After the June 2003 release of St. Anger, Metallica first made some festival and summer stadium appearances as part of the 2003 Tour rubric; those were the first shows to feature new bassist Robert Trujillo.
Drummer Lars Ulrich made a statement advising fans that the series was a continuation of the band's pro-taping stance which was taken in the 1990s.
[1] When Ulrich fell ill before the tour's Download Festival appearance on June 6, 2004, an assortment of temporary fill-ins were recruited, including Slayer's Dave Lombardo, Slipknot's Joey Jordison, and Flemming Larsen, Ulrich's drum technician.
[2] The tour was especially popular in Scandinavia, where stadium dates were held and caused Metallica's entire back catalogue to appear on the record charts.
[3] The following setlist was obtained from the June 13, 2004, concert, held at Olympiastadion in Munich, Germany.