Guitar Journal: Metallica Residency at Sphere
Robert Keeley may have created a Vape Pedal and Schecter has a new metal-topped model
3,7 / 5,0 | 
This week, we check out the news that a possible Metallica residency at the Sphere is looking more and more likely. Then we talk about the Keeley Vapor Drive that doubles as a weed vape and may never see the light of day. Finally, we check out the new metal-topped Ultra Przym Mercury Rose from Schecter Guitars.
Guitar Journal
Metallica Residency at Sphere
Rumors have been circulating for a while now about a potential Metallica residency at the Las Vegas Sphere, following successful runs by U2 and Dead & Company.
Several sites and YouTube channels have been circulating the rumour since the end of 2024, and now an interview with Lars Ulrich appears to potentially support these claims.
Lars Ulrich Interview
According to Vital Vegas, the band was close to “inking a deal.” Now, in a conversation with Howard Stern, drummer Lars Ulrich has weighed in on the situation, providing an update on the talks.
“I’m not going to confirm anything, because there’s nothing to confirm,” “But I’m not going to deny it, because we’re all such fans of this venue.” “All of our managers and our production people have been there and looked at it. It’s something that we’re considering, [but] nothing is etched in stone or green-lit. It’s something that we’re looking at at some point when the 2026 tour is done.”
“I would fucking love to do it, let there be no question about it. It’s not signed, sealed, and delivered, but speaking to me and asking my opinion, I would fucking love to do it.”- Lars Ulrich in an NME interview.
Thrash Titans
Looks like the Thrash Titans could be the next super act to play this amazing venue, and I’m guessing they could sell it out every night for a very long time.
Below are links to Metallica’s home page and The Sphere, so be sure to check both, as news could break soon if the rumours turn out to be correct. Watch this space as I think this could be huge news if it all does come to fruition!
Keeley Vapor Drive?
Robert Keeley, the founder of Keeley Electronics, has invented a new drive pedal called the Vapor Drive that doubles as a weed vape. The new stompbox is detailed in a conversation in the latest issue of Guitar World.
“I have a pedal that you can smoke/vape weed/THC out of. It’s the first rechargeable pedal, and it produces the most amazing distortion.” – Robert Keeley
Dank Side
However, Keeley is unable to sell the pedal online due to restrictions on the sale of vaping products and weed. I wrote a few years ago about his Custom Shop Dank Side pedal on my blog, which was a weed-inspired, highly limited run of the Dark Side pedal.
The Dark Side is a Pink Floyd-inspired fuzz, modulation, and delay pedal combined into a compact unit. But alas, it has no vaping functionality.
At the time, he described it as a “skunky funky matte green case and paired it with grandaddy purple knobs and a black/purple graphic to round out the look.”
However, this Vapor Drive takes that weed theme even further!
Maybe one day it will go into production and offer inspiration to musicians worldwide.
Ultra Przym Mercury Rose
Schecter Guitars has unveiled the Ultra Przym Mercury Rose, and it has a mahogany body with an anodized aluminium top. This is similar in look to the recent Przym Palladium models, which came out in April this year. They are a bit like a Zemaitis, but with a more modern aesthetic and lots of bold red colouring.
It has a C profile neck with an ebony fretboard with “Mercury” inlays and a 12”-16” compound radius with 22 X-Jumbo frets, so it is built to shred!
Hardware includes a Hipshot hardtail bridge with a string-through-body design and a Graph Tech Black Tusq XL nut.
Schecter USA Pasadena
Pickups are a pair of Schecter USA Pasadena pickups with the Pasadena Classic in the neck position and the Pasadena Plus in the bridge position. These have a coil split accessed by a push-pull on the tone control.
It’s a unique design and will certainly stand out from the crowd of Strats and Telecasters in the world.
MSRP – USD 1999
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