Sno-Core Tour Lets Several Bands Excel

Sno-Core began as a package tour routed near ski areas so fans of extreme winter sports and heavy-duty rock could enjoy the best of both worlds. In five years it’s become less sports-oriented, with most of the athleticism taking place onstage. This year’s vigorous lineup features four bands that specialize in pushing music to the limits.

System of a Down was already a fierce live act when it first hit the road in support of its self-titled debut album. Two years of concerts ranging from tiny club dates to the mighty Ozzfest have further honed its edge. When Sno-Core made its Orange County stop at Anaheim’s Sun Theatre on Sunday, the Los Angeles quartet treated the enthusiastic crowd to nearly an hour of seamless, unrelenting music. Thrashier interludes were positively pyrotechnic, while mellower stretches (such as the melancholy “Spiders”) had a simmering intensity.

Calabasas’ Incubus has also sharpened its skills on the road, with equally powerful if less volatile results. As driving as the group’s two albums are, its blend of aggressive, Korn-style rock, rap/funk elements and rumbling rhythms was more spirited and focused onstage. At times the music bore a striking resemblance to early Jane’s Addiction, though frontman Brandon Boyd is a stronger (if not more colorful) singer than Perry Farrell.

During his tenure fronting Faith No More, Mike Patton’s odd musical obsessions would surface occasionally, but his previous band, Mr. Bungle (which he pursued concurrently with FNM as a side project) is entirely dedicated to musical concoctions that run a chaotic gamut from lounge to thrash. Weird and deliberately disjointed as Bungle’s Sunday set was--especially after the down-to-earth, Latin-inflected hard rock that Puerto Rico’s Puya hammered out in its concise opening set--it was totally apropos for an evening of extremes. --SANDY MASUO

* Sno-Core 2000, today at the Ventura Theatre, 26 S. Chestnut St., Ventura, 8 p.m. $20. (805) 639-3965, Also Thursday at the Hollywood Palladium, 6215 Sunset Blvd., 7 p.m. $20. (323) 962-7600.