Now, apparently Authority Zero has a new album lined up for a June 22 release. Right now is a crucial time for the band and its label to pimp the album as much as possible, but shit -- how on earth did playing Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill become a viable option for a band that plays what they themselves call "punk rock" (I wouldn't personally call it that, but hey, whatever lifts your luggage). 

I understand the place is a nice venue and that the band is from Mesa, where the restaurant is located, but when I heard that Authority Zero were playing Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill, I couldn't help but scratch my head. Has it come to this for Authority Zero? Is it literally the bottom of the barrel for the band insomuch that they have to play a bloated dickhead's shitty country music restaurant? Was the Claim Jumper not returning their calls?

The mind-boggling dichotomy created by having a punk rock band play Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill is the worst part in all this. Do Authority Zero fans like country music, let alone Toby Keith? I can't speak for all of them, but I am going to safely assume the answer is no. Do the Copenhagen-dippin', Wrangler-wearing regulars of Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill want some scrawny, all-dressed-in-black teenagers showing up to their favorite watering hole? Hell no. Such a scenario will, however, be reality on June 17. 

Go rock out, Authority Zero. Rock the vaunted stage at the Mesa Riverview Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill. I don't know why you had to rip your credibility to shreds in such a pathetically lame move like this, but I am sure it makes some amount of sense that I simply cannot -- or will ever try to -- comprehend right now.

UPDATE: James Wright of Kerosene Media has shed some light on this intriguing situation, via a Q & A with Authority Zero's Jason DeVore:

It seems kind of unusual for a punk band to play at Toby Keith's. How did this particular gig come about?

It does seem pretty unusual, ha. Although on the other side of the

coin, we're a band that, growing up, played wherever we could plug in
and make some noise. Hijacking outdoor school outlets, house parties,
you name it. Hell, we even played a "rodeo" consisting of one kid
standing in cow shit out in Apache Junction back in the day. I guess to
us, the band makes the venue, the venue doesn't make the band. To us,
it's always been about the opportunity to play, and with given the
situation, an opportunity arose to where we could play a free gig for
the fans of AZ at a new location. Local radio station X103.9 presented
the idea to us to do a free show for the fans at Toby Keith's. Having
worked with the people at the station for many years (and even getting
our initial boost from them in early 2000), we trusted in their idea,
made some adjustments, heard they had a kick ass sound system and
stage, and ran with it. We're all jazzed about the release and
especially thrilled we were able to make it an all-ages, free event in
our hometown, days before the international release.

We understand that the first 50 people in the door get an autographed
copy of the new album. What time should fans show up? Will you have
additional copies of the album for sale?

That's correct! First 50 people through will receive a free autographed
copy. That evening, and for this one and only time, we'll be playing
the new album Stories of Survival front to back. We'll definitely have
additional copies available for everyone that shows up locally to pick
up before the album hits stores. Show starts at about 8 p.m., so I
think the best bet to get your free copy would be to show up at about 7
p.m. or earlier to be one of the first of 50 in.