So what if their bassist’s opus is in a song about jerking off. These are the punks you can’t help but love and hate. Yes, I’m talking about Green Day. On Thursday, August 20, 2009, I experienced them in concert at the Viejas Arena in San Diego. They played lots of songs from their new album, most of their old hits and gave us two hours of powerful, jump-up-and-down and bang your head music. And this is my story.
I’ve been a Green Day fan since I heard one of my college roommates (Chris Clayton) play their CD. When I found my girlfriend Jennifer Shepherd had it too, I knew it was dope. This was 1994 at San Diego State University and the Dookie album had been released in February. I remember Chris pointing out things like the funky bass line in Longview and the impressive speed of the drums in Basket Case. Energy, energy and more energy….plus a little laughter.
Bill Joe cracks me up when he sings, “Sometimes I give myself the creeps.” Then you take a look at him and go, mmm, yeah. Ok, I can see how that could be possible. Then you think, “No!” I can’t judge him like that….then your mind goes back to the middle and says ok, he’s just a cute little, fuzzy haired, misdirected fellow. He ain’t so bad. Yeah? That’s what I thought.
No, in all seriousness….wait, why be serious? Well……dunno. Ohhh, good song just came on.
When I teach electric guitar students how to play in drop D tuning, I often teach them Brain Stew. Wow, what a powerful song!!! Dark sounding to boot.
Before I talk about some Green Day songs, the musicians in the band and their contributions, let me (oh, another great song just came on….let me make a note below this paragraph to write about that in a minute) say one thing. I enjoy how Green Day likes to have fun. For instance, for a portion of their set last night they wore crazy costumes. Dirnt had bunny ears. Trey wore a red bra over his shirt. LOL. Which brings me to something else….
Several times in the concert, they produced some mighty dissonant sounds that resonated very warmly. In fact, some of them felt downright hypnotic with the huge cartoon like yellow holograms of the musicians performing live as they played. It was also a trip how they occasionally embraced dramatic silences. I say, “…….wait for it…….Fantastico!” I can’t understand why more bands can’t give it a pause here or there. They act like it’s a race. Nonetheless, fat pauses are great for emphasis or change.
Green Day played a lot of songs from the newly released 21st Century Breakdown album like 21 Guns, Know Your Enemy and Before the Lobotomy. They also played many of their older hits such as American Idiot, Blvd. of Broken Dreams, When I Come Around, Holiday, Longview, Basket Case and Brain Stew. In most cases, they were very true to the album recordings. However, there were a couple of unique solos and arrangements. These guys never hesitated to great the crowd involved – bringing many a crowd member up on stage! No joke….I hadn’t seen so many kids on stage since an Audio Adrenaline concert. It was pretty cute, actually.
Several times, when I looked at these guys, I thought to myself “These guys don’t try to be punks, they just are.” It was after the 5,000th time they told the crowd to cheer that I started (almost affectionately) giving them the PB wave. It just seemed appropriate and I knew punks like them would appreciate it. From one punk to another. You know. Imagine that happening in church. After the 10th time the pastor panders for applause, you start giving him the finger. Heh. All I can say is this: if you deserve the finger, you deserve the finger. If you don’t, then you don’t. Plain and simple.
Did you know that the last two Green Day albums are actually rock operas? I know (in Craig Ferguson’s voice). I probably heard it somewhere before tonight, but I looked into it a bit ago and found it to be interesting. Good way to stay famous for a very long time. Students and professionals could be performing them until eternity. For what it’s worth, all of the songs on 21st Century Breakdown could be singles. They stand up very well on their own.
Funny story. On the day the 21st Century Breakdown album dropped, I listened to it. On my first listen, one of the songs inspired me, so I picked up my guitar and said, “Whatever song comes on next, I’m going to find it while it’s playing and play along, then put it on YouTube.” It happened to be the song Do You Know and it was great fun that day. Why did I do this? Not sure….maybe I wanted to punk the punks or maybe I just wanted to challenge myself.
“Ole, ole” chanted the crowd from time to time (by Billie Joe’s guidance, of course). It sounded like a soccer game! He let the crowd sing several Green Day song lines throughout the night. Must be cool to hear thousands of people singing your song.
