Roadtrips

Last time we heard from Powerman 5000, MC Spider and crew had moved out of their practice space in the Fenway and headed for LA, where DreamWorks picked up their Curve of the Earth debut and reissued it as Mega!! Kung Fu Radio. For their follow-up, Tonight the Stars Revolt! (DreamWorks, due in July), they've upped the muscle quotient about five-fold and turned out a stunning hard-rock album -- including a rip-roaring version of the Cars' "Let the Good Times Roll" -- that bridges the gap between the heavy hip-hop inflections of Limp Bizkit and the jigsaw pomo-industro blitz coined by Spider's older brother, Rob Zombie. Speaking of which, we sense an awfully tempting guest-spot possibility this weekend, what with big bubba Zombie opening for Black Sabbath on the main stage at Ozzfest at the Tweeter Center (617-931-2000) in Mansfield on the 18th, and little bubba's Powerman opening up for Megadeth on WAAF's free "Big Day Out" festival -- which also features Orange 9mm and Grinspoon -- at Winter Island Park (263-1073) in Salem on the 19th. In other Ozzfest-related news, Slayer take a day off to headline their own show at -- get this -- the Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom (603-929-4022) in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, on the 20th. Talk about a gamble: I got $50 says this is the last time this ever happens.

Sabbath were the inspiration for the Stonehenge scene in Spinal Tap -- their replica was actually too big to fit into theaters and was reportedly dumped into a lake after one show. They were not, however, the inspiration for the strange megalith formation known as American Stonehenge (603-893-8300, or visit www.stonehengeusa.com). The allegedly 4000-year-old site is the location of a two-day solstice festival June 20 and 21 featuring the locally based Peruvian music ensemble Inca Son.

Whereas, say, Suzanne Vega made her way from traditional singer-songwriterisms into the gently electronic realm of techno-folk, the British Dust Brothers collaborator Beth Orton seems to be headed the reverse route. Her new Central Reservations seems in a more traditional vein than either Dust sisterhood or her own first album, Trailer Park, suggested. She's at Pearl Street (413-586-2632) in Northampton on June 18 with alterna-folkie Joe Henry. The two then split up for a few days as Orton hits the Guinness Fleadh at Suffolk Downs (931-2000) along with Van Morrison and Elvis Costello on June 19 and Henry headlines his own gig at the House of Blues (617-491-BLUE) in Cambridge on June 22.

Later this summer, Biohazard will hook up with Coal Chamber and this decade's answer to Kiss, the Insane Clown Posse, for a tour that'll hit the Tsongas Arena (617-931-2000) in Lowell on August 30. In the meantime they've got another lousy new disc, New World Disorder (Mercury), and a tour that brings 'em to Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel (401-272-5876) in Providence on June 20 with State of Corruption, E-Town Concrete, and Cold As Life. Elsewhere, Journey and Foreigner are at the Tweeter Center on the 20th. Ben Folds Five and local-boy-done-good Jude are at the Palladium (508-797-9696) in Worcester on June 22 and at Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel on June 23. The Kinks' Dave Davies makes yet another swing through town including two nights at his home away from home, the Sit 'n Bull Pub (978-897-7232) in Maynard, on June 23 and 24 before heading to Harpers Ferry (617-254-9743) in Allston on June 25. And New Orleans's finest bar band, the Radiators, play two nights at the Call (401-751-2255) in Providence on June 18 and 19 before hitting the concluding day of the annual "Gathering of the Vibes" festival at Seaside Park (800-677-8650) in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on June 20, where they're joined by Gov't Mule, Strangefolk, moe., and the Jazz Mandolin Project, among others.
-- Carly Carioli