THE SET FOR THIS TOUR had originally been designed by the two visual artists in the band for the Metallica “Summer Sanitarium” tour of 2003. The lighting plot had originally been four simple straight trusses and the band asked for a refresh of the look without reconfiguring the set pieces on stage. With the help of a friend who moves heavy machinery in and out of challenging spaces (think an MRI machine on the fifth floor of a hospital using a crane) I devised a series of bent trusses, all hanging on 3 points. The centre three “L” shaped truss sections formed the bands logo of an L and backwards P. Peppered with strobes, Mac 2K wash and profile fixtures as well as a couple dozen of Robe’s first flagship profile fixture, the entire lighting grid would evolve in to different shapes throughout the show.

This tour marked the first time that I began wearing in-ear monitors while operating the lighting console as well as the first use of an LED wall by the band on arena tours.