Camel opens for The Faint

I thought it was illegal or at least really tough for tobacco companies to market directly to kids. But apparently not if you use the "sponsor a concert" loophole. Especially one where the audience is likely to consist of hipsters aged 13-23 and it's oddly easy to skirt past the ID checkpoint.

Here we are at a recent show at the Mezzanine. We went to see The Faint, who were great, but who could miss Camel, the opening, closing, basically omnipresent act. Notably missing was Joe Camel - apparently he's been replaced by Camel in smoke, Camel against sleek blue backdrop, Camel over lounging couch and Camel in sign over door that says "smoking area this way."