How does a Metallica concert on Apple Vision Pro compare with a live show?

SINGAPORE – For a music fan, nothing beats a live concert. The next best thing is to watch videos of such events, and the outstanding ones are those that make you feel like you are up close to the performers.

That was the experience I had while watching the new immersive concert film by American metal titans Metallica on an Apple Vision Pro mixed-reality headset.

The 26-minute, self-titled work released on March 14 is a concert film on steroids. You get high-resolution, 180-degree views of one of the biggest rock bands in the world, captured by 14 cameras set up around a gargantuan, doughnut-shaped stage.

You not only get front-row views, but you are also onstage with them. Frontman James Hetfield looms over you in a resolution so sharp you can see the fibres on his clothes. Tilt your head down, and you see the concert set list pasted on the floor near his feet.

Turn your head to the left and right, and you see lead guitarist Kirk Hammett or bassist Rob Trujillo roaming the stage of a packed stadium in Mexico City. Drummer Lars Ulrich has his dedicated camera and, as you look down, you can see a cup of iced water within his reach, and make out the details of his black Adidas sneakers.

You hear the sounds in spatial audio, a three-dimensional, surround-sound technology. Hearing it via the headset lacks a little punch – a metal show is meant to be loud and in your face, after all. But I was told that you can use Bluetooth headphones such as AirPods for a beefier sound.

You get to see the band perform only three songs from their four-decade-deep discography: speedy thrash anthem Whiplash (1983), power ballad One (1989) and signature song Enter Sandman (1991). Spliced between the performances are short monologues by the band members, as well as backstage shots.

This is not the first immersive music content made especially for the Apple Vision Pro. In November, Apple released a music video by Canadian pop star The Weeknd and a live studio performance by Brit Award-winning English singer-songwriter Raye made to be viewed via the headset. US singer Alicia Keys also recorded a performance for Apple Vision Pro, which was released in February 2024.

Unlike these three, Metallica’s film was shot at a concert, one of the band’s sold-out shows in Mexico City that took place in September 2024. Several times, the camera swoops over the passionate crowd and zooms in on their faces, and you cannot help but share their excitement.

I am very familiar with Metallica, having listened to them since my early teenage years.

Their first concert in Singapore at Indoor Stadium in 1993 was a transcendental experience, and their return show at Changi Exhibition Centre in 2013 was another highlight for me. I missed their 2017 set due to a family emergency, but I have been hoping that they would come back and include Singapore in their ongoing M72 World Tour.

So far, there has not been any word of the band coming here. In the absence of the visceral thrill of being at an actual Metallica concert, this short Apple Vision Pro experience will have to do for now.

The concert film is available only for owners of Apple Vision Pro, which has prices starting at an eye-watering $5,299.

But fret not, Metallica fans who do not own the headset can sign up for a free preview at the Apple Stores at Jewel Changi Airport and Marina Bay Sands, as well as in Orchard Road (go to

str.sg/5T3p

). This includes the full performance of the song Whiplash and a demonstration of the device’s mixed-reality offerings.