METALLICA's LARS ULRICH: It 'Would Be Great' To Play OZZFEST One Day

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich has commented on the rumors that the band will headline this year's Ozzfest alongside special guests SYSTEM OF A DOWN. In a March 2, 2006 video update posted on The Metallica Club (official METALLICA fan club) web site (and subsequently obtained by BLABBERMOUTH.NET),Ulrich said about the group's upcoming touring plans, "I can tell you that pretty much everything that I know about is already announced — there's not super-secret things being planned out in some warroom somewhere about all these other tours and all this other stuff. There's one or two other things that's brewing but it's not like big tours or anything… It's pretty much all been announced. There's the rumor about the Ozzfest… Everybody thinks we're playing Ozzfest, which, I mean, would be a great thing one day — or a fun thing [to do] one day — but it hasn't shown up my radar [yet]."

As previously reported, sources close to METALLICA have told Launch that the band will not play any U.S. shows this summer, despite speculation that the group would either headline Ozzfest or mount its own stadium tour. While METALLICA is playing three concerts in South Africa later this month and has a string of European festival appearances lined up for June, its schedule has been empty for the rest of the summer, leading to rumors of some sort of U.S. jaunt. However, the sources say that the band will enter the studio in July with producer Rick Rubin to begin recording its ninth studio album.

METALLICA will make its South African debut on March 18, March 21 and March 25 as part of a massive music festival called the Coca-Cola Colab Mix.

The band's June festival itinerary includes stops in Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and the U.K.

METALLICA announced last month that it will record its new album with Rubin, who has worked with SYSTEM OF A DOWN, SLIPKNOT, the RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS, AUDIOSLAVE and others.