What a perfect day, it was a beautiful sunny afternoon/evening in 'Marlay Park Dublin' which is one of the best (if not the best) outdoor venue in
Ireland. This turned out to be a great gig and it was just so good to see the legend that is Joan Jett & the Blackhearts live after all these years.
Paramore weren't really my thing but the kids loved them and Green Day buried the memory of that terrible night at the Odyssey Arena,
Belfast back in October in style. All is well with the world!
Before we get into the review, yes! I know I stated that I'd never go to another 'Green Day' gig but hey, Joan Jett was on the bill!
We arrived at the venue way too early so we ended up just getting in line just like everyone else and if I didn't know any better I would
have sworn Sex Pistols guitar hero Steve Jones was onstage blasting out a Professionals intro while sound-checking, his trademark
wall of sound was swirling around the perimeter of the venue, even though he was probably 1000's of miles away in LA. But
things took a surprising turn and got even better, because we were there so early we unexpectedly ended up getting 'pit
passes' which enabled us to spend the whole gig up close and personal to all the onstage action.
It was rough and tough in the pit sometimes,and you had to stand your ground. So remember kids, next time if you wanna push and shove 'don't fuck with the
oldies' you're gonna come off worse! I've been a Runaways fan since I was a glam rock loving young kid somewhere back in time and I managed to see the
long awaited new Runaways movie only last week, so to say I was excited about seeing Joan Jett & the Blackhearts live in the flesh for the first time was an
understatement. They played a blinder even though the sound man messed up their 'Arrows' intro and the opening bars of the first song by forgetting to switch on
the back-line at the correct time.
Their infectious mix of glam rock stomp and punk rock grind went down really well with the crowd, the majority of whom were youngsters who had probably never
heard of her, though that'll all change once the brilliant previously mentioned Runaways movie hits the cinema screens here later this summer. I heard a few
teenage conversations questioning Joan's age (they mustn't have noticed Kenny Laguna onstage). I thought she looked pretty good and when she curled
her lip not in a 'Billy Idol' comedy way, but with "FU" attitude and a real sense of danger, she just looked so damn cool! The set was jam packed with top
glam-punk tunes 'Bad Reputation', 'Cherry Bomb','Do You Wanna Touch (not everyday you hear a bit of Gary Glitter)', 'Schooldays', 'ACDC', 'I Love Rock'n'roll'
and the rest. I loved it but not in a 70's nostalgic fashion, because I don't think I've ever really left the 70's. Anyway, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts were as
relevant on the day as any of the other bands on this bill. Hopefully it'll not be too long until she comes back and maybe pays Belfast a long overdue visit, either
with the Blackhearts or (wishful thinking) a reformed Runaway, because since her hit strewn heyday I don't think her profile has been higher.
Paramore weren't really my thing! Yeah, they're a very competent band and a big name with the scene kids in their own right. Plus they'd sold out the large capacity' Kings
Hall Belfast' only the night before. Hayley Williams is a little firecracker bundle of energy front-woman, but the band themselves couldn't be anymore anonymous or in the
background if they tried. When the Queen of Emo was in full
effect they just faded into the scenery which made them
incredibly boring to watch live. Their music in my opinion also
left a lot to be desired, though 'That's What You Get' and
'Decode' are good tunes, but I've never seen a guitarist make
such heavy work out of a five note solo! You'd have thought he
was playing the SS a fretboard frenzy by the faces he was
pulling. They were obviously a big draw here as they had plenty
of fans in attendance, the 'Twilight' children absolutely loved
them.
I'm not the worlds biggest Green Day fan and I tore their 2009
Belfast show to shreds in an online review I did at the time. I
thought the gig was more a terrible pantomime rather than the
large scale pop punk experience me and a lot of others were
expecting. Though with the benefit of hindsight I now believe
that the crappy hollow venue more than played its part in
ruining the night, so I may have went slightly overboard in my
criticism.
Happily tonight couldn't have been more different, they have
reduced the showbiz Pee Wee's. Playhouse antics down to an
acceptable level and stepped up to the plate with a good mix of
35 old (some really old) and recent tunes. It was a great gig and
buried the memory for me of that horrible night back in October.
Whoever came up with the idea of starting the Green Day live
show with a drunk pink bunny doing YMCA was a touch of genius! The fans love this
dirty little rabbit. Its a fun way to kick off to a show as it gets the whole crowd joining in
and its a laugh, but they really need to give that costume a wash, its pigging filthy.
Green Day were onstage for a pyro, scooby doo, nuns filled very long set, that covered
all era's so there was something there for everyone young and old. Billie Joe put it
himself and I quote "do you want more of the old shit?, because the old shit is
better than the new shit".
We all laughed with him, but the set was a good mix of tunes from their lengthy career.
Everyone was pleased enough with the bands choices even though theres always
something missing ('Murder City', 'Christians Inferno'). '21st Century Breakdown', 'Know
Your Enemy', 'Holiday', 'East Jesus Nowhere', 'Saints Are Coming In' (Skids), 'Nice
Guys Finish Last', '2000 Light Years', 'Basket Case', 'Brain Stew'/'Jaded', 'Geek Stink
Breath', 'Minority', 'Welcome To Paradise', 'Burnout', 'American Idiot' and the other 20
odd songs not mentioned here.
We even saw Joan Jett and New York Dolls photographer Bob Gruen watching the
Green Day set from stage right mixing desk. Can I make one small suggestion, could
Green Day please consider dropping the 15 Minute plus version of 'King For A Day'
from the set. Its way way way too long, its so drawn out its not even funny. BJ returned
for the encores acoustic guitar in hand and did the new song 'When Its Time' solo,
which went down well though to be honest I'd
never heard it before?
The gods must love Green Day because when
Billie Joe sang the "here comes the rain again,
falling from the stars" lyric from 'Wake Me Up
When September Ends' the heavens opened and
created a natural visual effect that made the song
even more poignant than usual. It looked stunning
and Billie Joe was drenched but not electrocuted.
The rain stopped again and 'Good Riddance (time
of your life)' brought the show to a firework filled
spectacular end.
The band took their well deserved applause and
that was that. It was a fantastic show and you'll be
glad to know I don't
dislike Green Day live anymore!
WORDS: Joe Donnelly (25th June 2010)
PICS: Joe Donnelly
Ireland. This turned out to be a great gig and it was just so good to see the legend that is Joan Jett & the Blackhearts live after all these years.
Paramore weren't really my thing but the kids loved them and Green Day buried the memory of that terrible night at the Odyssey Arena,
Belfast back in October in style. All is well with the world!
Before we get into the review, yes! I know I stated that I'd never go to another 'Green Day' gig but hey, Joan Jett was on the bill!
We arrived at the venue way too early so we ended up just getting in line just like everyone else and if I didn't know any better I would
have sworn Sex Pistols guitar hero Steve Jones was onstage blasting out a Professionals intro while sound-checking, his trademark
wall of sound was swirling around the perimeter of the venue, even though he was probably 1000's of miles away in LA. But
things took a surprising turn and got even better, because we were there so early we unexpectedly ended up getting 'pit
passes' which enabled us to spend the whole gig up close and personal to all the onstage action.
It was rough and tough in the pit sometimes,and you had to stand your ground. So remember kids, next time if you wanna push and shove 'don't fuck with the
oldies' you're gonna come off worse! I've been a Runaways fan since I was a glam rock loving young kid somewhere back in time and I managed to see the
long awaited new Runaways movie only last week, so to say I was excited about seeing Joan Jett & the Blackhearts live in the flesh for the first time was an
understatement. They played a blinder even though the sound man messed up their 'Arrows' intro and the opening bars of the first song by forgetting to switch on
the back-line at the correct time.
