Metallica

Yes! Simply awesome.

I've been a fan of Metallica for many years, and I finally got a chance to see them live. It was fantastic. They are amazing musicians, and they really give it all when they play. Thursday night was no exception.

To be honest, I have actually seen them one time before. It was about 10 years ago, and for some crazy reason we spent the entire show walking around the venue. I was very unhappy about it, and have instead decided to pretend I never even went to that show. I don't even remember a single song they played.

When my friend Flynn told me they were coming, my first reaction was, "Let's spend whatever it takes to get the best seats we can!" Sadly, I later found out that the show was on the same night that I was planning a trip to Dallas. Dilemma! I thought about it briefly, but it really was no contest; the trip would have to wait. We were doubly lucky in that we were able to get amazing seats for an amazing price.

The concert was held at the Toyota Center, where the Rockets and Aeros play. It's a great arena, because it feels much smaller than it is. The stage was in the middle, and the band played in the round, walking all around to give each side a good view. The drummer, Lars Ulrich, had a platform that rotated after every 5-6 songs. Our seats were on one side, nice and low, with a phenomenal view.

You can click here for the Chronicle's review, so I won't bother listing the songs or any of that. Suffice it to say that it was incredible. Did it break into my Top Five Concerts ever? Probably not, but it's definitely in the Top Ten. They really put their all into the show. The vitality and talent that pours from the stage just has to be experienced.

One thing I found amusing, however. Towards the end of the concert, they brought the house lights up and played in full view. No spotlights, no lasers, no smoke, just a group of guys rocking out. Then for fun, they dropped over a hundred giant black beach balls from the ceiling into the crowd. It was great! Just silly, really, but it looked cool and it was fun to bounce the balls around. For about a minute. Then people started holding them. What's the point of that? I mean, these things are pretty huge, about four or five feet in diameter. What in the world are they gonna do with a souvenir like that? Can they even get it in their car? But typical of people these days, rather than continuing to bounce them around for everyone to enjoy, they had to grab it for themselves. I'm sure the next morning they think to themselves, "What the hell am I gonna do with this thing now?"

And no, I didn't get one.