AND THAT’S A WRAP FOR BFD 2015 FEATURING ROB ZOMBIE, BREAKING BENJAMIN AND HALESTORM

DALLAS – Sunday, May 31, 2015, after weeks of non-stop rain, the rock n roll Gods said unto the Texas weather “Let there be sunshine and blue skies so the people of Texas can rock.” Mother nature cooperated! BFD 2015 could not have had a better scene. The venue was amazing, the weather was perfect, and the lineup was killer! The lineup consisted of two of the leading lady bands of the modern day; In This Moment and The Pretty Reckless. Unfortunately The Pretty Reckless had an illness and were unable to perform. Halestorm, Breaking Benjamin, and the one and only Rob Zombie. Festival goers were ready to go decked out in their ultimate metal concert attire; ladies wearing next to nothing to save themselves from the hot Texas sun to prosthetic devil horns attached to foreheads. Texans came to BFD ready to rock.

A fairly new band on the metal scene, We Are Harlot, led by former Asking Alexandria vocalist, Danny Worsnop, opened up the festival and secured the crowd’s attention. “Super energetic.” “Danny kills it as always.” “Never heard of them before, but I’ll definitely be checking them out.” Those were just a few comments heard from the crowd when speaking of We Are Harlot. The band’s sound isn’t necessarily what you’d know Danny Worsnop. They give off more of a modern rock feel rather than Asking Alexandria’s metal sound. Die-hard Danny Worsnop fans will be glad to know that he does still scream with this group, but its more singing than usual for him.

A band called Sons of Texas followed. These guys were all over the stage as if they owned it; guitar solos left and right and the lead singer had the pit jumping and rocking. Sons of Texas hails from McAllen, TX. With their debut album released a few months ago, the crowd seemed to already know their songs.

All That Remains is an obvious favorite among the crowd because of the insane amount of moshpits, both in the actual pit area AND on the lawn. This group knew how to put on a show. The harmonies provided by the female vocalist and bassist, Jeanne Sagan, mixed perfectly with the sound of lead vocalist Philip Labonte.

The stage was transformed into a carnivalesque-looking scene for the next band, In This Moment. Leading lady, Maria Brink, puts on a show like no other. The way she performs and interacts with her backup dancers on stage demands that every eye is on her and listening to every word as she sings. The other band members were covered in black and white body paint as if to make them seem neutral compared to the amazing theatrical costumes and antics of Maria Brink. Their performance was certainly captivating.

Halestorm exploded with energy as they stormed on stage kicking off their set with “Love Bites” setting the crowd on fire. With devil horns in the air, the crowd rocked along with Lzzy as she commanded their attention.  A few songs into the set, she took a moment to show the crowd proof of her passion.  Lzzy had played so hard that her finger was dripping blood.  The band was all over the stage throughout their set and drumsticks were flying high. Halestorm closed their set with “I Miss the Misery” to a crowd head banging so brashly that some surely left with whiplash.

After a lengthy hiatus, Breaking Benjamin is back. They opened with an older hit “So Cold” leading into other classics such as “I Will Not Bow”. Those were followed by a new song, “Failure”, and even a Star Wars tribute to Darth Vader with a rendition of the Imperial March. Breaking Benjamin kept the crowd entertained and on their feet for their entire set. Before closing with their smash hit “Diary of Jane”, lead singer Benjamin Burnley took the time to dedicate the song to the men and women serving in the armed forces and thanked them for their service. This earned a loud and patriotic cheer from the crowd.

Finally, Rob Zombie hit the stage hard as the headlining performer of the evening singing a cover of “We’re An Band”. The entire band was decked in their best zombie attire and makeup. Classic Horror film characters such as Frankenstein and King Kong plastered on giant canvases behind the band set the stage. And quite honestly, for a guy in his 50s, Rob Zombie can really move and dance like a 20-something-year-old. Just his energy alone kept the crowd rocking all night long. As a first-timer seeing the Zombie, I can honestly say it was one of the most entertaining shows I’ve ever seen. He got the crowd involved, kept their attention locked on him, and kept all the girls screaming. All around, this was THE show to be at.

Article by:  Emily Casey
Photos by: Jason and Kristelle Maguire