Music

Eardrums are strong.

Turns out, they can withstand even the pandemonium at the Jonas Brothers concert Wednesday night at Superpages.com Center, where thousands of bright-eyed, energetic girls screamed at levels heretofore not thought possible.

But it was a joyful noise for brothers Kevin, Joe and Nick, who got the party started with pyrotechnics and "That's Just the Way We Roll." Lots of hits followed, including "Year 3000," "Hold On" and "I Gotta Find You" from the Disney Channel's Camp Rock. Midway through the show, Camp Rock co-star and opening-act Demi Lovato joined Joe for their duet, "This Is Me." Not long ago, the 15-year-old was a student at Cross Timbers Middle School in Grapevine. Now, judging from the crowd's reaction, she's near the top of the Disney-run world.

But the shriekiest shrieks were reserved for the brothers, especially Nick and Joe. (Kevin, the least appreciated of the three, was still no slouch in decibel raising.) So who's the biggest draw? While Joe is your typical teen dream (think swagger, flowing hair, piercing eyes), Nick's appeal is more poignant. Sitting at a white piano, he talked about being diagnosed with diabetes two years ago. The experience compelled him to write a song, "A Little Bit Longer," which he sang with feeling.

"On the way home from the hospital, I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't let this slow me down," he said. "I'm here to tell you that it hasn't slowed me down."

With that, it was back to the frivolity. At one point, he and his brother grabbed a super-soaker-style gun and aimed it at the crowd. "Hey Joe, do you think they're ready?" he asked.

Suddenly, fans in the first 50 rows were doused with something that looked like snow but turned out to be soap. Fittingly, good and clean fun.

Darla Atlas is a Fort Worth freelance writer.