The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria

The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria
Video by Megadeth, Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax
Released	October 29, 2010
Recorded	22 June 2010 at Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, Bulgaria
Genre	Thrash metal, speed metal, heavy metal music
Length	317:22
Label	Warner Bros. (U.S.) Vertigo/Mercury (Europe)
Metallica video chronology
Orgullo, Pasión y Gloria: Tres Noches en la Ciudad de México (2009) The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (2010) Quebec Magnetic (2012)
Metallica live chronology
Orgullo, Pasión y Gloria: Tres Noches en la Ciudad de México (2009) The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (2010) Metallica Through the Never (2013)
Slayer video chronology
Still Reigning (2004) The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (2010)
Slayer live chronology
Decade of Aggression (1991) The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (2010)
Megadeth video chronology
Rust in Peace Live (2010) The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (2010) Countdown to Extinction: Live (2013)
Megadeth live chronology
Rust in Peace Live (2010) The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (2010) Countdown to Extinction: Live (2013)
Anthrax video chronology
Anthrology: No Hit Wonders (1985–1991) (2005) The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (2010)
Anthrax live chronology
Caught in a Mosh: BBC Live in Concert (2007) The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria (2010)

The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria is a DVD/Blu-ray featuring live concert performances by Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax, collectively known as "the big four" of thrash metal.^[1] The event took place on June 22, 2010 at the Sonisphere Festival at Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, Bulgaria. Before its DVD release, it was shown at 450 movie theaters in the United States and over 350 movie theaters across Europe, Canada, and Latin America on June 22, 2010.

Critical reviews of the DVD were mostly favorable. Websites such as AllMusic and About.com were positive, though Blogcritics gave the DVD a mixed review. The DVD peaked at number one on the United States, United Kingdom, Austrian, and Canadian charts, and also charted on three other charts. It was certified gold in Germany, and provided Slayer with its first platinum certification.

Background and release

On Wednesday, June 16, 2010 at the Sonisphere Festival at Bemowo Airport in Warsaw, Poland, the "big four"—Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax performed together for the first time. The members of the four bands (except for Slayer's Jeff Hanneman) were first photographed together on the previous day.^[2] Their live concert, on June 22, was for one night only. Directed by Nick Wickham,^[3] the event was filmed and transmitted via satellite to over 450 movie theaters in the United States and over 350 movie theaters across Europe, Canada, and Latin America, including London's famed Leicester Square.^[4] Tickets were made available for around $20 at TheBigFourLive.com, which also listed the theaters where the concert was being screened.^[5] Delayed screenings took place in Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.^[2]

The film's contents and artwork were revealed on August 25, 2010.^[6] A limited-edition guitar pick was unveiled a day after the artwork was revealed.^[7] The European release was initially scheduled for October 11,^[8] but Metallica later announced on their official site that the European release would be pushed back to October 15, with an International release on October 18, and a North American release on October 19, 2010.^[9] On September 15, it was announced that a "super deluxe" limited edition box set would be released on the same date as the regular edition,^[10] and a 36-second video preview of the box set was released on September 17.^[11] In mid September, publication was postponed further to a European release on October 29, an International release on November 1, and a North American release on November 2, 2010.^[12] Four teaser clips from the video were released on October 12,^[13] and nine days later, Metallica's performance of "Sad but True", taken from the film, was released.^[14] A three-and-a-half-minute trailer was released on September 21, 2010.^[15]

The Slayer title card before the band's performance is the only one of the four bands that did not feature their official logo. In addition, all Slayer members (except drummer Dave Lombardo) did not participate in the 'Am I Evil?' performance due to lack of interest.^[16][17]

