Music As A Weapon Tour IV to help celebrate the opening of Hartman Arena • April 1, 2009.

Landon Taylor’s photography

Let me be frank. I am not “down with the sickness” and have no desire to understand what it is to “come on like a blood stained hurricane”. There are thousands, on the other hand, who would beg to differ with me and are stoked. The multi-platinum-selling and monkey-sound-making Chicago quartet Disturbed will be bringing the fourth installment of their Music as a Weapon tour to what will be the newly opened Hartman Arena on April 1st.

Selling out the Cotillion last time they were in town, Disturbed will bring with them Killswitch Engage, Lacuna Coil, and Chimaira, with the second stage covered by Suicide Silence, Bury Your Dead, Crooked X, and two as yet undetermined local acts who will open the day. Undoubtedly, the flock of fans that missed them last time will be there and will be treated to something more than a metal show. Joining the tour is collection of tattoo artists including Oliver Peck and Hart & Huntington Tattoo, as well as regional artists slinging ink throughout the day. There will also be skate teams, a gaming zone, and vendors hawking goods, making the tour a virtual mini-metal-fest. And you don’t even have to wait for summer.

Though all from many metal sub-genres, the bands that are playing range from death metal with brutal guttural vocals to a group of 14 year old kids that play like they have been decimating jr. high school gyms with an 80’s rock style from a decade they never lived through. There is something for everyone on this tour, even if you are just looking to clown some guys who are little too metal and a little too serious.

Wichitans also have the opportunity to play an April fools joke on their boss by playing hooky for the end of their shift and attending the fest that will begin at 2:00pm daily. I don’t know if Hartman Arena allows tailgating but I think some metal frankfurters would be more than in order for the day, weather permitting. Metal without encased meat is not metal at all.

Each band brings a different style, and it is nice to see a lineup that is somewhat diverse with bands from the main to second stage that you probably would not hear on modern rock radio. The local rock media outlet has said that if you keep filling the seats, they’ll keep bringing the acts. So if you are looking to see more acts coming through like Disturbed, it would probably behoove you to get to the show and throw some goats (the metal horns, people, not actual goats) and show that we have some appreciation for the bands that actually want to come through our town.