Adema bassist Dave DeRoo, who makes his home in Bakersfield, Calif., learned how to ski at Snowbird.
"I have some friends who live in Salt Lake City, and it would be cool if I could get on the slopes when we come through," DeRoo said during a telephone interview from a tour stop in Detroit, Mich.
Adema — made up of De Roo, vocalist Mark "Marky" Chavez, drummer Kris Kohls and guitarists Make Ransom and Tim Fluckey — will perform along with Alien Ant Farm, Ear Shot, Glassjaw and Fenix TX during the Sno-Core Rock Tour, which will be at Saltair Saturday, March 16. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., and the music will begin at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are available through all Smith'sTix outlets and at the door.
Before joining Adema in 1999, DeRoo and Fluckey were in a band called Juice.
"Actually, we all knew each other," DeRoo said. "Tim and I played together and Mike and Mark played together, and we all knew Kris. It was funny, because we didn't conciously form a band. It just happened. We were hanging out in the back yard by the barbecue and decided to play together."
While most groups form, gig around and make an album before signing with a major record label, Adema did things a bit backwards. "We made a demo tape, and all of a sudden we had a recording contract with Arista before we had a full album made and before we even played our first gig," said DeRoo. "We had the cards stacked up against us early on because of that. I mean, we hadn't even played live before we were signed."
Once the band began performing, it honed in on its live production, he said. "The show has evolved. And we learned we could actually play the recorded songs live."
After its self-titled big-label debut last year, Adema has caught the ear of many promoters and radio-station programmers all over the world. "We're actually gearing up for a European tour in the summer after a stint with Ozzfest right after this tour," DeRoo said. "If you would have told me that I'd be doing this 10 years ago, I would have laughed in your face. But it's happening."
But going on the road has its ups and downs, DeRoo said. "We don't have time to do a lot of things, and it gets boring. But we write and record demo tapes on the bus, and that helps us pass the time.
"One thing that means a lot to me is when kids come up and tell us we inspire them and they tell us that our live shows are as good or better than our studio album."
E-MAIL: scott@desnews.com