The thought of Christian music usually brings hymnals and song titles like "The Old Rugged Cross" or "Amazing Grace" to mind. However, when it comes to outreach programs for youth, the beat and the style of music changes to address the kids on their level.

Beginning at 4 p.m. Saturday, Petrack Park will host four bands, none of them local, in a presentation of hard core metal music - Christian metal music.

The free concert is a unified effort of The Way Baptist Fellowship and Calvary Chapel Pahrump Valley.

The bands were booked by Youth Leader Vinnie Straub of The Way Baptist Fellowship who has been booking Christian metal bands to play at the community center for about two years.

"We've been doing this for awhile, just not this big," Straub said. The concerts previously were held inside the Bob Ruud Community Center.

The bands scheduled for tomorrow include Braveheart from Arizona and Atrocity, The Normans and Die Fighting, all from Las Vegas.

Special guests giving testimony to their faith will be The Whosoevers: Lacey of Flyleaf, Sonny of P.O.D., Brian "Head" Welch of Korn and Ryan of Exit.

Straub says providing concerts as entertainment for those under 21 has resulted in getting to know the kids first hand and the effort rewarded in seeing some of them reach out enough to start attending church.

"Most of the youth we see attending the concerts come from rough backgrounds," Straub said. "This is a chance for them to change whatever they're living for and live for God."

Apparently, some of the larger concerts of this type have been scheduled in other cities. Straub said on a recent trip to California, his pastor attended an outreach concert for youths and was so impressed with the turn out he contacted the Whosoevers and began working to organize one for Pahrump.

Other churches in the valley will be represented at the show, not to be pushy, so to speak, but to offer help when it is wanted.

Straub said usually the smaller events he has booked in the past have just been about the music. This time it will be about not only the music, but the testimonies of faith and will end with an alter call.

There will be free food, sodas and water. Sno-cones will be available and a rock-climbers wall will be set up in the park as well.

For more information, call 751-8000 or 702-336-9469.