Roger Daltrey w/ Paper Zoo
The Fillmore Charlotte
Nov. 22, 2009

The Deal: The Who’s frontman hits The Fillmore for two hours of music — Who songs and a couple of covers.

The Good: The night started out with the oddity that is Paper Zoo. The four-piece band from Los Angeles sounded like some kind of Floyd-Zappa conglomerate… but not the good songs. Combining vocals with harmonies that were falsetto and musical atmospheres, it was hard to get your ears around it. At least Zappa and Floyd had extreme proficiencies at their craft. I might give them a chance on CD, but the band’s live show seemed to be an odd fit — almost as odd as their collective haircuts.

Daltrey hit the stage shortly before 9 p.m. and immediately told the crowd this would not be a “Who show.” He was planning on playing a number of Who tunes in his own way, in addition to playing covers by people who have influenced him. He spent a good portion of the early part of the night telling stories between songs — sharing stories of John Entwistle, the meaning of the word “bollocks,” how he once tried to stop singing “Behind Blue Eyes” and the influence of Johnny Cash.

The set kicked off with an eight-minute rendition of “Who Are You” with Daltrey on the acoustic guitar that quickly set the tone of the night. He noted that he was trying out ear monitors for the first time and wasn’t sure how long they’d last. He said the band had always gotten their sound from the stage, but that Who guitarist Pete Townsend’s hearing problems had made the idea of ear monitors more appealing. After two songs, Daltrey pulled them out.

He did a stunning rendition of “Behind Blue Eyes” before tackling a few of the more obscure Who tunes — “Tattoo” and “Going Mobile” as well as covers of The Chieftans’ “Freedom Ride” and Little Feat’s “Gimme a Stone.”

It should be noted that one of his guitarists on this tour was Simon Townsend, brother of Pete.

This was Daltrey’s first official solo tour, though he had once played six shows back in the mid-1980s. For this outing, Daltrey said the band rehearsed for 10 days and are just out to have fun and keep his voice in shape, thus calling the tour, “Use it or Lose It.” He performed a short version of Bo Diddley’s “I’m a Man” which led into a brief version of “My Generation” into a full-on sing-along during “I Can See for Miles” which brought a big smile to Daltrey’s face, as he told the crowd it was one of his favorite moments of the night. Of course, “Squeezebox” and “Baba O’Riley” were toward the end of the night before the scheduled encore.

By the end of the night, Daltrey’s shirt was soaked in sweat and completely open. He did a brief tribute to Johnny Cash to kick off what was planned to be the encore. Daltrey never left the stage, however, and finished his set by thanking the crowd for all they’ve given him over the years.

The Bad: How in the blue hell did this show not sell out?!? It was Roger freakin’ Daltrey. Two hours of Who songs in a small club — when will that chance happen again?

The Verdict: By the time “Baba O’Riley” hit full stride, it sure as hell felt a lot like a Who show. At age 65, he’s still got it. Hopefully, it’s a sign of a tour next year, which Daltrey hinted at.

Setlist
Who Are You
Pictures of Lily
Behind Blue Eyes
Tattoo
Days of Light
Freedom Ride
Gimme A Stone
Going Mobile
I’m a Man>
My Generation>
I Can See For Miles
Squeezebox
Walk on Water
Young Man Blues
Baba O’Riley
Johnny Cash Tribute (I Got Stripes> Folsom Prison Blues> There You Go> Train of Love> Ring of Fire)
Naked Eye
Red, Blue and Grey
Without Your Love

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Neko Case w/ Deer Tick
Knight Theater
Nov. 18, 2009

The Deal: Neko Case zips through 22 songs during Charlotte concert, brings along Deer Tick.

The Good: The night opened with a 40-minute set by Rhode Island country-rockers Deer Tick. With a Cobain-esque growl in his vocal, singer John McCauley entertained with his songwriting as much as a few onstage antics — a series of broken guitar straps, a few beers consumed and the admission of being “high… … … on life.”

