DESPITE BEING one of the bitterly coldest, iced-over cities in America on this particular December evening, a few thousand hardy Kansas Citizens have braved the elements in the hope that three California bands have brought some of the sun with them. While most of the fans are wearing Papa Roach clobber, they still begin chanting Linkin Park's name five whole minutes before the band can even make their way to the stage.

Linkin Park mix hip-hop beats with melodies that lodge in your medulla oblongata like an axe. The opening two songs aren't even their strongest work- 'A Place for My Head' and 'Forgotten'- but they rapidly turn the floor in front of the stage into a churning whirlpool of flesh. Guitarist Brad Delson, wearing huge headphones to monitor the sound, watches the crowd with an admiring eye, as vocalists Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda hop and skip around him, gesticulating madly.

Chester, as ever, is possessed of a shockingly clear and piercing cry. While Linkin Park's music has clever touches that delight- the ambient piano intro supplied by Joseph Hahn on 'In the End,' for example - when Chester's allowed to scream to his heart's content, he's the star of the show. Such tunes as 'With You' and 'Runaway' in particular reveal why this band is America's hottest young bands of the moment.

*webmaster note:.....left some stuff out here that was about papa roach

...After all the excitement of the first two acts,all that's left is for Papa Roach to come in and clean up. Unfortunately, Coby Dick and company aren't quite up to the level of tonight's support groups.