career.
Among the items available to check out now are “The Snake Pit,” an homage to their most loyal fans that includes classic laminates, archival photos, fan-made t-shirts and illustrations by artist Heath Miller from their 1991-1994 Black Album era.
Introducing the #MetallicaBlackBox. Memorabilia, photographs, sketches, clothing, photographs, and footage straight from our personal collections, hoarded over the last 40 years, now available for you to experience.
Explore The Metallica Black Box ➡️ https://t.co/1tnV0bTJDp pic.twitter.com/ahu2MsmYqB
— Metallica (@Metallica) November 16, 2021