By Larry Rodgers
The Arizona Republic

The current lineup (from left): Lindsey Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, Stevie Nicks and John McVie

Singer Stevie Nicks likens Fleetwood Mac to "a psychological encounter group times a million."

Guitarist Lindsey Buckingham calls it a "musical soap opera."

Bassist John McVie's marriage fell apart, and drummer Mick Fleetwood says he became a "cocaine monster" as Mac traveled the globe and sold 70 million albums.

McVie's ex, pianist Christine McVie, finally had enough of the circus and quit in 1998.

Call them crazy - a number of people have during the past three decades - but Nicks, Buckingham, Fleetwood and John McVie have thrown themselves into the latest incarnation of the band, the accompanying Say You Will album and a national tour that stops at Riverbend on Saturday.

Reinventing its sound - as it has so many times since the band began in 1967, from the early blues of "Black Magic Woman" to the upbeat pop-rock of "Don't Stop" - Fleetwood Mac's 2003 edition sounds heavier and more adventurous after the departure of the easygoing Christine.

And with the spotlight thrown fully on former lovers Nicks and Buckingham, whose romance also became a Mac-related casualty in the mid-'70s, the onstage tension between them is more pronounced than ever.

But beneath the egos and drama, it's clear that Mac co-founders Fleetwood and John McVie - as well as Nicks and Buckingham, who joined in 1974 - have rediscovered the treasure they've shared as an extended musical family.

"Everyone, in theory, has grown a lot, and everyone has worked out their issues to a certain degree," says Buckingham, who quit the band for a decade starting in 1987 for a solo career.

Both Buckingham and Nicks also say they're proud that the band is creating new music rather than simply playing its hits.

"I think this is some of the best writing that I've ever done," says Nicks, 55, describing the four songs she wrote at her home in January 2002.

"We all miss Chris, but we do see it as an opportunity to once again embrace the re-invention of the band," says Buckingham, 55.

The result is a more aggressive style on several tracks, including a booming attack on the media called "Murrow Turning Over in His Grave" and the sexually charged "Come," which both feature soaring guitar work by Buckingham.

Nicks and Buckingham unveiled bittersweet album-closing love songs, "Goodbye Baby" and "Say Goodbye," respectively, that were written years ago, after the two broke up.

Nicks, who has never married, says, "The great thing for the audience is that the passion and that incredible chemistry that we have always had is still totally there."

Buckingham, a married father of two, agrees, to a point:

"I think what you're seeing now as intensity is certainly there, but it's almost as a reflection, and it's certainly based on friendship."

If you go

What: An Evening with Fleetwood Mac

When: 8 p.m. Saturday

Where: Riverbend

Tickets: $57.25, $97.25, $132.25 at Ticketmaster outlets, (513) 562-4949 and www.ticketmaster.com