Their infectious mix of glam rock stomp and punk rock grind went down really well with the crowd, the majority of whom were youngsters who had probably never
heard of her, though that'll all change once the brilliant previously mentioned Runaways movie hits the cinema screens here later this summer. I heard a few
teenage conversations questioning Joan's age (they mustn't have noticed Kenny Laguna onstage). I thought she looked pretty good and when she curled
her lip not in a 'Billy Idol' comedy way, but with "FU" attitude and a real sense of danger, she just looked so damn cool! The set was jam packed with top
glam-punk tunes 'Bad Reputation', 'Cherry Bomb','Do You Wanna Touch (not everyday you hear a bit of Gary Glitter)', 'Schooldays', 'ACDC', 'I Love Rock'n'roll'
and the rest. I loved it but not in a 70's nostalgic fashion, because I don't think I've ever really left the 70's. Anyway, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts were as
relevant on the day as any of the other bands on this bill. Hopefully it'll not be too long until she comes back and maybe pays Belfast a long overdue visit, either
with the Blackhearts or (wishful thinking) a reformed Runaway, because since her hit strewn heyday I don't think her profile has been higher.
Paramore weren't really my thing! Yeah, they're a very competent band and a big name with the scene kids in their own right. Plus they'd sold out the large capacity' Kings
Hall Belfast' only the night before. Hayley Williams is a little firecracker bundle of energy front-woman, but the band themselves couldn't be anymore anonymous or in the
background if they tried. When the Queen of Emo was in full
effect they just faded into the scenery which made them
incredibly boring to watch live. Their music in my opinion also
left a lot to be desired, though 'That's What You Get' and
'Decode' are good tunes, but I've never seen a guitarist make
such heavy work out of a five note solo! You'd have thought he
was playing the SS a fretboard frenzy by the faces he was
pulling. They were obviously a big draw here as they had plenty
of fans in attendance, the 'Twilight' children absolutely loved
them.
I'm not the worlds biggest Green Day fan and I tore their 2009
Belfast show to shreds in an online review I did at the time. I
thought the gig was more a terrible pantomime rather than the
large scale pop punk experience me and a lot of others were
expecting. Though with the benefit of hindsight I now believe
that the crappy hollow venue more than played its part in
ruining the night, so I may have went slightly overboard in my
criticism.
Happily tonight couldn't have been more different, they have
reduced the showbiz Pee Wee's. Playhouse antics down to an
acceptable level and stepped up to the plate with a good mix of
35 old (some really old) and recent tunes. It was a great gig and
buried the memory for me of that horrible night back in October.
Whoever came up with the idea of starting the Green Day live
show with a drunk pink bunny doing YMCA was a touch of genius! The fans love this
dirty little rabbit. Its a fun way to kick off to a show as it gets the whole crowd joining in
and its a laugh, but they really need to give that costume a wash, its pigging filthy.
Green Day were onstage for a pyro, scooby doo, nuns filled very long set, that covered
all era's so there was something there for everyone young and old. Billie Joe put it
himself and I quote "do you want more of the old shit?, because the old shit is
better than the new shit".
We all laughed with him, but the set was a good mix of tunes from their lengthy career.
Everyone was pleased enough with the bands choices even though theres always
something missing ('Murder City', 'Christians Inferno'). '21st Century Breakdown', 'Know
Your Enemy', 'Holiday', 'East Jesus Nowhere', 'Saints Are Coming In' (Skids), 'Nice
Guys Finish Last', '2000 Light Years', 'Basket Case', 'Brain Stew'/'Jaded', 'Geek Stink
Breath', 'Minority', 'Welcome To Paradise', 'Burnout', 'American Idiot' and the other 20
odd songs not mentioned here.
We even saw Joan Jett and New York Dolls photographer Bob Gruen watching the
Green Day set from stage right mixing desk. Can I make one small suggestion, could
Green Day please consider dropping the 15 Minute plus version of 'King For A Day'
from the set. Its way way way too long, its so drawn out its not even funny. BJ returned
for the encores acoustic guitar in hand and did the new song 'When Its Time' solo,
which went down well though to be honest I'd
never heard it before?
The gods must love Green Day because when
Billie Joe sang the "here comes the rain again,
falling from the stars" lyric from 'Wake Me Up
When September Ends' the heavens opened and
created a natural visual effect that made the song
even more poignant than usual. It looked stunning
and Billie Joe was drenched but not electrocuted.
The rain stopped again and 'Good Riddance (time
of your life)' brought the show to a firework filled
spectacular end.
The band took their well deserved applause and
that was that. It was a fantastic show and you'll be
glad to know I don't
dislike Green Day live anymore!
WORDS: Joe Donnelly (25th June 2010)
PICS: Joe Donnelly
