by Kenneth Smith of 2K7 Photography

By the time the concert was finished, the stage was packed full, from the bands to the road crew, and everyone toasted and took a shot in honor of the local rock hero.

On the 3rd anniversary of Dimebag Darrell's death, Grand Prairie's Nokia Theatre hosted what would turn out to be a night full of heavy music, rowdy fans, and tributes to the late guitarist. It was one of multiple Texas stops on the current Killswitch Engage & Lamb of God tour with DevilDriver and Soilwork.

Following Swedish opener Soilwork, DevilDriver took the stage at 8:10 p.m. to an eruption of screams from the quickly-filling theater. As the band opened the set with "End of the Line" from the 2005 sophomore album The Fury of Our Maker's Hand the crowd immediately began forming a circle pit and crowd surfing. Towards the end of the set, vocalist Dez Fafara had the entire crowd get down on one knee and the whole venue went silent to remember Dimebag. It was truly an amazing site to see a crowd this big be so stunningly silent. Afterward, the show picked back up again as the band continued to thrash about onstage and shred through their songs to the fans obvious enjoyment. After closing the set with "Meet the Wretched" from their 2003 self-titled album the guys bid farewell to the Dallas crowd.

Virginia's Lamb of God emerged to the packed venue at 10:40 p.m. following an amazing set by Killswitch Engage that truly amped everyone up for the stellar performance that was in store. As vocalist Randy Blythe ran out onto the stage, the guys tore into "Hourglass" from the 2004 Ashes of the Wake album. A sea of extended arms and hands giving the metal horn sign could be seen as the house-lights flashed during the song. This truly was the best of five Lamb of God shows I have seen. I couldn't manage to find a single person sitting down in the filled venue. After announcing that the next song would be their last, they played "Black Label" from the 2000 New American Gospel album and the entire GA/Floor section opened up into a huge circle pit.

Once the song was finished, Blythe announced that a special treat was in store for the Dallas audience. After reminding everyone that this was the 3 year anniversary of the death of "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, Lamb of God was joined onstage by members of every band that played that night. With 3 full drum sets, countless guitarists, bassists, vocalists, and even Killswitch Engage's Adam D on Cowbell, the huge mass of musicians and their friends onstage performed Pantera's "5 Minutes Alone" as the crowed erupted in cheers and screams. By the time the song was finished, the stage was packed full of everyone from what seemed like band members, to the road crew and everyone toasted and took a shot in honor of the local rock hero.

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