Take a trip across the pond to see veteran punk-rockers Green Day on home turf.

Green Day, formed by lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong in the bands hometown of Oakland, California, have been around since the late 80’s providing us with almost two decades of punk/alternative rock.

Throughout their career Green Day has made some incredible contributions to the American rock scene, including their critically acclaimed, Grammy award winning album American Idiot in 2004. After an almost 5 year hiatus, in May 2009 they released the highly anticipated 21st Century Breakdown, which is also the title of their world tour en route to the UK in October.

‘And whether you like, love or hate Green Day, it was hard not to enjoy one of this years most entertaining concerts.’

Waiting outside the Cox Arena in San Diego was tedious. There was nothing I wanted more than for Green Day to hit the stage.

‘After what felt like forever, the lights flashed, guitars flashed, drums pounded and the crowd was in overdrive.’

Green Day had arrived. They opened with their first single from their new album, ‘Know Your Enemy’, and with its pulsing beats and driving guitars it was the perfect punk anthem to get the crowd roaring.

After a much anticipated return to the stage, you could tell that Green Day were nothing but veteran performers. The stage was bathed in hues of every colour, Billie Joe stalked the stage like a predator, and the set boasted of hits from right across the board.

New material from 21st Century Breakdown, was fused with fan favourites from ‘American Idiot’ such as ‘Holiday’, ‘St. Jimmy’ and ‘Blvd. of Broken Dreams’. The band also played heaps of old school Green Day such as ‘Longview’, ‘Welcome to Paradise’, ‘Basketcase’ and ‘When I come around’. It was any fan’s idea of an ideal set from the band; an exhaustive collection of their best stuff – live.

Yet this concert was so much more than just a concert; it was a full-blown performance.

‘Billie Joe is an absolute genius!’

He got the audience involved in about every way possible; whether it was throwing toilet paper at the crowd, spraying fans with a water gun, or yelling at the audience to join in on his chanting. It was incredible. He also brought fans up on stage, only to encourage them to dive straight back into the hands of other fans, and hand picked three people (on three separate occasions) to sing Green Day classics.
Two and a half hours, and a whole lot of music later, Green Day left the stage to eponymous shouts of epic proportions. Just about every soul in the Cox Arena was chanting their name!

‘In all, it was a fantastic gig; it was pure Green Day bliss.’

 No one sat down, everyone sang, Green Day gave everything they had, and then some more. 

When Billie Joe, Mike Dirnt, and Tre Cool grace the shores of Blighty this coming month, do everything in your power to get a ticket – this is one show you will not want to miss!

Score: 80%

live,concert,chanting,stage,arena,diego