I wasn't much into the rap/pop music that came on in between the other artists. Other than that, I had never seen Third Day before. They're a little to mellow for me. But in concert? OMG, they were amazing. Mac Powell is incredible. The most distinctive voice in Christian music for the last 20 years can put on an amazing show. And the rest of the band still knows how to rock. They spent most of the time on rock & roll, but threw in a ballad. Great stuff.
Skillet? What can I say. Their music was dead-on, perfect and the guitars/rhythms were tight and distinct. They had the band, plus a couple of crazy guys playing cello and violin. They nailed every single song. The energy was crazy from the first second, and continued to roll throughout the entire show.
Look, Skillet is an amazing band on CD. But I did not expect them to be this good live. I honestly wondered if some of it might be canned. But there was enough variation to prove it was all live. I was completely blown away. Skillet is the real deal. They rocked the crowd and somehow left us satisfied and full, but yet.... wanting more and more.