Metallica Sphere Residency 'Life Burns Faster' Sets Eight October Dates, SiriusXM Presale Opens March 5
Metallica will stage an eight-show October 2026 residency called "Life Burns Faster" at Sphere in Las Vegas, and a SiriusXM presale for listeners begins Thursday, March 5. The announcement matters now because the run revives the band’s No Repeat Weekend format, brings an all-digital live rig that fits Sphere’s technical constraints, and opens general ticketing the following day.
Metallica Sphere dates and ticket timeline
The residency is scheduled for eight nights: October 1, 3, 15, 17, 22, 24, 29 and 31, 2026. SiriusXM listeners can access a special presale beginning Thursday, March 5 at 10: 00 a. m. PT and running through Thursday, March 5 at 10: 00 p. m. PT using code SIRIUSXM. Tickets for the general public go on sale Friday, March 6 at 10: 00 a. m. PT. Both two-night No Repeat Weekend packages and single-night tickets will be available when sales open on March 6 at 10: 00 a. m. PT. Ticket registration, pre-sale information, enhanced experiences and travel packages are available through the band’s official ticket channels.
Lars Ulrich on the Sphere’s opening night
Drummer and co-founder Lars Ulrich says the idea for a residency took hold during Sphere’s opening night. He has described a moment early in that show with U2 in 2023—"about 12 seconds in"—when he realized the venue presented new possibilities. Ulrich framed the residency as an opportunity to reinvent how the band interacts with fans live, saying they are "beyond excited" to share the project in six months’ time and are eager to "go next level. "
No Repeat Weekend and setlist plans
The Life Burns Faster run will continue the No Repeat Weekend tradition that began with Metallica’s 2023 M72 World Tour kickoff: on each Thursday and Saturday pairing during the residency, no songs will be repeated. The eight-show structure is billed to include both live staples and surprises drawn from across Metallica’s catalog, with expanded and reimagined material tailored to the residency format.
Sphere technology shaping the live experience
Promoters say the shows will be enhanced by Sphere’s immersive systems, including the venue’s high-resolution LED display that wraps up, over and around the audience, Sphere Immersive Sound that delivers focused audio to every guest, and multi-sensory 4D effects. Those technologies are presented as central to a "wholly unique and entirely new Metallica experience" that will involve band members James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo.
Guitar rig issues at Sphere — why Metallica is different
Other guitarists have faced challenges playing at Sphere because the venue’s design limits conventional loud onstage tube-amp setups. Past performers confronted that constraint in various ways: Bob Weir switched from tube amps to an amp modeler, John Mayer found a workaround to run his regular amp setup, The Edge used Universal Audio UAFX pedals, and Trey Anastasio buried amps off-stage during Phish’s run. Metallica arrives with an existing all-digital live rig—having switched to Axe-Fx around 2013—which should allow the band to integrate smoothly with Sphere’s quieter onstage environment and the venue’s audio systems.
Production partners, fan programming and extras
Life Burns Faster at Sphere is produced by Live Nation and presented by inKind. inKind is described as a dining rewards and restaurant financing platform that offers diners special offers and credit back when they use the app to pay at thousands of top-rated restaurants nationwide and provides financing to participating restaurants aimed at improving sustainability and success; fans can learn more on inKind’s website. SiriusXM will complement the rollout with exclusive programming: "Tallica Talk, " a new monthly call-in show on Maximum Metallica hosted by Spider Dan and Steffan Chirazi, will devote its premiere episode to the Sphere announcement on Wednesday, February 25 from 4: 00–5: 00 p. m. PT / 7: 00–8: 00 p. m. ET; listeners can call 844-TALLICA to share stories.
What makes this notable is that the residency blends a strict no-repeat setlist practice, immersive venue technology and a band already adapted to digital rigs—elements that together alter both production logistics and audience expectations for a major live run at Sphere.