Neko Case hit the stage 10 minutes before 9 p.m. on her way to rolling through 19 songs during her set which ended around 10 p.m. She kicked off the show with “Things That Scare Me,” before drawing a round of applause at the opening notes of “Maybe Sparrow.” Her red hair flowing in a tangled mess, Case was laid back for the duration of the evening as her backup singer/harmonizer/co-hort, Kelly Hogan, made most of the small talk between songs.

Hogan’s voice added the right depth to the songs as Case continually changed up guitars — she was surrounded by six of them — or went without. Artwork of a large owl “held up” a screen where various videos played throughout the show — most of which fit the song at the moment.

The nearly sold-out show enjoyed every moment of Case’s first performance in the Queen City. She closed the evening with a three-song encore including a cover of The Shangri-Las’ “Train from Kansas City.”

The Bad: Deer Tick’s moments of grandeur with harder rocking songs would have been more fitting at Snug Harbor, The Milestone or even the Visulite rather than the seated confines of the Knight Theater. Even McCauley admitted that it was weird being the only people standing up, aside from the “ushers and usherettes.”

The Verdict: Case proved why she’s been the “critic’s darling” for years and it’s about time that others started to catch on. Once again, the Knight provided the perfect forum to showcase vocals and let Case’s poetic lyrics make their mark.

Setlist
Things That Scare Me
Maybe Sparrow
People Got a Lotta Nerve
Fever
Hold on, Hold On
I’m An Animal
Middle Cyclone
The Pharaohs
Polar Nettles
Deep Red Bells
A Widow’s Toast
Margaret vs. Pauline
Prison Girls
The Tigers Have Spoken
Favorite
Alimony
That Teenage Feeling
This Tornado Loves You

Encore
Vengeance Is Sleeping
Star Witness
Train From Kansas City

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Wolfmother w/ Heartless Bastards, Thenewno2
The Fillmore Charlotte
Nov. 3, 2009

The Deal: Reformed Aussie band hits The Fillmore for hard-rockin’ set, bringing along Heartless Bastards and Thenewno2.

The Good: Thenewno2 hit the stage at 7:30 p.m. with its five members currently on their first tour ever. You’d never guess it from the energy and performance the group offered. Singer Dhani Harrison, son of Beatle George Harrison, seems perfectly at ease on stage. After opening with the more melodic “So Vain,” the band often went off in noise directions while keeping within the fabric of songs for its 30-minute set.

Next up was Heartless Bastards out of Ohio. While I often have referred to them as being some kind of sleepy rock, their set last night tried to destroy those labels as they rocked their set for roughly 40 minutes. They may have been sleepy at Bonnaroo, but the band was wide awake on this night, performing their own brand of garage rock fronted by Erika Wennerstrom.

Wolfmother hit the stage without pulling any punches, kicking off their set with “Dimension” followed by “Cosmic Egg” and “California Queen.” Singer Andrew Stockdale has gathered up a solid band for the sophomore album and was sure to play plenty of material from both of the band’s albums, in addition to a few obscure songs. Their encore also included a Kate Bush cover of “Wuthering Heights” done on acoustic guitar. Stockdale duck walked, jumped, kicked and danced his way around the stage, appearing to have more fun in the smaller venue than he did just a handful of nights earlier on the main stage at the Voodoo Festival.

The Bad: Aside from the half-full venue, no complaints.

The Verdict: A solid rock show. Keep your ears and eyes on Thenewno2.

Wolfmother setlist
Dimension
Cosmic Egg
California Queen
New Moon Rising
White Feather
Woman
White Unicorn
Colossal
Sundial
Pilgrim
Mind’s Eye
10.000 Feet
In the Castle

Encore
Wuthering Heights (Kate Bush cover)
Vagabond
Back Round
Joker & The Thief

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The third and final day of Voodoo Festival got under way with blue skies and perfect temperatures hovering around 70 degrees. A few people were still wandering around in Halloween costumes, but most had returned from their post-zombie ways.

I made it to the festival grounds just in time to see The Pogues start their brand of Irish rock. Singer Shane MacGowan, in all of his toothless glory, slurred and stumbled his way through the set. Rumors of band infighting went unfounded – some people said there as a bandmate, Spider Stacy, who was escorted or left the stage, but all members could be see on stage at the end of their set.

