Despite a currently traumatized economy, concert-ticket sales appear to be bucking the general downward trend, and Nickelback [ tickets ] is among the acts leading the recession-proof surge, entertainment company Live Nation claims.

Tickets for the band's forthcoming early 2009 tour, which went on sale to the public Dec. 5, are tracking 20% ahead of the band's 2007 tour numbers, with 210,000 tickets--or 70% of all available seats--already sold, according to a press release issued by Live Nation, which is promoting the tour. The trek, which represents the first fruits of the band's comprehensive unified rights deal with Live Nation, kicks off Feb. 25 in Nashville, TN. Dates for the tour, which will hit around 30 cities during the first few months of next year, are included below.

"Ticket sales for 2009 concerts are continuing to pace ahead of historic trends despite the global economic slowdown," said Live Nation Global Music CEO Jason Garner in a press statement. Live Nation is the world's largest concert-promotions firm. "Nickelback sales being 20% ahead of their last tour is consistent with what we are seeing from many of the tours currently on sale. While we continue to monitor the effect of the economy on our business, all of our data indicates that we are one of the only consumer businesses resilient to the economic downturn."

"Dark Horse," Nickelback's sixth studio album, surfaced in November and debuted at No. 2 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous release, 2005's "All the Right Reasons," topped the US album chart, spent 112 consecutive weeks in the Top 30 and has sold more than 11 million copies worldwide, according to Nickelback's bio.

The new record marks the first time since 2001's "Silver Side Up" that the Canadian rockers have worked with an outside producer. They recruited legendary studio wiz Mutt Lange, who has helped score hits for Def Leppard, AC/DC and Foreigner, among others.

The album's second single, "Something in Your Mouth," debuted at No. 31 on Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, eventually peaking at No. 7. The song, along with the album's first single, "Gotta Be Somebody," is streaming at Nickelback's MySpace page.