Live Show Review from Ft. Bliss in El Paso

FROM: http://fbmonitor.com/2011/07/20/rock-the-fort-%E2%80%98drowning-pool%E2%80%99-%E2%80%98powderburn%E2%80%99-draw-thousands-to-biggs/

Rock the Fort: ‘Drowning Pool,’ ‘Powderburn’ draw thousands to Biggs

The crowd cheers as Powderburn plays during “Rock the Fort” at Biggs Park Saturday. Photo by Staff Sgt. Joseph Wilbanks,1st SBCT, 1st AD Public Affairs.
Staff Sgt. Joseph Wilbanks, 1st SBCT, 1st AD Public Affairs
Thousands of Soldiers, family members and members of the local community converged at Biggs Park for the annual “Rock the Fort” music extravaganza Saturday.
The event featured a car and bike show, local vendors, a beer garden and live bands, culminating in a fireworks display.
The festivities started at 3 p.m. with Sobredosis Del Sabor, a local band and the first act of the night on the main stage. They performed for about an hour as the crowd arrived and browsed the many attractions available at the park.

A member of Powderburn steps into the audience during one of their songs. Photo by Staff Sgt. Joseph Wilbanks / 1st SBCT, 1st AD Public Affairs
Sobredosis Del Sabor was followed by Larry Bagby, a musician who described his style of play as California country. The music, which mixed equal parts rock and modern country, drew a large crowd to the stage with its patriotic tones and memorable beats.
Following Bagby was the band Outbreak, also El Paso natives. Outbreak performed a mixture of cover songs from the late ’90s and early 2000s. These talented musicians more than did justice to the mix of alternative and rock songs they performed. The band was excited to play Rock the Fort and mentioned that, although this was not their first performance for a military event, this was the largest event they had ever played.
As the temperature finally went down, the next act, Powderburn, turned the volume up. Powderburn is an Austin, Texas, band that has played Rock the Fort three times. The band took the stage to a roar from the crowd and then whipped them into a frenzy with a blistering set of hard rock and metal music that inspired an impromptu mosh pit. The band expressed their love for playing for Soldiers and how happy they were to be invited to play this event.

Larry Bagby, a self-described “California country” musician, performs during “Rock the Fort” at Biggs Park Saturday. Photo by Staff Sgt. Joseph Wilbanks / 1st SBCT, 1st AD Public Affairs
The headlining band, Drowning Pool, took the stage as the sun went down and played a long set featuring their new material and selections off their older albums. The band finished their set with their well-know song, “Bodies,” as fireworks exploded over Biggs Park.
“The event was awesome,” said Spc. Claudio Palmisano, a military police Soldier with the 591st MP company. Palmisano said that events like these keep Soldiers on post and out of trouble. Everyone has a good time and it would be great to see more events like this, he added.

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