Story by: Spc. Jan Critchfield
FORWARD OPERATING BASE AL-AMAL, Iraq -- Punk rock and military discipline: not exactly like shampoo and conditioner; more like fire and ice. But for some Soldiers that were able to see The Vandals kick out the jams here Dec. 28, it almost seemed like they were back on the block, stomping like there's no tomorrow.
When the band was offered to play for troops in Iraq, it seemed like such an unusual once-in-a-life-time experience, they became instantly enthusiastic. After an awesome gig in Hawaii, The Vandals were on a plane and on their way to a land altogether unlike one with sandy beaches and bikinis and beer.
Baghdad, Iraq.
Sunny Baghdad, the center of two forces that seem so unlikely to play host to an awesome punk experience: Islam and the United States Army.
Despite such extreme circumstances, The Vandals managed to rock Sadr City's socks off. And, make it look like they were playing to a crowd of Emo wannabes and teenyboppers statesideâ?¦ plus or minus a few jokes that wouldn't be appropriate for any other venue besides a combat zone full of homesick Soldiers.
The Vandals regular drummer, who was busy with other projects, was unable to find time for the tour in a busy studio schedule. In his seat, though, sat Pennywise rhythm man Byron McMackin.
"I think it was an outstanding show, I mean, a major relief on the tension out here," Spc. Robert Skidmore of Company C, 115th Forward Support Battalion said while waiting in line to score an autograph. "I've been [following] these guys for some time. I had a bunch of blank tapes with "Vandals" written on it.
You know, I didn't really know the names of the songs but just listened to them a lot when I was driving around in my car.
"We forgot we were in Iraq for a while," Skidmore said, indicating two buddies of his standing in the autograph line.
"We're having, actually, a great time in Iraq," bass player Joe Escalante said after the autograph session. "Everyone's nice. Everyone has a better attitude than we thought they"d have when we first got here. Everyone's a lot smarter than most people think the military is."
It wasn't only the band that was working hard to have a great time. A mosh pit full uniformed Soldiers, a sight almost as unusual as a beer on sale at an ice cream stand, let Soldiers unwind and try to escape from the stress of the pressure cooker called Sadr City.
The energy of the crowd at Al-Amal, the band said, far surpassed anywhere they had played during their tour of Iraq and Kuwait.
"The show went very well. I know there's lot of people here that haven't heard of us, but it seemed like they were having a good time and there were a lot of smiles," front man David Quackenbush said. "I think it was an awesome opportunity to come here and do this."
And yes, Quackenbush said he got a lot of flak for his name.
| Date Taken: | 01.18.2005 |
| Date Posted: | 01.18.2005 09:27 |
| Story ID: | 860 |
| Location: | FORWARD OPERATING BASE AL-AMAL, IQ |
| Web Views: | 104 |
| Downloads: | 17 |
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