UPDATE, 10/10/19: Metallica have announced that they will headline all five of Danny Wimmer Presents hard-rock festivals in 2020, playing two separate headlining sets at each event, and 10 different set lists. Get the full details here.
ORIGINAL STORY: Metallica may be on a brief hiatus while singer James Hetfield gets help with resurfaced addiction issues, but that isn't stopping them from teasing a potentially big announcement for 2020.
The legendary thrash band recently launched a mysterious new site — metallicaxx.com — that contains only a gray countdown clock that's scheduled to hit zero on Thursday, October 10th at 12PT. Adding to the intrigue, several Danny Wimmer festivals, including Louder Than Life (see below), Aftershock, Welcome to Rockville and Sonic Temple, have tweeted cryptic "hacked" messages that say:
"The page you are trying to access is no longer under admin control. We've waited long enough. We've taken matters into our own hands. We will get what we want. It's simple. You have until 10/10 12PT to give us what we want or we leak server access credentials. You have 3 days."
Considering both Metallica's clock and the deadline from the festival "hackers" fall on the same exact date and time (not to mention some other proof from a code-snooping Reddit user), we wouldn't be surprised if the band is gearing up to hit the U.S. festival circuit next year.
The page you are trying to access is no longer under admin control. We’ve waited long enough. We’ve taken matters into our own hands. We will get what we want. It’s simple. You have until 10/10 12PT to give us what we want or we leak server access credentials. You have 3 days. pic.twitter.com/q3yOuGNsAN
— LouderThanLife (@LTLFest) October 7, 2019
Another clue that these two items are linked is the appearance of the "XX" at the end of Metallica's new website, as XX represents the number 20 in roman numerals meaning the title is most likely shorthand for "Metallica '20." Alas, nothing is confirmed yet and all these coincidences are merely hearsay at this point, but keep your eyes peeled for what's to come when the truth is revealed on Thursday, October 10th at 12PT.