See Metallica Destroy The O2 Arena

Metallica performed their second triumphant show in five months at the O2 Arena last night in front of a 20,000 sell-out crowd.

The rock titans held their Death Magnetic launch party at the venue last September, but last night, as part of their sprawling global tour, fans were treated to the full show with pyrotechnics, tilting giant coffins and more.

Arriving on stage in pitched darkness with only green strobes permeating the arena, the band quickly launched into the voluminous Death Magnetic track 'That Was Just Your Life', with just solitary lights shining on the four band members.

The lights went up at the finale of the track, with a beaming James Hetfield telling the crowd “London, it's your night!”

Perfectly balanced, the bulk of the set mixed old classics such as 1984's 'Creeping Death' and their ... And Justice For All monolith 'One' with new songs like 'Cyanide' and 'All Nightmare Long' which are already classics within the band's arsenal.

In the round, the band were permanently switching positions on the stage, with the ever-spitting Lars Ulrich sitting on his rotating drum kit.

James Hetfield was typically entertaining throughout welcoming 'Metallivirgins' to the “Metallica family” and warning the crowd before an emphatic 'Master Of Puppets' “We're gonna play some heavy shit, can you handle it?”

Despite the strength of the early set, the best was undoubtedly saved for the finale.

After dispatching the poignant rock ballad 'Nothing Else Matters', old favourite 'Enter Sandman' turned the crowd into a fervour.

Already past the presumed 11pm curfew, they returned for a three song encore that featured a relatively rare outing of Garage Inc track 'Too Late Too Late' and Kill 'Em All's 'Phantom Lord' plus the devastatingly brilliant ultimate song 'Seek and Destroy', which saw the room once again showered in giant Metallica beach balls.

CLICK HERE to see the show in awesome photos.

The set-list was as follows:

That Was Just Your Life
The End Of The Line
Creeping Death
Holier Than Thou
One
Broken, Beat And Scarred
Cyanide
Sad But True
Turn The Page
All Nightmare Long
The Day That Never Comes
Master Of Puppets
Damage Inc.
Nothing Else Matters
Enter Sandman

Too Late Too Late
Phantom Lord
Seek and Destroy