FILTER Joined By Ex-Bassist, Now Soldier, At Kuwait Show

The Pulse of Radio reports that FILTER was joined by a surprise guest, ex-bassist Frank Cavanagh, during the band's performance on Monday (March 10) as part of Operation MySpace, a concert held in Kuwait for U.S. troops serving in the Middle East. Cavanagh, who played "Hey Man, Nice Shot" with the band, is now an Army Sergeant and heads for duty in Baghdad later this month. FILTER frontman Richard Patrick told The Pulse of Radio why Cavanagh decided to sign up. "Frank's inspired by world events and he's a huge history buff and, you know, he wanted to be at this pinnacle place in the world and see for himself what this is about," he said. "He joined the Army Reserves at the age of, I think, 35, they took him and he went to basic training. He said it was probably the hardest thing he ever did, but he was doing really great, and he's on his way."

Cavanagh was given special permission by the Army to play with FILTER at the show. He said in a statement, "I love the Army and I love FILTER. To be able to join Richard and my former band for the first time in nearly six years is a huge honor...as I am able to share the musical part of my life with my brothers and sisters who are serving our country."

Also performing as part of the Operation MySpace event were DISTURBED, the PUSSYCAT DOLLS, JESSICA SIMPSON, DJ Z-TRIP and comedian Carlos Mencia. The event was webcast on MySpace and a condensed one-hour version will air on the FX cable network on April 12.

FILTER's new single, "Soldiers of Misfortune", was inspired by a letter from a FILTER fan who joined the Army reserves to get his college tuition paid. He was sent to Iraq and was killed in a rocket attack just days later. The single will appear on FILTER's new album, "Anthems for the Damned", due out May 13.

Watch an interview with Richard Patrick and Frank Cavanagh in three parts below.

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3: