Sparta Touring All Over the Goddamn Place

Remembering Classics courses, band wisely avoids Athens, Georgia

Looking for a band to follow across the country (and overseas) between now and, say, baseball's opening day? Might we here at Pitchfork suggest Sparta? No? Get out of our website, you filthy shit.

Having risen, Phoenix-like-- as in Arizona, meaning that they're hot, and also very suburban-- from the ashes of the probably defunct At the Drive-In, Jim Ward, Paul Hinojos and Tony Hajjar (and that one guy who wasn't in ATDI, Matt Miller) are set to take their Texas-grilled brand of emocore to the rest of the country. Rumors persist they will kick the guy from Dashboard Confessional's ass for ruining the term "emo" if they see him, though further rumors are circulating that such a scenario is just the stuff of my repressed-violence dreams. As for actual news involving the band, Sparta are on the road through the end of March in support of their 2002 Dreamworks release, Wiretap Scars. And let me tell you, that Geffen money buys a sweeeeeet tour van. Um, for Beck. We're guessing Sparta inherited that old '84 Econoline from Girls Against Boys' Freak*On*Ica tour. Dates:

02-11 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater
02-12 El Paso, TX - Xscape
02-14 Austin, TX - La Zona Rosa
02-15 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Ball Room
02-17 Phoenix, AZ - Nita's Hideaway
02-18 San Diego, CA - Soma
02-19 Las Vegas, NV - Huntridge
02-20 Los Angeles, CA - The Mayan
02-21 Anaheim, CA - House Of Blues
02-22 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
02-23 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
02-25 Portland, OR - Roseland
02-26 Seattle, WA - Showbox
02-27 Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom
03-01 Salt Lake City, UT - Bricks
03-02 Denver, CO - Ogden Theater
03-04 Lawrence, KS - Liberty Hall
03-05 Columbia, MO - The Blue Note
03-06 St. Louis, MO - Mississippi Nights
03-08 Minneapolis, MN - The Quest
03-09 Milwaukee, WI - The Rave
03-10 Chicago, IL - Riviera Theater
03-12 Cincinnati, OH - Bogarts
03-13 Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall
03-14 Cleveland, OH - Odeon
03-15 Detroit, MI - State Theater
03-17 Toronto, ONT - Phoenix Concert Hall
03-18 TBA TBA
03-19 Worcester, MA - The Palladium
03-21 New York, NY - Roseland
03-22 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
03-23 Washington DC - 9:30 Club

Posted by Steve Haag on Mon, Feb 10, 2003 at 1:00am