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The Plea for Peace Tour swept into Chicago's Metro club on Tuesday, June 27 to kick off a mammoth trek through the states for several alternative based bands.  The tour is part of the Plea For Peace Foundation that brought together underground favorites like the Blue Meanies, Alkaline Trio, MU330, and Mike Park. 

The vibe of the show is similar to that of 1998's national Ska Against Racism tour, which featured Less Than Jake, Five Iron Frenzy and The Toasters.  It features eight acts that believe in pursuit of peace throughout the entire human race, and also like to play loud and have a good time.  If the Chicago tour was any indication of how things will be throughout the rest of the summer, than the music fan is in for a treat! "We're working very hard to make this tour very pro active," says Billy Spunk, lead singer for the Blue Meanies.  "We've got a big production to bring to the audience, but we want them to know that this is more than just a show.  It's about bringing people together and treating each other equally."

The production value is incredible, as seen in Chicago, and bands quickly maneuver on and off the stage to provide the audience with more than five hours of music!  Each group gets between 20 and 40 minutes on stage (the sets get longer as the evening brings forth the more prominent bands) and for the first night of the tour, things flowed as smooth as could be.

"Peace just starts with yourself," says Spunke.  "When any person can gain peace with themselves, than that vibe is infectious.  Hate spreads hate, but peace also spreads peace." That vibe was respected throughout the night by audience members who gave violent moshing and extreme stage diving a rest.  No problems were evident amongst the sold out crowd of over 1,100 fans!

"This tour has a great feel to it already," Spunke adds.  "All of the bands enjoy coming together for the cause and we get to hang out every day this summer. It's kind of like a paid vacation in which we can spread a very important message." Fans heading out to a future show can bring a canned good, which will be donated to a local pantry, and in exchange they will be given a free Plea for Peace compilation featuring the artists on the bill.