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Metal Hammer
Metal Hammer
Entertainment
Philip Wilding

"Whoosh! A big flame goes right up under me. My arm, my hand, burnt down to the bone. Hair's gone." Inside the night Metallica's James Hetfield caught fire - and Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose caused a riot

Tim Mosenfelder/ImageDirect via Getty.

Picture this: It’s August 1992 and Metallica are on a high, touring the Black Album, the record that would send them into the commercial stratosphere.

The band are crossing North America, co-headlining a travelling festival that’s monolithic in scope and style, accompanied by the day’s other hard rock behemoths, Guns N’ Roses. The 55,000-capacity Olympic Stadium in Montreal is sold out, and an expectant crowd have no idea what's about to unfurl in the following hours.

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