Roadtrips

Tickets go on sale today at 10 a.m. (Thursday, January 6) for the Providence date of the "Sno-Core 2000" tour -- skatepunk's answer to the Winter Olympics -- featuring System of a Down, the So Cal thrashers of Armenian descent with a taste for the occasional weird chord and Eastern melody, and no love lost for Turkey. The tour also features former Faith No More singer Mike Patton's avant-punk cabaret act Mr. Bungle, tejano-core banditos Puya, and neo-funk thrashers Incubus. The tour hits Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel (401-331-2211, or 401-272-LUPO) on February 15; tickets to the Boston date, February 16 at Avalon (617-423-NEXT), go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m. Last time we talked to Powerman 5000 frontman Spider, he deflected a question about the influence of his brother, Rob Zombie, by telling us to get off his back and "get on Static-X's case or something." We backed off, agreeing that the Static ones are certainly the bigger Zombie ripoffs. Funny, though, that Static-X are opening for Powerman on their current tour; tickets for the Providence date at Lupo's on February 16 go on sale this Friday at 10 a.m. (Tickets for the Worcester date, February 19 at the Palladium, are already on sale; call 800-477-6849.)

Teen emo sensations Saves the Day deliver the fresh-faced clean-cut sound of young America on their Through Being Cool (Equal Vision), and they'll join up with equally earnest types Piebald, the Sheila Divine, New Found Glory, and All Chrome for a gig at the Palladium (508-797-9696) in Worcester on January 9. Our northern brethren can also catch the Sheila Divine at Asylum (207-772-8274) in Portland on January 8. In other all-ages news, twentysomething art-core faves Cave In and Converge get their prog on at the Karma Club (617-421-9595) in Boston on January 9 with Barbaro, Slow Fore, and Garrison.

Among all the weird little things we'll have to get used to here in the 21st century is the idea of living in a millennium without an Elvis. Which doesn't mean we can't dig up the old King every now and again, especially on his birthday. He woulda started collecting Social Security this January 8, and they'll mark Elvis's 65th Birthday over at the Lucky Dog Music Hall (508-363-1888) in Worcester with Joe Rockhead, Paco, and, appropriately enough, an outfit called Dead Elvis. You can also shed a tear for the ol' hound dog at Johnny D's (617-776-2004) in Somerville, where Say Zuzu will polish off their favorite Elvis tunes.
-- Carly Carioli