Event dates

Date[18][19]	City	Country	Venue	Boxscore	Attendance
June 16, 2010	Warsaw	Poland	Sonisphere Festival - Lotnisko Bemowo
June 18, 2010	Jonschwil	Switzerland	Sonisphere Festival - Jonschwil Degenaupark
June 19, 2010	Milovice	Czech Republic	Sonisphere Festival - Letiště Milovice
June 22, 2010	Sofia	Bulgaria	Sonisphere Festival - Natsionalen stadion Vasil Levski
June 24, 2010	Athens	Greece	Sonisphere Festival - Terra Vibe Park
June 26, 2010	Bucharest	Romania	Sonisphere Festival - Complexul expozițional Romexpo
June 27, 2010	Istanbul	Turkey	Sonisphere Festival - BJK İnönü Stadyumu
April 23, 2011	Indio, California	United States	Empire Polo Club	$4,793,768[20]	44,205
July 2, 2011	Gelsenkirchen	Germany	Veltins-Arena
July 3, 2011	Gothenburg	Sweden	Ullevi		56,000
July 6, 2011	Milan	Italy	Fiera Open Air Arena
July 8, 2011	Knebworth	United Kingdom	Sonisphere Festival - Knebworth House
July 9, 2011	Amnéville	France	Sonisphere Festival - Snowhall Parc
September 14, 2011	New York City, New York	United States	Yankee Stadium	$5,371,167[21]	41,762

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[22]
About.com	Positive [23]
Blogcritics	[24]
Jukebox:Metal	[25]

The album was received positively by music critics. Thom Jurek gave it four out of five stars in his review for AllMusic, and stated that "each [song] is incredibly energetic, clearly riding the crowd excitement of the event, and the performances are stellar without a lapse." He pointed to Anthrax's "Madhouse" and "Antisocial"; Megadeth's "Head Crusher" and the "Peace Sells/Holy Wars Reprise"; Slayer's "Angel of Death", "Seasons in the Abyss", and "Raining Blood"; and Metallica's "Fade to Black", "Creeping Death", "Master of Puppets", and "For Whom the Bell Tolls" as musical highlights, and described the encore performance of "Am I Evil?", in which members of all four bands perform, as "an historic high point."^[22]

In a mixed review for Blogcritics, Chris Beaumont summed up that "Watching these promo DVDs makes me want the Blu-ray that much more. The performances are great, the sets are great, and it is hard not to get excited about these guys taking the stage together. This is metal."^[24]

Chad Bowar, writing for About.com, said that the concert was "one of the defining moments and biggest events in recent metal history" and commented that the bands "can still put on a great show" despite their age. He distinguished the styles of each band, writing: "Anthrax has a more lighthearted, fun approach, while Megadeth is 100 percent business with very little banter and focus on the music. Slayer has a more ominous vibe, although their evil mystique has lessened over the years. Metallica were very inclusive, with James Hetfield acting as everybody's favorite uncle interacting with the crowd and taking time to soak it all in."^[23]

Charts and certificates

Charts Charts (2010) Peak position Australian Albums Chart[26] 71 Belgian Albums Chart[27] 73 Canadian Albums Chart[28] 3 Dutch Albums Chart[29] 75 Finland's Official List[30] 31 German Albums Chart[31] 4 Swiss Music Charts[32][33] 63 UK Music Video Chart[34] 1 US Billboard Music DVD Chart[35] 1

Certifications Country Certification Germany Gold[36] Australia 2× Platinum[37] United States 2× Platinum[38][39] Brazil Platinum[40]

Contents

• The DVD's contents can be verified by AllMusic and the DVD's notes.^[22][41]

Anthrax

DVD 1/BD 1/CD 1

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Caught in a Mosh"	Joey Belladonna, Frank Bello, Charlie Benante, Scott Ian, Dan Spitz	6:04
2.	"Got the Time"	Joe Jackson	3:42
3.	"Madhouse"	Belladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz	4:24
4.	"Be All, End All"	Belladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz	8:00
5.	"Antisocial"	Bernie Bonvoisin, Norbert Krief	6:37
6.	"Indians"/"Heaven and Hell (Ronnie James Dio † Tribute[42])"	Belladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz/ Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward, Geezer Butler	10:10
7.	"Medusa"	Belladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Spitz, Jon Zazula	5:53
8.	"Only"	Bello, Benante, John Bush, Ian, Spitz	6:46
9.	"Metal Thrashing Mad"	Benante, Ian, Dan Lilker, Spitz, Neil Turbin	3:27
10.	"I Am the Law"	Belladonna, Bello, Benante, Ian, Lilker, Spitz	8:14

