Demi Lovato performs at the Masonic in San Francisco on Sept. 27, 2022. Mike DeWald/STAFF.

SAN FRANCISCO — While it remains to be seen whether this Demi Lovato current tour will in fact be her last, Tuesday’s performance at the Masonic would suggest the singer may want to reconsider. Lovato is on the road supporting her eighth studio album, Holy Fvck, a record dedicated to hard rock—and rock was the order of the day.

Even as fans filed in, songs by Knocked Loose, Rage Against the Machine and Deftones blasted over the PA. Cells phones shot upward as the room darkened, leaving a red-hued banner with an oversized cross and a silhouette of Lovato’s band members flashing in succession. Lovato emerged with a jagged black guitar, flanked by her band—guitarist Nita Strauss, drummer Brittany Bowman, bassist Leanne Bowes and keyboardist Dani McGinley.

Lovato leaned heavily on her new material at first, rocking her way through the title track along with “Freak,” “Substance” and “Eat Me.” Each one was a riff-heavy hard-rocker, the crowd screaming the lyrics right back at her, occasionally at ear-splitting decibels.

If there was any question as to how her new material would go over live, they were answered in the show’s opening moments. Demi Lovato was a ball of energy throughout the night, pacing from side to side and playing off of the stellar band; usually Strauss. She strapped on the guitar for “Confident,” which already had a rock personality and was made even better by adjusting the arrangement for a rock band to play.

“Who here remembers my first two albums?” Lovato asked early in the evening before launching into a trio of older tracks; “Here We Go Again,” “Remember December” and “La La Land.” The included a cover of Ashlee Simpon’s anthemic pop rocker “La La.”

The band’s contribution to performance was very significant. In playing the heavier music, Lovato seems energized, comfortable and confident. Bowman and Bowes held down a solid rhythm section while Strauss put on a guitar-playing clinic. She’s wisely used her time touring with Alice Cooper, and her performance was equal parts style and substance.

“This next song I wrote about being in love with my boyfriend, and then we’re going to play our song – so these next few minutes are very important for me,” she said. That song ended up being the Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris.”

Lovato and Dead Sara vocalist Emily Armstrong also performed their collaboration “Help Me.”

Demi Lovato performs at the Masonic in San Francisco on Sept. 27, 2022.

Songs from eras gone by, like “Sorry Not Sorry” and “Confident,” were reimagined to fit within a pop-punk and hard rock context, to impressive results. Lovato then again grabbed a guitar for “City of Angels,” before taking things way back for ballad “Skyscraper,” which showed her versatility as a performer.

“If anyone is going through what this next song is about, I see you and I love you,” she said before “29,” dating an older person when she was 19.

To close out her main set, Lovato and the band performed a stellar rendition of “Heart Attack,” which may have had the crowd at its loudest, and the equally hard-edged “Skin of My Teeth.” Lovato had been playing guitar on TV performances of the track, but put it away here; a good move that allowed her to capture the song’s intensity without being tied to a microphone stand.

Dead Sara performs at the Masonic in San Francisco on Sept. 27, 2022.

After a brief break, Lovato returned with a red Lzzy Hale signature guitar that TV’s Jimmy Fallon gave too her recently for “Happy Ending,” and a scintillating version of “Coil for the Summer.”

It was also wise for Lovato to bring along L.A. band Dead Sara as openers for this run. Emily Armstrong and company adeptly mixed punk and grunge, churning out memorable tracks with electrifying results.

Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald.