Lost in Manhattan (Kansas)

If I ever get an opportunity to write my own autobiography, there is much assurance that the mini-Metal music experience known as Lost in Manhattan (Kansas) will have its very own chapter.  Beginning that fateful Thursday evening would be a 36 hour period that would see drinking, partying, and other wackiness that comes with metal music nights.

The adventure began one September evening on a Thursday, when the Canadian trio Cauldron came through Kansas City for a show along with the Swedish band Enforcer.  For that show, five bands played: Ancient Creation, Meatshank, Vanlade, Cauldron, and Enforcer.  Despite it being a good show, there weren't many people at the show, as it unfortunately had to compete with another show a couple of blocks away.  The fact that it was also a Thursday also didn't help, as that is one of the quietest days for evening entertainment.  Friday morning wasn't kind to me, as I had headache issues (Gee, I wonder how that happened?).  While trying to recover, I got a text from a friend of mine who wasn't present at the show the previous evening.  She had asked if I wanted to tag along for the road trip out to Manhattan, KS for (wait for it) Cauldron and Enforcer.  I said I would think about it (read: see if the headache would go away long enough for me to accept), and did just about everything to get rid of the headache.  Okay, so that was a lie, I didn't do anything about the headache until I picked up a couple of Tylenols and downed them along with some hot tea in the afternoon.  Decision time came about 3 PM, when the friend asked if I made up my mind. I accepted, and the wait began.  We left for Manhattan about 5:30 PM, but not before getting lost in the casino parking lot because we were to meet another person who was also tagging along.  As we were going through Kansas City, KS (yes, there are two towns called Kansas City), another friend asks if he can join in. To make that happen, we had to stop in Lawrence, KS and pick him up from a bar.  Before long, it was off to Manhattan, with a stop in Topeka to pick up snacks.

We arrived in Manhattan about 9 PM and I, at least, could figure out where the venue was because the band's van was parked out in front.   The venue was pretty small, maybe about 100 at most, could fit into the place.  Drinks were reasonably priced, though the Jack and Cokes were actually cheaper than the bottled-beers.  The "stage" was small, and if you were in front, you had a very good view of the package of Enforcer's vocalist.  Opening the show was some band whose name I forget, which is just as well, since I forgot what style they actually played.  The evening wasn't too bad, with everyone in the group acting like clowns and even a pool game.  The real fun began as we were trying to find our way to a hotel in town.  As you can imagine, finding a way was no easy task, and eventually, we stumbled upon an IHOP and had some late night breakfast.  As luck would have it, there was a hotel not too far away from the IHOP.  However, the hotel wasn't in price range, so the trek to Lawrence went through some winding back roads on the way to Topeka.  We made it to Lawrence at 4 AM, where 2-3 hours of sleep was the standard there.  Everyone who didn't live in Lawrence left about 9 AM Saturday for our respective homes.

So, what did I learn?  Metal Nights always bring out the crazy in people and where there's metal music and booze, there's a wild night ahead.