You know you're at a Metallica concert in Jersey when...

James Hetfield(!), in a rare moment of warm and fuzzy, introduces the next song in the lineup as, "This is a song about Metallica," and half the crowd within ten feet of me, instead of freaking out in utter happiness that James(!) is in the same fifteen mile radius as them, replies, "No shit."

Is that New Jersey for you, or what?! I freakin' love these people.

For those curious/wanting to seethe in jealousy, I'm posting the setlist (including only one encore, due to strict curfew regulations in Newark) for the concert. And yes, I had an incredible time. And yes, James(!) is still hot. And yes, you'll notice that there weren't any songs played from Load, ReLoad, or St. Anger. Hmm...wonder if that was on purpose...

Favorite moment of the concert: James(!) crouched down on the floor of the stage, barely lit, playing the last chords of "Nothing Else Matters"... and then going straight into "Enter Sandman." Even the hard-core Jersey cynics lost their cool.

Lastly, for those Machine Head fans: I don't know their setlist (sorry, don't know their stuff well enough, don't throw your lighter at me) but they DID cover Iron Maiden's "Hallowed Be Thy Name." Which was just lovely, in a Machine Head kind of way.

SET LIST
That Was Just Your Life
The End of the Line
Ride the Lightning
For Whom the Bell Tolls
One
Broken, Beat & Scarred
Cyanide
Sad But True
And Justice For All
All Nightmare Long
The Day That Never Comes
Master of Puppets
Battery
Nothing Else Matters
Enter Sandman

ENCORE
Suicide and Redemption (partial)
Blitzkrieg
Hit the Lights
Seek and Destroy