The stage, lighting, video screen and pyrotechnics were cool. They (oops, gotta go play this song….brb. heh, one song turned into two, but that’s ok. Let me record some late night shows – just in case I need them at some point…..k, I’m back now.) However, there were about 10-15 loud explosions throughout the show and I was stoked I had my earplugs in. They protected my ears quite a bit, but I felt bad for everyone else. If these punks wanna make noise that loud, they should pop for some earplugs for the crowd. If Ticketmaster were smart, they’d require them because they could have a liability case against them one day. However, I’m sure they know hearing loss is usually a long and gradual process, so it can be difficult to tell how and when it was impaired. I hope we become more aware of how our body suffers and fix the problems before they become disabilities. Take that one to the bank. Put it in your pipe and smoke it, too.
Can you think of any songs where the band purposely leaves a mistake or two in the album recording? Me neither. But Green Day does it with the two so-called “Fuck ups” (which, despite the song title, I had to change to “Mess ups” for my younger students) in the beginning of Time of Your Life (Good Riddance). Wow, that was a powerful song to me. Bill Joe came out for the 2nd encore by himself with a white acoustic guitar and began stroking it. It made me recall the experience around that song….after meeting in Israel in Dec. of 1997, we returned home and had a whirlwind engagement and romp around the Eastern states. However, after awhile the Barbie doll-esque Rexella Richardson decided to leave me in Lynchburg and return to her parents in Atlanta, Georgia. It was a heartbreaking ordeal….and I recall playing and singing Time of Your Life on her answering machine. We haven’t spoken to each other since 1998.
Back to the concert . . . on a positive note, the hot blonde chick on my right was somehow hit by Billie Joe’s water gun….and right in the chest. Who woulda thunk it? And in a moment of insanity, the girl on my left (who was on some big dude’s shoulders) suddenly decided to flash the band. She was hot. No, not hot as in cute, but hot as in warm. I saw her fanning herself and trying to get air under her shirt just minutes earlier. She wasn’t that attractive, but she did have her boobs falling out of her shirt most of the night.
Did you know that Green Day used to be a punk band? Once upon a time, they were a trio composed of Billie Joe on guitar and vocals, Tre Cool on Drums and Mike Dirnt on bass. Even today, they exclude the other band members in their promos and most of their photographs (which is kinda lame, but then again, they are punks). The other electric guitarist (Jason White) who plays lots of leads and rhythm on nearly every song and he has been with them since 1999. Might be nice to put him on an album cover one day. Not only is he a talented dude who can play some very cool sounding guitar solos and quick power chords, he deserves some credit because he has done a lot with those power chords (wow…..I think I gotta play this song too….ok, I’m back.)
Since drumming is probably the weakest of the instruments I know how to play, I usually don’t focus on them too much in my band reviews, but Green Day’s drummer needs some recognition. This guy is a freak. He put a huge smile on my face a couple of times, just because he’s so goofy. I also like how he begins a number of songs very differently and has some cool rolls, sometimes very fast like in Basket Case and sometimes just unique. He’s clearly a creative musician and one who cares about showmanship. I like it.
The Green Day concert was a lot of fun. I got there right as it was starting and bought a ticket from someone outside. It was a General Admission ticket at face value, so I was stoked. That’s exactly what I wanted ever since I realized the tickets were on sale (and all GA tix were sold out). It just isn’t that fun when I’m confined to a seat! Outdoor venues are the best because you can move….and breathe fresh air. Anyhow, I digress.
One of the first songs I learned with power chords was the main hook to When I Come Around. I remember it actually taking me a little while to get….whew, just played it. Great fun! I’m going to have to record that one and upload it asap. Anyhow, I remember it actually taking me a little while to get that chord progression down. Hey, it uses the A string and E string power chords….but I found it in a matter of seconds now (yes, I had forgotten it….heh). I suppose one criticism of Green Day is their overuse of power chords. You could say they overuse them, but you could also just call it their signature. Does The Offspring overuse power chords? Nah, probably not….they just know how to use power chords. Green Day has done a lot with a little (so to speak). Creating the diversity of sound they do with only the top 2 strings being played on the electric guitar (on a sizeable portion of their songs, anyway) is admirable. Jason White often throws in crunchy, muted strums in between his chords (hear Brain Stew and East Jesus Nowhere) and they fill the spaces very nicely.
Whew, just put down the guitar again. Had to play Do You Know. Man, how do I do it? * chuckle * How can I stop doing it is probably a better question. ; )
In conclusion….I had a lot of fun at the Green Day concert. They played a really long set and two encores of action packed music. Hooray music! Hooray!
This is a photo of Green Day's tour bus. They parked it right in front of the entrance to the Viejas Arena
Oh yeah, and click here and search for Green Day to find my Green Day covers.
