Metallica has divulged the schedule of its first North American tour in more than four years, which represents a huge pause, especially for their U.S. and Canada fans. The band will get the tour underway on October 21, in support of their upcoming album, “Death Magnetic,” due for release on September 12.

According to an official announcement on Metallica’s Web site, the four band members will kick off the greatly expected nationwide tour in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona and will end their circuit in Newark, N.J., on January 31. However, the hard rock band will take a three-week break over Christmas holidays. James Hetfield and his colleagues will also perform in other cities including Des Moines, Denver, St. Louis, Houston, New Orleans, Seattle, Los Angeles, Boston and Chicago.

Ticketing information was not yet released and is likely to be announced later on, plus additional tour dates for next year. “Death Magnetic” is Metallica’s ninth studio album and the band has been working on the project for approximately two years.

The first single from the fresh album, “The Day That Never Comes,” is expected to hit radio later this month. Supporting Metallica throughout the tour to promote the new album will be doom metal group the Sword. In addition to this, other icebreakers at various gigs include Down, Machine Head and Lamb of God, as reported by E! Online.