If you're going to host an environmentally conscious tour, it makes sense to start it in Boulder. Boulder's gone green this week, and we're not talking cash flow. Last Sunday KBCO radio premiered Neil Young's new activist-friendly, environmental music film "Greendale" at the Boulder Theatre, and Friday the We the Planet tour starts its fall road trip right here on the CU campus.

The brainchild of treesitter/author Julia Butterfly Hill, the tour is a spin-off of the activist's Circle of Life organization. Fusing together some of the best-known, pro-environmental actors and musicians in the country, this cadre will be rolling into town in a bio-fueled bus to raise funds and visibility for key environmental and local issues.

The Boulder event will take place at CU, and Hill will be joined by outspoken actor/activist Woody Harrelson and Concrete Blonde frontwoman Johnette Napolitano. Other stops on the We The Planet tour will be featuring musicians Tracy Chapman, Michael Franti of Spearhead, actress Alicia Silverstone, and political activist Winona La Duke. The tour's April 20 festival show in San Francisco featured Alanis Morissette, Cake, Bonnie Raitt, De La Soul, and Concrete Blonde.

Boulder's all-day event will start out with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Bartkus Oil (3501 Pearl St), the region's first biodiesel station, and then proceed to the CU campus. A Biodiesel Rally will be held at the UMC Fountain at noon and speakers will include Harrelson, Hill, and Boulder Mayor Will Toor.

The "green day" will culminate at the UMC Ballroom Friday night, where Hill and Harrelson will speak and Napolitano will perform a short acoustic set.

A veteran of the spring We The Planet tour, Napolitano is used to living off the grid and supporting the environment. Napolitano recently moved herself and the reunited Concrete Blonde band to the desert outside of Joshua Park National Monument.

"We're living in a real desert now," said Napolitano. "For the last ten years I had every intention of taking myself off 'the grid' and moving to the desert. I specifically bought land that had Joshua trees on it, so no one would be able to cut them down. There's one moth that needs the flower of the Joshua tree to be able to procreate and survive - and that's a perfect example of co-evolution on the planet. That's just amazing to me and I marvel it at."

When Napolitano isn't living her scaled-down lifestyle, she is busy working with her band. Originally known as Dream 6, the band originated out of L.A.'s post-punk era of the late '80s. In a time when groups like X, the Go-Go's, and Wall of Voodoo were emerging, Concrete Blonde became known for its brooding, bittersweet songs and Napolitano's emotive vocals.

The group hit its stride when the single "Joey" became the number nineteen single in the country in 1990. However, the group decided to take a hiatus in the mid-'90s. The band re-grouped a few years back and released the CD "Group Therapy."

Earlier this year, the group released the CD "Live In Brazil," a CD that captures the Blonde's love affair with playing South America, and Napolitano and the band are in the process of recording a new project.

"Living in the desert has definitely freed us up as a band," admitted Napolitano. "It's relaxed out here, and got us into playing more psychedelic, Pink Floyd-style music. It's given our music this Carlos Castenada quality. Living in the desert dissolves your boundaries."

In addition, Napolitano and Nine Inch Nails bassist/guitarist/keyboardist Danny Lohner just recorded a tune for the new movie "Underworld" that will hit theaters September 19.

However, Napolitano is putting everything on hold to perform on the We the Planet tour. The musician is adamant about her environmental beliefs.

"People who don't care about the environment or animals are missing a gene in my opinion. It's just common sense to understand your place in the universe. We're losing the battle for the environment every day, and the fact that some people can sit back while global warming is taking place is very surreal," said Napolitano.

Frustrated with what she was seeing, Napolitano decided to take positive action and join the band of environmentalists on the tour.

"We're visiting a lot of college campuses and it's important to expose the kids to this. But I've really been the student on this tour, as I'm learning more about this issue. I believe that when we get to the point that there's a balance in nature, that we will all improve the quality of our lives. If I even get one person in Boulder to get involved - that's the point," said Napolitano.

In the meantime, Napolitano hopes to do more tours with We the Planet, finish the new Concrete Blonde record, and study her beloved flamenco dancing in the desert. The singer says that the Spanish dance mode is a truly an "off the grid" form of entertainment.

"It's time to get out there and do some positive things, and not get played against each other. This tour is positive because it gives people the chance to organize and focus in a positive direction. This shit has to happen now, before we get into another election," said Napolitano.

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