ARTISTdirect's,
SnoCore 2003, America's first and only winter-season, road-show celebration of cutting-edge rock and the snow-sports lifestyle, will kick off on February 11 in Albuquerque, NM, and will play at least thirty-one dates before it winds up on the east coast in late March.
Throughout most of February and March, the SnoCore 2003 package of live music and spectacular videos, co-sponsored by ARTISTdirect, will revisit many of the areas where, in its eight-year history, it has already become an annual tradition. This year's tour will also hit several new markets.
"We'll be doing the same show in every city we play," says John Boyle, co-producer and co-owner of SnoCore. "For the kids in Salt Lake City, the skiing and snowboarding videos we'll show between bands will connect directly to their experiences. And for the kids in El Paso, who don't have the opportunity to participate as much in these sports, the videos will probably be even more exciting."<{>
As with each previous SnoCore tour, this year's live music lineup was selected to assure killer performances by the most vital emerging bands. Featured acts include Sparta, Glassjaw, Hot Water Music, and Dredg — each known for its own brand of uncompromising, high-risk, hardcore rock.
"The kind of music we're featuring on SnoCore this year fits right in with snow-sport culture," Boyle explains. "I grew up in Lake Tahoe, skiing, snowboarding, and playing in bands. The adrenaline you get from playing music is certainly similar to what you feel in action sports; they just go hand-in-hand."
From its debut in the winter of 1995-'96, SnoCore has been a step ahead of the trend. Founded with the intention of bringing the best young bands directly to snow-sport settings, the show has featured System of a Down, Incubus, Sublime, Blink 182, Alien Ant Farm, and Primus among its headliners. Many of these acts received some of their first significant exposure through SnoCore; others were already selling at Gold or Platinum levels when recruited.
With all the momentum it's built since its early shows, SnoCore has outgrown the smaller venues in which it first appeared. Still, the original concept remains intact. "We have a unique identity," Boyle points out, "which focuses on developing artists with a little lifestyle twist. The bands this year represent the independent spirit that's bubbling under in rock and roll right now. Certainly these bands are at the forefront of the indie rock movement, which is driven by word of mouth and the Internet. It's exciting for us to run on that same grass-roots energy."
ARTISTdirect has sponsored SnoCore over the last five years. "I'm especially excited about this year's tour," says ARTISTdirect co-founder and CEO Marc Geiger, "because it's very much 'back to the egg,' with its punk rock energy. SnoCore is right in the zone of where music is going — more credibility, less pop — which is why it endures."
SnoCore 2003 tour itinerary:
February 11 Sunshine Theater, Albuquerque, NM
February 12 El Paso, TX
February 14 La Zona Rosa, Austin, TX
February 15 Gypsy Ball Room, Dallas, TX
February 17 Nita's Hideaway, Phoenix, AZ
February 18 Soma, San Diego, CA
February 19 Huntridge, Las Vegas, NV
February 20 The Mayan, Los Angeles, CA
February 21 House of Blues, Anaheim, CA
February 22-23 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA
February 25 Roseland, Portland, OR
February 26 Showbox, Seattle, WA
February27 Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC
March 1 Bricks, Salt Lake City, UT
March 2 Ogden Theater, Denver, CO
March 4 Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS
March 5 The Blue Note, Columbia, MO
March 6 Mississippi Nights, St. Louis, MO
March 8 The Quest, Minneapolis, MN
March 9 The Rave, Milwaukee, WI
March 10 Riviera Theater, Chicago, IL
March 12 Bogart's, Cincinnati, OH
March 13 Newport Music Hall, Columbus, OH
March 14 Odeon, Cleveland, OH
March 15 State Theater, Detroit, MI
March 17 Phoenix Concert Hall, Toronto, ONT
March 18 Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, NY
March 19 The Palladium, Worcester, MA***
March 21 Roseland, New York, NY***
March 22 Electric Factory, Philadelphia, PA***
March 23 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
March 25 Norva, Norfolk, VA
*** Glassjaw will headline Worcester, Philadelphia, New York, and one San Francisco show.
