Rage Redux to Play Ozzfest
The new band featuring former Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell and Rage Against the Machine‘s Tom Morello, Tim Commerford and Brad Wilk will be a main stage performer at this year’s Ozzfest, which launches on July 6th in Bristow, Virginia.
Dates and acts for the 2002 Ozzfest were announced today by Ozzy Osbourne, his family (wife/manager Sharon, son Jack and daughter Kelly) and World Wrestling Federation champion Triple H at a press conference held at the WWF restaurant in New York City’s Times Square. The WWF will be the principal sponsor of this year’s Ozzfest, with wrestlers running a signing booth at the tour’s stops, while Ozzfest performers will also make appearances at WWF events. “If you’ve ever been to a WWF show, you know we always over-deliver, and if you’ve ever been to an Ozzfest show, they always over-deliver,” Triple H said. “I can guarantee you this, if you’ve been to Ozzfest in the past and thought it was great, just wait until the WWF is a part of it. Because this is a marriage made in hell.”
As for the music, Osbourne will headline the main stage, following the new Rage ensemble, System of a Down, P.O.D., Drowning Pool, Adema and Zakk Wylde’s Black Label Society. Rob Zombie, who toured with Osbourne last fall, will headline the second stage. “Rob wanted to go with a stripped down show — he’s not taking the bells and whistles,” Sharon Osbourne said. “It’s all about the music for him on this tour, and I think a lot of people are going to be surprised.” Meshuggah, Apex Theory, Lost Prophets, Pulse Ultra, Neurotica, Flaw, Mushroomhead, 3rd Strike, Otep, Seether, Glassjaw, Used, Soil, Ill Nino and Chevelle are among the other acts that will perform on the second and third stages.
It wasn’t so much Ozzy, but rather his tele-famous family that tended to be the focus of the conference. “My part of it is zero,” he said of the band selection process. “Sharon and my son go through all of it. I don’t know what’s current, I’m too busy working on my own recording.”
“We’ve always been known to give new bands a stage and forum for their music,” Sharon said of the second and third stage acts. “Look at Incubus, System of a Down, Godsmack. The list goes on and on, so we feel very honored that we have the opportunity to give these bands a stage and such a huge crowd to play in front of. You take a band like Drowning Pool, the first part of the Ozzfest last year, they didn’t even have a record out. They were on the third stage last year and played for twenty minutes. Now for the kids to see them on the main stage, playing forty-five minutes, you have growth. I think kids like to see that growth because they’ve helped to make those bands.”
Sharon also hinted that the presence of System and the Rage remnants might result in a more socially conscious metal festival vibe. “There’s going to be several new booths this year, apart from the WWF booths,” she said. “There’s going to be one that deals with world situations that are going on right now, very political events. System of a Down have done that with Tom Morello and Chris Cornell. They will be giving information to the kids on world politics and other major issues that affect the kids of today.”
Ozzy did take a minute to address his family’s hit reality sitcom, The Osbournes. “I know all about the music industry, I don’t know anything about television, so it’s got me totally baffled,” he said. “I’m walking down the street the other day and some people who wouldn’t normally stop me, and I’ve been on tour in Canada, so I’ve been blind to the response, and they stop me in the streets. In fact, an ambulance driving by said, [in loudspeaker voice] ‘Ozzy, good show man!’ and I’m kind of flipping out.”
Ozzfest tour dates:
7/6: Bristow, VA, Nissan Pavilion
7/7: Pittsburgh, Post-Gazette Pavilion
7/10: New York, Jones Beach
7/12: Camden, NJ, Tweeter Center
7/13: Hartford, CT, CDNow.com Amphitheater
7/16: Boston, Tweeter Center
7/19: Holmdel, NJ, PNC Center
7/24: Raleigh, NC, Alltel Pavilion
7/26: West Palm Beach, FL, Mars Music Amphitheater
7/28: Atlanta, Hi-Fi Buys Amphitheater
8/3: Columbus, OH, Polaris Amphitheater
8/4: Indianapolis, Verizon Amphitheater
8/10: Chicago, Tweeter Center
8/11: East Troy, WI, Alpine Valley
8/13: Cleveland, Blossom Music Center
8/15: Cincinnati, Riverbend Amphitheater
8/17: Somerset, WI, Float-Rite Park
8/19: St. Louis, Riverport Amphitheater
8/20: Kansas City, Sandstone Amphitheater
8/22: Denver, Pepsi City Lights
8/25: Sacramento, CA, Sacramento Valley Amphitheater
8/27: George, WA, The Gorge
8/29: Mountain View, CA, Shoreline Amphitheater
8/31: San Bernardino, CA, Glen Helen Blockbuster Pavilion
9/5: Phoenix, Cricket Pavilion
9/7: San Antonio, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
9/8: Dallas, Smirnoff Amphitheater