Sevendust take Locobazooka! to Portland

PORTLAND – Beleaguered, groggy, and slightly confused, Sevendust’s Morgan Rose doesn’t really know where he is. In all fairness, the affable Southern drummer was woken up from a pre-concert nap for a lousy phone interview and he does know he might be in Biloxi, Miss.

Welcome to the life of a musician working the summer music festival circuit.

At 3 p.m. July 12, Rose and the rest of Sevendust will be in Portland at the Cumberland County Civic Center, whether he knows it or not, along with Filter, Gravity Kills, Nonpoint, Mushroomhead, Audiovent, Reveille, Earshot, Dry Cell, Dragpipe, and Mad At Gravity. It’s a whole lotta metal for a bargain price, about $20 bucks – plus service charges, of course. It’s Locobazooka!, one of the summer’s traveling megamusic festivals. An afternoon of mayhem and music under the sun with 11 bands, with heat strokes free of charge.

“It’s just a really great mind meld,” Rose said of the dates Sevendust has played so far.

The recipe seems perfect: one part youth, one part summer listlessness, and two parts rock, cook in the sun and serve. Tastes great every time. The recipe might put Locobazooka! among the proud and successful ranks of the punk-flavored Vans Warped Tour, their metal competitors Ozzfest, and the now retired alterna-fair, Lollapalooza.

“The whole experience of touring is amazing,” said Nonpoint’s guitarist, Andrew Goldman, who spoke from Fort Wayne, Ind. “Just thinking that if I weren’t out doing this, I could be back home serving at some restaurant I used to work at.”

“The whole thing,” Goldman continued, “walking around feeling like rock stars even when you’re not – it’s a whole silly fun sort of thing.”

Perhaps less so for Sevendust.

As headliners on a long and impressive bill, Sevendust play last, which, according to Rose, isn’t always such a good thing. “No matter what, people are going to leave, you’re going to lose a few people,” he said.

In the words of Metallica, “Sad But True.”

What Rose and all of Sevendust have enjoyed about the Locobazooka! tour, though, is playing with part of their old tour family, Nonpoint.

“We haven’t been able to tour with someone we’re family with for awhile and it makes a difference,” Rose explained sincerely.

Ditto for Goldman, who echoed Rose’s warm and respectful feelings and said he too was glad to be back on the road with his buddies from Sevendust.

While spending some time away from the tour and playing a few extra non-Loco dates in Canada with another group of their tour family, Creed, Rose got a little perspective on the festival.

“I thought, honestly, I’m looking forward to seeing my family, Nonpoint, and getting back to where we feel like we have a moving circus going on – which is exactly what this tour is,” he said with a hoarse laugh.

Tickets for the Locobazooka! show are available at the Cumberland County Civic Center box office and all Ticketmaster outlets or by calling 775-3458 or 775-3331.