Hard Rock Albuquerque presents: The Pavilion (simply known as The Pavilion but often acknowledged as Hard Rock Pavilion) is an outdoor amphitheater located within the Sandia Mountains

Sandia Mountains

The Sandia Mountains name posu gai hoo-oo, "where water slides down arroyo") are a mountain range located in Bernalillo and Sandoval counties, immediately to the east of the city of Albuquerque in New Mexico in the southwestern United States. The range is largely within the Cibola National...

 in Albuquerque, New Mexico

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...

. It is a part of the Bernalillo County Recreational Complex.

The amphitheater opened in February 2000 as the Mesa del Sol Amphitheater. This was a part of Mesa del Sol

Mesa del Sol

Mesa del Sol is a proposed mixed use community in Albuquerque, New Mexico.-History:Mesa del Sol was approved as part of a public-private partnership strategy with the State of New Mexico, City of Albuquerque and University of New Mexico and has been planning stages since the 1980s...

, a planned community, currently under development in Albuquerque.
In December 2000, the local news paper, Albuquerque Journal

Albuquerque Journal

-History:Its earliest predecessor, the Albuquerque Daily Journal, was first published on October 14, 1880. The newspaper is owned by the Journal Publishing Company, a family-owned business headed by president/publisher T.H. Lang; it is operated by the Albuquerque Publishing Company...

 purchased naming rights and the amphitheater was thus known as ABQ Journal Pavilion (or simply Journal Pavilion). During the 2009 concert season, the venue's lawn area was expanded increasing the capacity from 12,000 to 15,000. In March 2010, the newly built Hard Rock Hotel & Casino purchased naming rights and the venue became known as The Pavilion.

The amphitheater has also hosted festivals, including The Mayhem Festival

Mayhem festival

The Mayhem Festival is a touring metal festival that takes place during the summer. The inaugural iteration took place in 2008; the festival has since become an annual event across the United States and Quebec, Canada. The tour has been sponsored by the Rockstar Energy Company since the time of its...

, Gigantour

Gigantour

Gigantour is the name of a sporadically organised traveling heavy metal music festival organized by Megadeth's Dave Mustaine. The tour was founded in 2005 with dates across North America, and the 2006 and 2007 line-ups also traveled to Australia...

, Projekt Revolution

Projekt Revolution

Projekt Revolution is a music festival hosted by Linkin Park, bringing artists of various genres of music together. Linkin Park started Projekt Revolution in the year 2002 with just one stage...

, Ozzfest

Ozzfest

Ozzfest is an annual festival tour of the United States featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon Osbourne, both of whom also organize each yearly tour with their son Jack Osbourne...

, Crüe Fest

Crüe Fest

Crüe Fest was a summer 2008 tour by Mötley Crüe, which commenced on July 1, 2008 and concluded on August 31, 2008. It featured Mötley Crüe themselves, Buckcherry, Papa Roach, Sixx:A.M., and Trapt. Crüe Fest was said to be "the Loudest Show on Earth"...

 and Crüe Fest 2

Crüe Fest 2

Crüe Fest 2 was the second year of the Crüe Fest touring festival, created and headlined by Mötley Crüe. The tour took place over the summer of 2009, and was in the same vein as the first Crüe Fest.-Line up:...

.