While Shooter Jennings was on one of the side stages, the Fleur de Tease burlesque show got underway in the Bingol Parlor. Kind of like Big Mama D’s brand of entertainment in Charlotte, the ladies showed off their bodies with class and decorum.

Next up on the Voodoo Stage was Widespread Panic who offered up plenty of jams for their two-hour set. I’m a fan of the Grateful Dead, I’ve enjoyed a few Phish shows, but I’ve never been able to get into the ways of Widespread.

JJ Grey got the rock and soul going on the SoCo Stage. Grey is one of those artists who I just happened to see open for The Allman Brothers Band a few years back and has been on my radar – and CD player – ever since. He played a packed show at the Neighborhood Theatre last year and recently opened a show for Derek Trucks at the Belk Theater. Each time I see him, his guitar prowess seems to grow. It’s not that he hasn’t looked at ease on stage, but he pushes the sonic boundaries a bit further each time. He made play of use of a wah pedal and never made his way behind the piano, instead staying up front with guitar in hand.

In between sets on the SoCo Stage, Biz Markie was spinning brief DJ sets.

The Preservation Hall Jazz Tent got a decent crowd to witness the all-star jam being held with Tab Benoit, Cyril Neville, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux, Johnny Sansone and Waylon Thibodeaux.

When the Panic was over, The Flaming Lips were the final act on the PlayStation Stage and kicked it off in typical hamster-ball fashion. Singer Wayne Coyne rolled out into the crowd before being set free during “Race for the Prize.” Confetti showered the crowd as the band played a set of old and new songs, including a few from Embryonic.

For a brief time, early in the hour-and-15-minute set, Coyne was joined by a naked woman. Apparently, one of the dancers on the side of the stage decided to strip down and jump happily naked with Coyne, who laughed and gave her a hug. The woman got dressed back in her costume and danced the evening away.

The Lips’ set contained the usual suspects – “Yoshimi,” “Do You Realize?” and “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song.”

Shortly after the final confetti had dropped onto the crowd, Lenny Kravitz took the stage for a nearly two-hour set to wrap up the weekend. With the 20th anniversary of Let Love Rule this year, it’s no surprise that Kravitz kicked off his set with “Freedom Train.”

Getting funky and ripping plenty of riffs, Kravitz mixed it up with the fast and slow songs – “Ain’t Over Til It’s Over,” “Mr. Cab Driver,” “Mama’s Child” and “Believe.”

While Robert Randolph was on the Soco Stage performing a tribute to Michael Jackson with covers of “Gotta Be Starting Something” and “Man in the Mirror,” Kravitz was letting his horn players freestyle.

Kravitz ended his set with a swarm of hits – “Mama Said,” “American Woman,” “Fly Away,” and “Are You Gonna Go My Way” – before coming back for an extended encore song, “Let Love Rule,” while being joined by New Orleans’ own Trombone Shorty.

Overall, it was an exhausting weekend, but aside from some rain on Friday night, one that had perfect outdoor concert weather. No heat of Bonnaroo to be found. It’s also some of the best festival food you can find – po boys, etoufee, gator nuggets, fish tacos, gumbo, jumbalaya… it’s almost worth the trip for the food alone.

On a funny side note, as I was walking around downtown New Orleans to get some lunch before heading to City Park, I ran into Jane’s Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins who was hanging around and checking out a marching band. Perkins was cordial and all smiles. Nice guy, if you ever see him around.

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If there was one can’t-miss day at this year’s Voodoo Festival, Saturday was it. I walked into City Park around 2 p.m. to catch the end of Dan Dyer’s set on the Voodoo Stage and things got progressively better for the rest of the day.

Mates of State were on the PlayStation Stage dressed like The Captain and Tennille, after all, it was Halloween.

All kinds of people were in costumes – from the sexy to the sublime. Couch potatoes, Waldo, hot dogs, the blockheads from Gumby and plenty of zombies. There was an effort at the end of the night to set a record for the largest gathering of zombies.

Next up on the Voodoo Stage was MuteMath, who played a good mixture of their two albums. Drummer Darren King walked out on stage for his regular ritual of duct taping his headphones on.

