Week O' Concerts

Nothing better to start August with a confirmation that rock is still alive and kicking, eh?

Monday and Tuesday I saw Green Day in Madison Square Garden, with the Kaiser Cheifs opening.

The only song I know by KC is "Ruby", but then I feel kinda "meh" about them. My biggest complaint though was that every instrument seemed to blend into each other, and not in a good way. They have a nice 80's pop/rock sound with a hefty dose of techno, but I skipped them Tuesday night.

The real meat and bones: Green Day. Let me say this- if you value fun, power chords, or music in general, see them live. Billie Joe Armstrong has enough energy to motherfucker around for 8 people. They hit on a lot of big songs from both the new album ("Know Your Enemy", "21st Century Breakdown") and the old ("Basket Case", "Brain Stew/Jaded", and "King For A Day", which they segued into "Shout", "Longview") and even a few suprises ("Static Age" and "Murder City" from the new album, "2000 Light Years Away", "Dissappearing Boy"). If you were disappointed with the setlist, then congratulation, you're a fucking snob.

There was some cool stuff going on in the background, with a light up city and background depending on the song, like war footage for "Holiday" and lyrics in graffiti for "Jesus Of Suburbia". Also, the Pyro showed up for "Static Age"

The best part was the very loose, fun atmosphere the show had. During "East Jesus Nowhere" they brought a kid on stage to be saved (complete with pyrotechnics), and ensured that kid would either grow up to be messed up or totally awesome. They invited people up to play Operation Ivy's "Knowledge" and "Jesus Of Suburbia". Like, their actual fucking instruments. One kid even got to keep Mike Dirnt's bass. Some kid jumped up on stage during "Know Your Enemy", danced on stage for a bit, then dove back off.

Compare that to AC/DC's show (C WUT I DID THAR) at Giants Stadium yesterday, where the floor security was an immovable force of... something, but it wasn't as, shall we say "intimate" as the Green Day show. But if you've heard an AC/DC song, they played it. The effects kicked ass, with a little movie playing before hand, to the actual Rock N' Roll Train, and all the classic props (The Bell for Hell's Bells, giant blow up Rosie for "Whole Lotta Rosie").

However the biggest moment in my mind was the final solo for "Let There Be Rock", where Angus Young went balls out shredding for a good 6 minutes. Arthritis? What the hell is that?

All in all, a pretty good week. I should have another song for you by tomorrow or Monday.