CORPUS CHRISTI -- First, the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival bypassed San Antonio. Then Ozzfest ignored the entire southern United States. And you can forget about the '80s-themed South Texas Rockfest, which has had "new information coming shortly" plastered across its website since April. Their two-year run went  AWOL.

As a result, San Antonians' summer of metal fest discontent could only be salvaged by a 2 1/2-hour drive to the Rockstar Energy Drink UPROAR Festival. Fortunately, last Saturday's show at the Concrete Street Amphitheater didn't disappoint.

Led by main stage and pyro-happy acts Avenged Sevenfold and Disturbed, the eight-band festival was a rousing success for those who enjoy their Texas heat steamier than even Mother Nature provided this day. (Technically, the fest had nine bands when counting Snake Skin Prison out of Austin, the local Jagermeister tour band winner, 10 when considering the two-man unit that played inside a truck trailer located behind the line of fans waiting to gain entrance into the venue -- bass player not included).

Arguably the heaviest band of the night was the one playing with the heaviest hearts. Avenged Sevenfold has come a long way, and gained thousands of fans, since they were inexplicably treated with a ho-hum defiance by the San Antonio crowd at the 2006 Ozzfest. At that Verizon Wireless Amphitheater show, most fans in the pavilion sat down during the band's set, then rose enthusiastically when A7X played Walk by Pantera, then sat back down when A7X resumed their own catalog.

But ever since drummer Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan died last Dec. 28, Avenged has forged ahead. Touring drummer Mike Portnoy, who announced three days before the show that he was leaving his band of 25 years Dream Theater, finished recording A7X's album Nightmare, which was released July 27 and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. With the band taking the stage to the title track, accompanied by a human-like dummy hanging in suicidal form, Avenged Sevenfold appealed to their allegiances like none other on the bill.

Vocalist M. Shadows pranced with a purpose around the stage, belting out vocals with a passionate precision on Afterlife, Buried Alive, and set closer Almost Easy. Portnoy was, well, an absolute beast on Beast And The Harlot, and guitarists Zacky Vengeance and Synester Gates were in sync all night. Shadows delivered a poignant eulogy of sorts to Sullivan by saying "The Rev" was his best friend for roughly 18 years, by crediting Portnoy for saving them when they contemplated quitting, by thanking the fans for accepting Portnoy and by dedicating So Far Away to his fallen brother.

Disturbed had a tough act to follow as the headliner and put on a solid, but not spectacular show. Opening with a fast and heavy tune such as Guarded from Ten Thousand Fists would have gone a long way toward sending a message that Disturbed would possibly top what fans had just witnessed with A7X. Instead, Disturbed opted for the slow intro Remnants and title track to new album Asylum, which debuted on the Billboard 200 at No. 1 on its Aug. 31 release. It's the fourth consecutive album out of Disturbed's discography of five that has debuted at the top, matching a feat accomplished only by Metallica and Dave Matthews Band.

Draiman thanked the fans for helping the band reach such a plateau, but not before Disturbed rocked out to The Game, Liberate, Inside The Fire, Prayer, Another Way To Die, Indestructible, Ten Thousand Fists, Stupify, and their cover of Genesis' Land Of Confusion. They also included an impressive but brief medley of lesser-played songs from debut album The Sickness, including Fear, Meaning Of Life and Voices before ending, of course, with the full version of Down With The Sickness.

With guitarist Dan Donegan, drummer Mike Wengren and bassist John Moyer -- who was once a member of now-defunct San Antonio band The Union Underground -- steadily playing their role to a tee, Disturbed ensured a satisfying end to the 8 1/2-hour day of rock.

Not to be outdone on the main stage were Stone Sour and Halestorm. View my slideshow of Stone Sour and interview with drummer Roy Mayorga here. You can check out my slideshow of Halestorm and tour bus interview with the entire band here.

The second stage bands put in their hard work as well, especially Hail the Villain and Hellyeah.

The former easily had the best combination of humor and rock talent of the entire UPROAR roster. Hail The Villain cranked out a couple songs from their latest album Population Declining, with singer Bryan Crouch sending discernibly strong vocals, furious headbanging and funny facial expressions the crowd's way. Before introducing the third song, Crouch asked the fans if they knew who his band was. About 10 percent of them reacted, so Crouch explained: "There's a reason most of you don't know who we are. . . . we're Canadian."

The ensuing laughter paved the way for an open-minded welcome by the fans to Hail The Villain's first trip to Texas and ended in a mutual appreciation by the entire general admission floor that was close to filling up in time for Hellyeah's set. Hail The Villain stamped their good impressions among the faithful by signing autographs and taking pictures in their designated booth for anyone who cared to stop by after their set. Bassist Chad Taylor, who exemplified the band's dedication by playing with a broken collarbone, told me afterwards he broke it by skateboarding -- not surprising considering that's a favorite activity among the metal community.

Meanwhile, stay tuned for my interview with Hellyeah guitarist Tom Maxwell and slideshow of their performance.

The 2010 summer concert festival scene may have been virtually non-existent in South Texas. But thanks to the UPROAR Festival, the plate wasn't completely bare. And anyone who made the trek here likely found it well worth their time and hard-earned money.

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