Wichitan Brian Vance came to see Metallica at the Kansas Coliseum on Wednesday night for a simple reason.
"It's how hard they play," said Vance, 28. "They take you right through it with them. I've seen them in concert before, and they always sell out."
Metallica didn't quite sell out the Coliseum, but the 8,700 fans who came to see the rock icons left happy after the band put together a two-hour-plus performance of past hits such as "Wherever I May Roam," "Fuel" and "I Disappear."
Interspersed among the hits were a few songs from the band's new album, "St. Anger."
Opening up for Metallica was Godsmack, which also played its repertoire of hits. Sully Erna, lead singer for Godsmack, said during the show that he was happy to be in Wichita, and honored to be sharing the stage with Metallica.
Erna got the crowd on its feet with virtuoso vocal performances on songs such as "Straight Out of Line" and "I Stand Alone."
"That was a good crowd," Erna said after getting off the stage. "It felt like it was packed while we were up there."
Cari Combs brought her son, Marcota Combs, 13, to hear Metallica not as part of a mother-son outing but because both are lifelong fans of the group.
"I started listening to them when I was a kid," Cari said. "I want to hear all of their songs, but if I could just hear one tonight it would be 'Master Of Puppets.' "
Marcota agreed with his mother.
"They're just so cool," he said. "I want to hear 'Master of Puppets,' too, but I really want to hear 'Human.' "
Metallica came out dressed in all black, with the exception of guitarist Rob Trujillo, who wore a black and white basketball jersey with black shorts.
Lead singer James Hetfield remarked on how long it had been since they played in Wichita.
"Wichita, Metallica is with you now, "Hetfield said before launching into "Wherever I May Roam."
The band played on a stage in the center of the Coliseum floor that rotated so all sides of the arena could see the band. The biggest cheers came when the band played "One" off the".. And Justice For All" album.
Drummer and co-founder Lars Ulrich interacted with the fans more than the other members did, several times walking over to the pit of people in front of him and shaking hands, sometimes making eye contact with people during songs.
"Wichita loves metal," Coliseum director John Nath said. "The excitement leading up to this concert was great. Metallica always puts on an incredible show."