European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 15, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 6 scene stars and stripes sunday april 152007 d c o 0 co 1 0 0 in c cd d Courtesy of capt Michael Greenberger 3rd signal brigade Iraq above drowning Pool front Man Ryan Mccombs sings during a Uso concert in septem Ber while a Soldier crowd surfs Over troops stationed at Camp Victory Iraq the Uso Calls drowning poo one of its key ambassadors particularly to Young musicians at left Rock guitarist Ted Nugent left and country Star Toby Keith Salute troops after a Uso performance at Camp Bondsteel Kosovo in 2004 at right Gary Sinise and the it Dan band perform at Camp Lejeune no in 2004 in a hard place new approach sends Little known bands into combat zones at a us military base in Al Qaim a Dusty town in the Anbar province of Iraq 400 soldiers crowded into a storage building doubling As a concert Hail for a night last year the entertainment was a six piece country band and a Young Nashville Singer named Carly Goodwin few of the soldiers had heard of her but they wound up cheering dancing onstage and singing along some sat on the rafters above the makeshift stage As the War in Iraq enters its fifth year the Uso is having some trouble recruit ing Aigist stars increasingly the Mili Tarys old Bob Hope style approach to entertainment is being partly supplanted by a different Model the new approach relies on sending Little known bands to the Middle East in an Effort to provide More concerts at More Remote bases in combat zones this reflects the Way troops Are now being deployed Many soldiers Are posted in Remote bases in Active Battle zones of Iraq and Afghanistan accessible mainly by helicopter troops Are facing the longest armed conflict since Vietnam and in Many cases multiple Tours of duty it also mirrors an entertainment world increasingly defined by myspace and american idol the Divide Between fringe and mainstream acts has gotten smaller As unknowns become stars on the internet and to practically Over night that has created a receptive environment for Upan coming bands hoping to raise their profiles by touring with the military but its raising difficult decisions for Young musicians now wrestling with their own political views and fears of danger As they weigh Tours to Battle zones the group responsible for recruiting these bands is a Little known division of the Pentagon called armed forces entertainment last year afe sent More than 100 Small acts to Camps around the world compared with the non profit civilian run Uso which last year sent 37 Tours abroad mainly to big hubs like Kuwait City and Baghdad recently afe has been on the Rise organizing a record number of concerts and ramping up its band recruitment efforts for the four members of Edison a hard Rock group the question of whether to go to Iraq prompted some heated discussions the group had mainly been playing bars in Connecticut and new York City when afe contacted Singer Ethan Isaac to ask if he and his group would consider a tour to the Middle East Isaac had done an afe tour of Europe with a previous band Isaac and two other band members were enthusiastic but Lead guitarist Jonathan Svec refused a staunch oppo nent of the War he worried about the symbolism of working with the military Are we the entertainment cog that gets thrown in to help keep the War machine turning he remembers thinking he also had a paralysing fear of flying in helicopters which would be the groups main transportation in Iraq his band mates suggested he try hypnosis or counselling eventually Isaac signed Edison up anyway and Svec gave in worrying that he was being selfish Svec assumed that his father who had served As a Drill sergeant during the Vietnam War would support the idea but instead when Svec broke the news at a family party that he was going to Iraq his father said no youre not and walked away three weeks before the band was to leave a Friend of Isaacs was killed in Iraa by a Roadside bomb and Isaacs family asked him to reconsider Isaac was shaken but says the tragedy made the