Megadeth

DVD 1/BD 1/CD 2

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Holy Wars... The Punishment Due"	Dave Mustaine	6:33
2.	"Hangar 18"	Mustaine	5:04
3.	"Wake Up Dead"	Mustaine	3:44
4.	"Head Crusher"	Mustaine, Shawn Drover	3:18
5.	"In My Darkest Hour"	Mustaine, Dave Ellefson	5:26
6.	"Skin o' My Teeth"	Mustaine	3:14
7.	"À Tout le Monde"	Mustaine	4:28
8.	"Hook in Mouth"	Mustaine, Ellefson	4:39
9.	"Trust"	Mustaine, Marty Friedman	5:04
10.	"Sweating Bullets"	Mustaine	4:50
11.	"Symphony of Destruction"	Mustaine	4:15
12.	"Peace Sells"/"Holy Wars Reprise"	Mustaine	10:22

Slayer

DVD 1/BD 1/CD 3

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"World Painted Blood"	Jeff Hanneman, Tom Araya	6:26
2.	"Jihad"	Hanneman, Araya	4:31
3.	"War Ensemble"	Hanneman, Araya	5:09
4.	"Hate Worldwide"	Kerry King	3:11
5.	"Seasons in the Abyss"	Hanneman, Araya	6:24
6.	"Angel of Death"	Hanneman	5:34
7.	"Beauty Through Order"	Hanneman, Araya	5:11
8.	"Disciple"	Hanneman, King	5:07
9.	"Mandatory Suicide"	Hanneman, Araya	4:14
10.	"Chemical Warfare"	Hanneman, King	5:50
11.	"South of Heaven"	Hanneman, Araya	4:30
12.	"Raining Blood"	Hanneman, King	5:30

Metallica

DVD 2/BD 2/CD 4 & 5

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Creeping Death"	James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Cliff Burton, Kirk Hammett	8:11
2.	"For Whom the Bell Tolls"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Burton	4:29
3.	"Fuel"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett	4:15
4.	"Harvester of Sorrow"	Hetfield, Ulrich	6:18
5.	"Fade to Black"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Burton, Hammett	7:31
6.	"That Was Just Your Life"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett, Robert Trujillo	6:53
7.	"Cyanide"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett, Trujillo	7:16
8.	"Sad but True"	Hetfield, Ulrich	6:33
9.	"Welcome Home (Sanitarium)"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett	6:14
10.	"All Nightmare Long"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett, Trujillo	7:50
11.	"One"	Hetfield, Ulrich	8:34
12.	"Master of Puppets"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Burton, Hammett	8:06
13.	"Blackened"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Jason Newsted	7:58
14.	"Nothing Else Matters"	Hetfield, Ulrich	5:56
15.	"Enter Sandman"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett	11:08
16.	"Am I Evil?" (with members of Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer)	Sean Harris, Brian Tatler	6:05
17.	"Hit the Lights"	Hetfield, Ulrich	5:25
18.	"Seek & Destroy"	Hetfield, Ulrich	12:40

DVD Bonus Feature: DVD 2/ BD 2

Behind the scenes documentary backstage at Sonisphere, including interviews and "Am I Evil?" rehearsal footage.

Personnel

A complete list can be found at AllMusic.^[43]

Anthrax Joey Belladonna – lead vocals Rob Caggiano – lead guitar, backing vocals Scott Ian – rhythm guitar, backing vocals Frank Bello – bass, backing vocals Charlie Benante – drums

Megadeth Dave Mustaine – lead vocals, guitar Chris Broderick – guitar, backing vocals David Ellefson – bass, backing vocals Shawn Drover – drums

Slayer Tom Araya – vocals, bass Jeff Hanneman – guitar Kerry King – guitar Dave Lombardo – drums

Metallica James Hetfield – vocals, rhythm guitar Kirk Hammett – lead guitar Robert Trujillo – bass Lars Ulrich – drums

Production and assistance

Warren Lee – bass technician, guitar technician Michael Pearce; Philip Richardson – editing John Wedge Branon – engineer, production manager, tour manager David May – executive producer

Mark Workman – lighting director Doug C. Short and Scott Boculac – Megadeth audio Russ Russell; Andy Sneap – mixing Ross Halfin – photography Jim Parsons – producer

Chris Blair; Michael McGuire – pyrotechnics Mike Osman – sound technician Alan Doyle – stage manager Chris David – video technician

References

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4. Lye, Andy (2010). "The Big 4 Live From Sofia Bulgaria London screening Jukebox:Metal report".
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