Carnival of Madness Tour stops at Mohegan Sun

Despite the occasional presence of roustabouts with teeth like Indian corn and baggies of meth who are entrusted to set up oil-leaking Ferris wheels, carnivals = fun.

Yet ... artistic types continually insist on flipping and corrupting the good-timey image: the great Ray Bradbury in "Something Wicked This Way Comes"; the classic/cult horror film "Carnival of Souls"; even metal dudes Mötley Crüe and their "Carnival of Umlauts" album. Wait! It was "Carnival of Sins," not Umlauts.

Anyhoo, we now have, coming tonight to the Mohegan Sun Arena, the multi-band "Carnival of Madness" tour with the sorta-forgotten-but-back-and-roaring Evanescence headlining. Also on the bill are are several melodic hard rock outfits who collectively and musically embody the idea of madness. Included are New Medicine, Cavo, Halestorm, and Chevelle.

- RICK KOSTER

Carnival of Madness tour with Evanescence, New Medicine, Cavo, Halestorm, and Chevelle, 5 p.m. today, Mohegan Sun Arena; $35; 1-888-664-3426, mohegansun.com.