MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- South African-bred, L.A. based hard rock band Seether made its way to Iwakuni May 26 during a oneweek United Service Organizations tour of Japan.
The band performed an aweinspiring hour and a half show at the parade deck here that evening to show appreciation for the armed services.
“We wanted to give them an hour and a half of maybe relief and a piece of home,” said Shaun Welgemoed, lead singer of Seether.
Marines, sailors, family members and students poured in from every direction from as early as 4:30 p.m. to await Seether’s performance.
“I was talking about it for weeks,” said Riley Attaway, an 8th grader at Matthew C. Perry High School. “They are one of my favorite bands, and we don’t have a lot of concerts here, so this is a big deal.”
American Forces Network tried to occupy the crowd by raffling off T-shirts, Frisbees, autographed CDs and a Nintendo Wii, but there was no calming them down.
“Seether, Seether, Seether…” they cried.
They went crazy as Welgemoed calmly walked up to the stage while taking one last drag of his cigarette. As the band started playing, crazed fans pushed their way forward to try to get as close to the stage as possible.
Welgemoed gave a shout out to all the Marines and sailors during the performance, saying, “I’ve been in Japan now for about five days, and it’s been the best experience of my life because of you guys.”
The night went on with song after song, but when it was time to come to an end, the fans still cried out for an encore.
The band jumped down from the stage to hug and shake the hands of the ecstatic sea of people.
After the excitement died down a little, fans waited outside the backstage tent for autographs and pictures.
Troy McLawhorn, lead guitarist, thanked a Marine while signing his guitar.
“We don’t get to do what we do without you guys,” he said.
An outgoing young boy with a faux hawk was delighted to see that Dale Stewart, bass guitarist had a similar
hair style.
The boy left with a huge smile on his face and a signed box of Fruity Pebbles.
As the last few fans trickled through the tent, the band got ready to go out for a few drinks with the fans.
“We owe it to them,” said Welgemoed. “There’s a different kind of passion here. Our music helps them get through.”