Standing out in the perfect 70-degree weather under blue skies, the band rifled through songs such as “Armistice,” “Chaos” and “Typical.”

Next up on the PlayStation Stage was Gogol Bordello and their brand of gypsy rock that got the crowd moving. Their energy is simply infectious and it’s difficult not to get moving as their grooves get going.

Wolfmother may have changed their lineup a bit, but Andrew Stockdale and the boys sure sounded like they’ve been together since day one. Be sure and catch them at The Fillmore this week if you get the chance.

Next up was the band I traveled all the way to New Orleans to see – at least, they were on the top of my list. Jane’s Addiction’s reunited original lineup hit the stage and proceeded to run through their classics for roughly an hour and 15 minutes. Starting with the mostly instrumental “Up the Beach,” the band covered all the bases, including the longer songs “Three Days,” “Then She Did” and “Ted Just Admit It.”

There seemed to be more interaction between singer Perry Farrell and guitarist Dave Navarro than with returned bassist Eric Avery, but the band sounded like they were in peak form for the duration.

Avery stalked the front of the stage during “Ain’t No Right” and the band returned for a two song encore of an acoustic “Jane Says” and the drum-heavy “Chip Away.”

Then it was on to the night’s main headliner on the Voodoo Stage – Kiss. As the curtain dropped, the quartet showed why and how they’ve been at the music game for 35 years. Their energy is high, and it’s all about performance.

Guitarist Tommy Thayer, who replaced Ace Frehley, did a fine job on guitar and his own years of experience with the band showed.

Gene Simmons constantly wagged his tongue and, of course, blew fireballs and found time to drool blood during his bass solo before rising up to the top of the rafters to sing “I Love It Loud.”

Paul Stanley always keep the crowd going and his vocals are still in great shape. Classic rock songs performed by the originators of a lot of what you see in concerts today. Their latest song “Modern Day Delilah” fit right in with the rest of the set. Stanley also flew out into the crowd to sing “Love Gun” from the top of a riser.

Wrapping up the festival today are The Flaming Lips and Lenny Kravitz.

Jane’s Addiction setlist
Up the Beach
Mountain Song
Ain’t No Right
Three Days
Whores
Then She Did
Been Caught Stealing
Ocean Size
Ted Just Admit It
Summertime Rolls
Stop

Encore
Jane Says
Chip Away

Kiss setlist
Deuce
Strutter
Let Me Go, Rock ‘N’ Roll
Hotter Than Hell
Shock Me
Modern Day Delilah
Say Yeah
Calling Dr. Love
She
Parasite
100,000 Years
I Love It Loud
Black Diamond
Rock And Roll All Nite

Encore
Shout It Out Loud
Lick It Up
Love Gun
Detroit Rock City

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The 2009 Voodoo Experience kicked off in New Orleans on Friday, and what started out as a hot and sweaty day quickly cooled off in temperature and heated up sonically.

Thanks to far walks, slow transportation and the help of a man in a golf cart, I finally got checked in around 3 p.m. and made my way out into the festival grounds at City Park.

It’s definitely a different setting, yet similar setup when compared to Bonnaroo. There are two main stages that are on opposite sides of a track. A few smaller stages are set out among the trees and pathways. Odd sculptures dot the landscape.

I caught a snippet of the set by The Vettes – rock fronted by a female, that sounded pretty good from a distance. Next up, across the way, was The Cool Kids who hinted at the hip-hop that was yet to come that night.

Alejandro Escovedo performed on the third largest stage and quickly showed off that the rock side of his latest album, Real Animal, is the driving force in his music these days. He had some furious guitar wars with his guitarist, David Pulkingham. This is the third time I”ve seen him recently and he’s definitely getting better and a little harder every time.

Janelle Monae was next up on the Voodoo Stage and quickly won over the crowd with her infectious rock-flavored soul. Dancing her ass off like a female James Brown, she also found time to slow it down for a vocal showcase of “Smile.” Just like at Bonnaroo, Monae finger painted a portrait of a woman’s posterior before launching it into the crowd.

As soon as Monae’s set was done, The Black Keys started up on the PlayStation Stage and the rains came flowing down to the cheers of the crowd. Frigid breezes cooled things off, but the Keys definitely heated it up for their hour-long set. They left the stage smoldering after ending with “I Got Mine.” For me, the highlight of the day.

Silversun Pickups brought things back to the Voodoo Stage in the musical volley that is the Voodoo Festival. Sounding less like the Smashing Pumpkins than I expected, the guys (and girl) hammered away at their first-ever performance in New Orleans. Though their set was almost canceled due to rain – during a later TV interview, the band said they were looking into doing a free show in town instead – the downpour slowed enough for them to warm the crowd back up.

Back over to the PlayStation Stage for the dual DJ work of Justice. For an hour-and-a-half the crowd bounced and swayed to the monotonous, incessant thumping of techno. Yep, I’m not a fan and don’t see the fun in watching two guys stand behind turntables. Visually boring, and sonically mind-numbing.

The highlight for many of the thousands in attendance was the headliner of Eminem who performed for roughly an hour and 15 minutes as he made his return to the stage after a five-year hiatus. He hit the stage to “3. A.M.” “Hey New Orleans, I’m back. Did you miss me?” Eminem asked the crowd. After a huge applause – “I missed you, too.”

His set mashed up a number of his hits as he quickly went from one song into another in a sort of medley. “We Made You,” “The Real Slim Shady,” “Stan,” “Kill You” and “Toy Soldiers” were big sing-alongs, as was his encore of “Lose Yourself.”

Eminem also brought out the guys from his band, D12 for “My Band” and “Purple Pills” after joking about “when he used to get high.” Welcome back, Eminem… I’m not a big fan, but it was an entertaining, head-bobbing performance.

Up on the schedule for Saturday – MuteMath, Gogol Bordello, Wolfmother and headlining sets by Jane’s Addiction and Kiss.

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Jewel w/ Meiko
The Knight Theater
Oct. 28, 2009

The Deal: Folker gone country artist Jewel brings along new sensation Meiko for acoustic/vocal showcase.

The Good: The show started out with MySpace recording artist Meiko taking the stage for a 30-minute solo acoustic set. Her music was in the same vein as Jewel and she quickly had the crowd laughing as she told stories of missing Chick-Fil-A since moving from Georgia to California and stories behind some of her songs about breakups — “Boys With Girlfriends” and “Real, Real Sweet.” Audience members broke up moments of silence between songs by asking where she was from and what label she was on, to which she replied, “Wow, this has never happened before. Is it question and answer time?”

Jewel took the stage flanked by two guitars and a large vase of flowers and proceeded to hush the audience with an impressive a capella version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” After the applause settled down, she told the crowd the story of growing up in Alaska and going to a local bar to sing and “hide in the bathroom” if the police showed up before singing, “Last Chance Rodeo.” The night turned into a “Storytellers” evening in a way as she often told stories behind the songs she was about to sing.

She took one request early in the nearly two-hour set, “Morning Song,” before stating, “I’m just your blonde jukebox for the evening.” Playing a variety of songs from all of her albums, including the “Cold Song” from the obscure Bits and Baubles disc, Jewel also entertained by performing a handful of songs from her upcoming disc, another country-flavored album due in the near future.

Some of the more well-known songs were given new life by changed cadences or tempos. “Hands” was slowed down a bit, “Down So Long” got a new groove, “Intuition” was slow and funky on the acoustic guitar and “Who Will Save Your Soul” was given a new treatment as well. The singer also made light of the fact that she “sounds like Kermit the Frog” on her first album and thinks it was the fear of being in a studio. She told stories of being homeless and shoplifting food to eat, as well as personal stories of family members.

The night ended with the lullaby, “Angel Standing By,” before doing one hell of an impressive yodeling showcase to close the encore.

The Bad: It was mildly entertaining when people were yelling out questions to Meiko and desired song titles to Jewel, but the rude comments that were also yelled from attention-getters from time to time weren’t necessary. I’m sure the people they were with were giving looks of “shut the hell up.”

The Verdict: The Knight Theater proved to be the perfect place, acoustically (in both ways), for vocals to shine. The setting gave the audience a clearer vision of the lyrics and the stories told often set up the songs perfectly. Jewel may have become a commercial success, but this evening was more about her songwriting and vocal talents than anything else. It was simply her and a guitar — no fancy lights or stage setting. It was all about the music.

