Radiohead Call On Fans To Travel Smart To Shows

BY Brock ThiessenPublished May 2, 2008

It’s no secret Radiohead’s favourite colour is green. From rejecting Glastonbury due to environmental concerns to calling on governments to act against global warming, the band regularly bring green activism to the musical arena. And now they are at it again. Via the band’s website, Radiohead are encouraging fans to take public transit or carpool to get to their upcoming shows, all in efforts to reduce the environmental impact of the band’s touring machine.

The request follows Radiohead’s commissioned report by carbon footprint analysts Best Foot Forward, who calculated the carbon impact of the group’s tours and found that fans travelling to and from shows were the greatest contributors to a tour’s CO2 generation.

So to help fans lessen their own carbon footprint, as well as Radiohead’s, the band have made efforts to book shows in central locations and with good links to public transportation. Also, the band’s website offers travel information about how to reach each venue and provides an online carbon calculator so fans can assess their own carbon output.

And if you are wondering why Radiohead continue to tour if it’s so bad for the environment, they provide you with this answer via their site: "Staying at home is the obvious answer — no tour, no carbon footprint! But people will still go to gigs, and we are running a business, the business of providing a quality product (live music) to the customer (the fans). If you start from this position and remember that we are responsible for the welfare of the 60+ people on the road, you very quickly hit some brick walls.”

Okay, we pick up what you are putting down, Radiohead: sometimes dollars and cents override environmental concerns. Nice that you are making an effort, though, guys.

Radiohead’s upcoming North American dates (Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal included):

5/5 West Palm Beach, FL - Cruzan Amphitheatre *
5/6 Tampa, FL - Ford Amphitheatre *
5/8 Atlanta, GA - Lakewood Amphitheatre *
5/9 Charlotte, NC - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre *
5/11 Bristow, VA - Nissan Pavilion at Stone Ridge *
5/14 St. Louis, MO - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre *
5/17 Houston, TX - Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion *
5/18 Dallas, TX - Superpages.com Center *
8/1 Chicago, IL - Grant Park (Lollapalooza)
8/3 Indianapolis, IN - Verizon Wireless Music Center %
8/4 Cleveland, OH - Blossom Music Center %
8/6 Montreal, QC - Parc Jean-Drapeau %
8/8 Jersey City, NJ - Liberty State Park (All Points West Festival)
8/9 Jersey City, NJ - Liberty State Park (All Points West Festival)
8/12 Camden, NJ - Susquehanna Bank Center %
8/13 Mansfield, MA - Tweeter Center %
8/15 Toronto, ON - Molson Amphitheatre %
8/19 Vancouver, BC - Thunderbird Stadium *
8/20 Auburn, WA - White River Amphitheatre *
8/22 San Francisco, CA - Golden Gate Park (Outside Lands Festival)
8/24 Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl *
8/25 Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl *
8/27 Chula Vista, CA - Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre *
8/28 Santa Barbara, CA - Santa Barbara Bowl *

* with Liars
% with Grizzly Bear

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