After a month and a half of touring, Trapt, Chevelle and Nickelback--three of rock's biggest bands--slammed into South Florida on March 15 with all the force of a monster truck. This chart-topping trio took on a capacity crowd at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and they left an explosively entertaining evening in their wake.

       But with so much loud rock back to back, it was miraculous that the evening hardly ever fell flat. Each band seemed to have worked hard to distinguish their brand of rock and that effort really maintained the concert's dynamics. It kept the crowd from getting tired out by redundancy.

      California rockers Trapt opened the show with thundering enthusiasm and a nicely honed, controlled sound. Playing on a simple black-curtained stage, the band's thick music sounded literally like the radio turned way up as hits like "Waiting" and "Stand Up" blared through the walls of speakers.

      During the set's final song, "Headstrong," singer Chris Brown jumped onto the guardrail and dangled inches above the fans, shaking hands and singing the song's words passionately. Meanwhile, guitarist Simon Ormandy, bassist Pete Charell and drummer Monty ripped into the song's ending with an impromptu jam that was matched by the madly flickering strobe lights. It was a blistering ending that those people who were still out in the lobby waiting for Nickelback shamefully missed out on.

      It was a hard act to follow and Chevelle did the best they could with their eerie alternative metal. The most intriguing aspect of the band was their stage set up in which all the instruments were laid out side by side as if to visually compensate for their three-member band. It also reflected how surprisingly loud and heavy they were as a three-piece.

      Overall, their performance was mixed. They were a band of few words and they weren't very visually exciting either. While plowing through hits like "The Red," "Closure" and a new song "Humanoid," skinny singer Pete Loeffler bent his body like a snake while striking his guitar, which made brother/drummer Sam Loeffler and bassist Dean Bernardini look like stiff hulks next to him.



      Still they retained the core of their music: no one could decipher the lyrics of Pete's breathy vocals or meaty screams and the music was as messy and brooding as ever. It was a welcome departure from Trapt's more direct, controlled sound and a good transition into the show's headliner.

      With every seat now full, a slow heartbeat began to pulse through the speakers. Its pace quickened and with a huge explosion the stage's black curtain dropped, revealing Nickelback playing the opening riff to "Animals." What followed was a drastic change from the rest of the show, which was tame in comparison: red and white lights zoomed across the venue; streaks of fire shot up inches away from drummer Daniel Adair; and fireworks accented parts of the songs.

      Nickelback's blend of blood-boiling rock and catchy hooks was unapologetically boisterous; they must have played almost every hit they ever had that evening, including "Leader of Men," "Someday," "How You Remind Me" and "Figured You Out." Singer Chad Kroeger, who was talkative and confident, really enjoyed himself on stage and Adair, guitarist Ryan Peake, and brother/bassist Mike Kroeger all poured their passion into their instruments.



      The band also made their performance engaging on variour levels: they shot free shirts at fans using cannons; they paid tribute to the late Dimebag Darrell with their song "Side of a Bullet" and an accompanying montage; for the song "Photograph" they showed real photos from the band's past; and they even played a medley of riffs from their first album for the die-hard fans.

      On the whole Trapt, Chevelle and Nickelback proved to be a good rock grouping, as they complemented each others' sounds. They know how to put on an exciting, vibrant show and will hopefully keep the same energy throughout the rest of their tour.

      Email Raph your thoughts: outloud@outloud.com