by: Freak/Q101-FM

LOG BOOK ENTRY:

"SNO-CORE 2002 "

“Well, I felt the back end start to come around and after that I was pretty much just along for the ride.”   

      I’ve heard NASCAR drivers say that sort of thing on more than one occasion and, oddly enough, that’s exactly what was going through my mind as I was sliding up I-94 just south of Milwaukee while on my way to the "Sno-Core 2002" show. 

      I was stone sober as I barreled my way through Wisconsin when a gust of wind, from the same storm that ripped the scaffolding off the side of the Hancock building, broadsided my Jeep Wrangler sending it spinning counter-clockwise up the Interstate.  I slid some fifty yards before entering the grassy median where I continued to slide another thirty yards until the tires grabbed, catapulting me into oncoming traffic.  I narrowly missed a green blur as I left the median only to roll in front of a white, 18-wheeled blur barely making it into the ditch on the other side of the road.  

     The monster adrenaline rush that gripped my body slowly subsided until I was finally able to focus enough to drive out of the ditch and eventually make it to the Modjeska Theater for the show.

      First up was L.A.’s EARSHOT.  At best guess, a TOOL cover band that suddenly decided to do originals.  While not sounding all that bad, the six-piece group was far too green to be on a tour of this size turning in a disjointed performance to say the least.  My hope is that they’ll use this opportunity to prepare for their upcoming stint on the "Ozzfest Tour" this summer. 

          Next up was APEX THEORY, another L.A. group that was far from ready to be doing a national tour.  At one point during their set, they actually stopped playing a song and, after apologizing, started it over again. 

  Singer ANDY KHACHATURIAN, donning a blue Tibetan Monk looking outfit, didn’t seem to match the music behind him either physically or vocally.  The “Apex” of their show came when DRYDEN MITCHELL of ALIEN ANT FARM joined them on stage for a song.

      Act number three was a band I’d been hearing a lot about called GLASSJAW, the first band of the evening with an “Extreme Sports” kind of attitude, which is theoretically what the whole Sno-Core concept is supposed to be about in the first place.

      As such, GlassJaw got a big reaction from the crowd, but the deaf mute they hired to do their sound, mixed them so horribly, I want to reserve comment until I can see them again.

      The beers were finally starting to settle my nerves as ADEMA hit the stage.  A band I’ve followed for some time, Adema dropped a solid performance showing how non-stop touring can really tighten up a band and build a fan base.  With their debut release now gold and several runs through the area, you could hear the drunken crowd singing along with singer MARK CHAVEZ on songs like “Giving In” and “Freaking Out.” 

       The headliners were Alien Ant Farm, another band I’ve seen about a half a dozen times since they started touring for "ANThology" and I’m not sure I liked what I saw.  The only way to describe it is to say that the band seemed to have aged ten years since I last saw them.  Singer Dryden Mitchell, who could work the crowd as good as anyone, has taken on an almost hip-hop kind of look donning a white knit hat pulled down over his eyes.  He has also dramatically reduced his stage movement, as has guitarist TERENCE CORSO.  The only guy up there that still seemed to be enjoying himself was bassist TYE ZAMORA.   

      Now don’t get me wrong, the shows were still good.  The music and vocals were right on and if this had been your first Adema or Alien Ant Farm show, you probably would have left happy.  It’s just that after seeing both these bands several times over the past year, I noticed some fatigue.

       What I saw were tired two groups of guys that needed a solid month off the road to get away from the business, and probably each other, but who couldn’t because of pressure from both their management and their labels to go out and strike while the so called “iron” is hot.

          It’s a trend that is quickly getting out of hand.  Bands are poured into the record label meat grinder and the raw meat produced is being thrown to the wolves.  No longer are bands being nurtured in their infancy but instead are kicked into the world of touring where they are left to fend for themselves.    

      As for us, we’re left with lackluster shows like "Sno-Core 2002" which, in my opinion, consisted of three bands that weren’t ready to tour and two bands that had toured too much.

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