Street Sweeper Gets Active!

Guess what? Street Sweeper — a supergroup featuring Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine/the Nightwatchman) and Boots Riley (The Coup) — will be the opening act for this summer’s Nine Inch Nails/Jane’s Addiction “NIN/JA” tour. (Riley and Morello were part of the FMC-organized Tell us the Truth Tour in 2003.)

Which reminds us of the cool things that can happen when artists come together for a cause. Like our Artist Activism Camps in New Orleans, where up-and-coming and established musicians from around the country come together to talk about ways to incorporate activism into their lives as artists. The gathering culminates with an all-star benefit concert for Sweet Home New Orleans — a non-profit group that helps musicians displaced by Hurricane Katrina return to their communities and hopefully start making music again. ‘Cause we all know that New Orleans is about the music. (The gumbo’s pretty good, too.)

AAC vets OK Go and Bonerama collaborated on a EP in 2007 called You’re Not Alone — proceeds from which went to put Mardis Gras legend Al “Carnival Time” Johnson in a new Habitat for Humanity home. They also played a few benefit gigs together and appeared on David Letterman as an indie-rocking, brass-funking monster.

Street Sweeper have an album on the way; you can check out the band’s “in-progress” website to get a taste of their stuff. Head here for the NIN/JA tour dates. (There’s at least one FMC staffer who’s beyond psyched to relive their cherished Lollapalooza ’91 memories!)

Oh, and this years’ Artist Activism Camp will be take place in the Big Easy from May 20-22. We’ll definitely keep you updated on that.