It was only the second show of MercyMe’s “Undone” tour and it is off to a great start.

The tour, which showcases some big names in Christian rock, stopped at Hilton Coliseum on Friday night to an enthusiastic crowd.

The show was opened by Monk and Neagle, a two-piece acoustic guitar band that warmed up the crowd with three songs before making way for The Afters.

Hailing from Texas, rock band The Afters stood out from other bands on the bill with its stage show. Filling its short set time with lighting effects and pyrotechnics, the band was able to keep the audience entertained before it was treated to one of Christian rock’s biggest names, Jeremy Camp.

Blending rock music with his worship-oriented lyrics, Jeremy Camp’s unique sounds struck a chord with the audience as he performed and interacted with the crowd between songs.

He told the tragic story of how his first wife died of cancer only months after their marriage. But even in times of darkness, he said he can always turn to the Lord for hope and joy. He then launched into “Walk By Faith,” a song dedicated to his late wife.

After Jeremy Camp it was finally time for MercyMe.

MercyMe’s music is mostly praise and worship, but lead vocalist Bart Millard told the crowd the band started out as a rock band and hopes to go back to making rock music in the future.

Like Camp, MercyMe also shared its experiences with personal loss and religious faith. Despite being a successful year for MercyMe, 2004 was also its hardest year. Millard’s brother-in-law was killed in a car accident, his father-in-law had to have brain surgery and his son was diagnosed with diabetes.

“I have to keep singing to know that God is in control,” Millard said.

MercyMe started off playing behind a huge sheet so the crowd could only see individual shadows. When the sheet dropped, the band began playing “Where You Lead Me” and the crowd was ecstatic.

All of MercyMe’s songs were accompanied by a video background. “Where You Lead Me” was accompanied by a video of different people mouthing the words to the song.

The best video was a cartoon that went along with a song off one of the band’s independent records called “Table for Two.” There were cartoon versions of all of the band members and Jeremy Camp being chased around by fans. For this song the band pulled out stools and played sitting down.

Millard told the audience the cartoon was created by a company that wanted the band to write a theme song about the Ten Commandments. The band kept putting off writing the song until it was almost too late. The band ended up writing the song “Ten Simple Rules” only minutes before they had to present it to the company.

As the concert ended, the crowd was slow to disperse, perhaps hoping for an encore. Although the audience may have been sad the concert was over, there is no doubt they left entertained.