Two weeks and 216 miles away from the dramatic images of Woodstock's 30th anniversary finale going tragically awry, violence, rioting and burning cars marred the final two shows of the Dave Matthews [ tickets ] Band tour in Hartford on Saturday and Sunday.

Violence first erupted on Saturday among a large group of local young adults who gathered at a parking lot adjacent to the Meadows Music Theatre without tickets to the sold-out show. Police and witnesses quoted in the Hartford Courant report that as members of the crowd grew increasingly inebriated with a mixture of alcohol and nitrous oxide, bonfires were lit in the parking lot.

As the fires grew, fueled by abandoned furniture and flammable debris, members of the crowd overturned two cars and began a rampage of vandalism on other vehicles as the concert went on without incident inside the venue. The overturned vehicles were set afire as police began to descend on the crowd, using a chemical spray to subdue the crowd.

17 people were arrested Saturday night and dozens were reportedly injured, most from broken beer bottles either thrown during the melee or by falling or walking barefoot on shattered glass that covered areas of the venue parking lot.

Amateur nitrous oxide and beer vendors descended on the venue parking lot again Sunday, according to the Courant, fueling a new crowd with the raw materials for another round of violence. Again, fires were set and violence kept firefighters from entering the area without a police escort.

Police on Sunday used tear gas and fired rubber bullets into the crowd to quell outbursts of violence. Several minor injuries were attributed to the impact of both the rubber bullets and beanbag rounds fired into the crowd.

Concert promoter Jim Koplik, speaking with the Courant, applauded the police response to the melee and said he planned to meet with city and police officials this week to discuss changes in crowd management of the venue's adjacent parking lot areas.

The Dave Matthews Band has two non-tour shows left on their schedule, a September 11th taping for a PBS special and a performance the following night at this year's Farm Aid concert in Washington, DC.