Setlist
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Last Chance Rodeo
Near You Always
Morning Song
Down So Long
Life Uncommon
Hands
Stephenville, TX
Ballad of Rosie
Stronger Woman
New song (Stay Here Forever?)
New song (My Father’s Daughter)
New Song (Hole In My Heart?)
New song (Let Me Feel Your Love Again)
Cold Song
Intuition
Standing Still
Foolish Games
Meant For You
Who Will Save Your Soul

Encore
Angel Standing By
Yodel

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The Mars Volta
Oct. 22, 2009
The Fillmore

The Deal: Progressive rockers perform energetic hour-and-45-minute set for a crowd of roughly 700.

The Good: The band hit the stage and opened with “Inertiatic” and what seemed to be one never-ending song for nearly two hours after that. The music was fast, furious and non-stop for the duration as guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López picked, strummed and riffed his ass off.

Singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala hit every note and danced his ass off — kicking the microphone around, flipping the stand in the air, giving James Brown’s footwork a run for its money and simply being one of the most entertaining frontmen in music these days.

The band seemed to hit its peak with the mellow “The Widow” toward the end of its set, as most in the crowd sang along. Bixler-Zavala only addressed the crowd once, mentioning the band’s origins in At the Drive-In. “A lot of people weren’t happy when we started this band,” he told the crowd. “But life is about creating visions between the faithful and the morons.”

The Bad: The small crowd.

The Verdict: A visual and sonic experience that’s hard to describe, and a definite “must see.”

Setlist
Inertiatic
Goliath
Cotopaxi
Roulette
Viscera
Halo
Eunuchs
Ilvana
Teflon
Drunkship
Luciforms
The Widow
Wax Simulacra

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Social Distortion
Amos’ Southend
Oct. 21, 2009

The Deal: So Cal rockers make long-awaited return to the Carolinas.

The Good: Mike Ness and the boys hit the stage and opened up with “The Creeps” and never really let up from there. The nearly-packed venue was a mass of hands in the air, moshing, crowd surfing and singing along for the hour-and-a-half duration of the set.

Ness told the crowd at one point that he almost canceled the show recently. “I’ve been so sick recently I was this close to canceling. But it’s better to have a sick bear than no bear at all.” The band rifled through a number of early hits including “Sick Boy,” “Mommie’s Little Monster,” “Bad Luck” and their cover the Johnny Cash classic, “Ring of Fire.”

“Highway 101″ and “Prison Bound” appeared on the setlist but were passed over… the latter was replaced by “99 to Life” during the encore. The encore also included a song I wasn’t familiar with that included lyrics from a variety of oldies — starting off with “I don’t know what I’ve been told” and including a verse from Chuck Berry’s “Reelin’ and a Rockin’.”

Halfway through the set, Ness was enjoying the energy from the crowd and suggested that everyone in attendance take the next day off. “Who decided we should work five days and only get two off? That doesn’t make sense,” he told the crowd.

Of course they wrapped it all up with a massive sing-along to “Story of My Life.” Ness told the crowd, “We’ve been doing this for 30 years and it’s for two reasons. One – we’re stubborn motherfuckers. Two – we love what we do.”

The Bad: Amos’ lighting. Sure, maybe I’ve been spoiled by the fantastic lighting at The Fillmore, but rumor has it that even the bands think it sucks at Amos’. If band members walk to the front of the stage, they’re in the shadows. Hell, if they walk out from center stage, they’re in the shadows. For all these big name bands, people want to see them. Dark works at Snug Harbor and the Milestone — people expect more at bigger venues.

The Verdict: Ness was clearly impressed by the turnout of fans at the show. “It’s been a long time since we went to the Carolinas, but I’m going to make it a point to get back here real soon,” he told the crowd. For now, everyone left satisfied, but ready for more whenever they can get it.

