New bassist Robert Trujillo stalked around like a mobile gargoyle, looking like a heavy metal themed wrestler. With the exception of his longwinded bass solo, his role seemed to be to force his band mates to rock more. And he succeeded. Lead guitarist, Kirk Hammett was the only one to regularly smile. Whether he was dishing out the wah-wah laced “Enter Sandman” or the mid-‘80s hammer-ons, he was the light amongst the darkness.

He wasn’t alone in being over the top. During “Fuel,” front man James Hetfield was surrounded by flames jutting through grates in the hi-tech stage. His intensity was more inward than Lars’ but it was still evident. The song list was almost totally devoid of songs from the recent St. Anger but no one was complaining at the liberal dose of well-known songs. “Wherever I May Roam” and “The Memory Remains” found the audience as fifth-member. They were shouting along so loudly that it sounded as if their voices were coming through the massive speakers. As a reward, the band pulled out the rarely performed “Leper Messiah” and its massive riff caused heads to involuntarily bang in time.