Setlist
Creeps
Another State of Mind
Mommie’s Little Monster
Sick Boy
Don’t Let Me Down
Ring of Fire
Bad Luck
Reach for the Sky
Can’t Take It With You
Ball and Chain
Bakersfield
Nickles and Dimes
Sometimes I Do

Encore
Making Believe
99 to Life
Still Alive
? (Classic rock medley?)
Story of My Life

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Metallica
Time Warner Cable Arena
Oct. 18, 2009

The Deal: Metal veterans Metallica hit “The Cable Box” for a couple hours of mayhem.

The Good: Performing “in the round,” with their stage set in the middle of the floor, Metallica hit the stage at 9:10 and ripped their set open with the first two tracks off their lastest album, Death Magnetic — “That Was Just Your Life” and “The End of the Line.” The stage started off dark with lasers crossing the stage down from above, but things quickly got lit up from eight coffin-shaped light riggings overhead.

Colored pyrotechnic flames shot out of the middle of the stage during “One” as all four band members never stopped moving from one side of the stage to the other — occasionally stopping on drummer Lars Ulrich’s circular drum riser, or standing on top of the amps.

Singer/guitarist James Hetfield made his way from one mic to the next as eight were stationed around the stage. Sometimes lights shined up from his feet, as Hetfield often threw “Charlotte” into the lyrics and asked the crowd how they were doing on their energy levels. The “in-the-round” style made for very cool views of the crowd surrounding the band on all levels. Hetfield, whose vocals sounded as good as ever, often asked the crowd, “How does it feel to be alive?”

The band’s set focused mainly on the new album — playing six of the disc’s 10 tracks — but they also found time for some hits and obscure tunes as well. “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” “One” and “Sad But True” were no surprise, as was “Enter Sandman.” Hardcore fans were clearly elated by the addition of “Phantom Lord” in the encore.

Ulrich, playing a smaller drum kit than I expected — basically a standard kit with a few more cymbals and extra floor tom — was often seen pointing into the crowd and sticking out his tongue.

Hammett, the more reserved member of the group, wandered the stage shredding riffs on a number of guitars — his usual flying Vs, as well as a couple of Boris Karlov tribute models — one featuring Karlov’s face as Frankenstein and another with a Bride of Frankenstein motif.

Bassist Rob Trujillo is clearly “one of the guys” these days and, while he gets a bunch of crap for his “crab walk” around the stage, he really didn’t do it that much at this show. His soaked hair was whipped around and he appeared to enjoy every moment of being close to the crowd — as did the rest of the group.

“Master of Puppets” drew a good bit of crowd participation. “Nothing Else Matters” started with Hetfield on a stool alone on the stage singing the first verse and chorus before the rest of the band joined him. Musical interludes often were heard between songs as guitars were changed out.

The band kicked off its encore by paying tribute to Motorhead by playing, “Too Late.” It was followed up by “Phantom Lord.” While the band had everyone believing they were done and ready to walk off, they offered up one more with all the lights on. As the opening bars of “Seek and Destroy” began, dozens of black beach balls of all sizes dropped from the ceiling and bounced around the crowd.

The Bad: It’s just a beach ball, but people were literally fighting over them. The same thing happened at the end of the show when Trujillo and other band members threw picks into the crowd. I could have done without “Enter Sandman” which seems like the band’s “sell-out” song to me.

I’d love to tell you about the openers, but I was held out as a photographer and didn’t get into the arena until Metallica was on. Oh well, I’m not a fan of cookie monster vocals anyway.

The Verdict: Having been a fan since the early days, I’m glad they played stuff from Kill ‘Em All and Ride the Lightning. Fans could easily tell that the band is having a blast on stage… I caught them at Bonnaroo last year and there’s a big difference between playing for a bunch of people that don’t know most of your material and playing for a nearly sold-out venue full of your fans. Both fans and band appeared drained of all energy after the show.

Setlist
That Was Just Your Life
The End of the Line
For Whom the Bell Tolls
The Four Horsemen
One
Broken, Beat & Scarred
Cyanide
Sad But True
Turn the Page
Judas Kiss> Hammett solo
The Day That Never Comes
Master of Puppets
Fight Fire with Fire
Hammett solo> Nothing Else Matters
Enter Sandman

Encore
Too Late (Motorhead cover)
Phantom Lord
Seek and Destroy

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