Details
Location:
O2 Academy Brixton in London, England
Date:
January 31, 1998
Other Acts:
D Generation
Notes:
- David Rose: "We set off for this one at 1/4 to 3, so had a quick detour over to Camden with the boys (Ady and Rich), before getting over to Brixton at 6.15. Had something to eat and a couple of drinks, as the queue for this sell-out show stretched around the block, so we didn't get in until 8.15, still managing to secure good unreserved circle seats, stage left. So we had a very good view for support D-Generation, who were US trad punk - a bit like the Ramones, Black Flag - 10 years too late and not too bright, really. The place erupted at 9.15 for the appearance of the Green Day boys, though; bounding onstage to the entrance music of Devo's excellent Whip It, and bursting into their MTV-friendly 90's punk rock set with a vengeance. Well-known numbers such as Welcome To Paradise and Geek Stink Breath were tossed in early on, as Billie Joe Armstrong, a superb charismatic nutcase frontman, led the band through some serious ramalama punk rock riffery, and turned the crowd downstairs into a dervish moshpit. Feet were dully tapped on the balcony, too, although due to heavy-handed security, we couldn't go much further than that. It's a rock gig, we want to dance, you fascists! Anyway, on the dancefloor, audience participation was the order of the day; Billie Joe exhorting the mosh to shout, 'Fuck off!' at us balcony lot, and for us to reply, 'You suck!'; the band dragging a 16 year old out of the mosh to play guitar, then releasing him to dive back in during the entrance to the splendid Basket Case; and Billie Joe putting on dozens of t-shirts chucked onstage. Following a cacophonic ending to encore When I Come Around (wherein both drumkit and speaker stack were trashed, rock'n'roll style), Billie Joe ended with a solo rendition of current single Time of Your Life. We did, thanks. Tremendous entertainment; a superb gig!"
- "Adam and I found some seats next to some fit babes, and sat back, waiting for D Generation to come on. Then these real old guys came on, and one started playing on the bass; he was really old and fat, and we all thought that was the band. But we were relieved when they actually came on. The fat guy must have been a tuner or something. When they came on, we were all kinda excited, and downstairs, some people were pogoing, but D Generation wasn't really too entertaining. They left after about seven or eight songs. Then the Green Day banner came down, and the crowd went mad. Five minutes later, the lights started to flash, and Tre came on stage and did that little balancing stance on top of an amp. Mike and Billie followed shortly, and the crowd erupted. I can't remember with which song they opened, but the moshpit went crazy. This guy called Luke came up for Knowledge, and he was fucking great. He played back to back with Mike, and even did this cool little solo. At the end of the song, Billie told him to stand in this spot, and then started to chant, 'Jump, jump, jump,' and after about five seconds, the guy dived into the crowd. Inbetween quite a few songs, Billie sprayed the fans with water, but Mike did nothing. After The Grouch, Tre stood on an amp, and did the balance thing again. When they played When I Come Around, upstairs, everyone erupted. We weren't allowed to stand up there, but everyone did, and the stewards couldn't do shit. Mike and Tre smashed up the drums, and knocked over some other stuff, whilst Billie lay on the ground, with this real harsh feedback reverberating from left to right. Then he played Good Riddance, and that was it."
Setlist
1. Going To Pasalacqua
2. Welcome To Paradise
3. Geek Stink Breath
4. Nice Guys Finish Last
5. Hitchin' A Ride
6. The Grouch
7. Chump
8. The Beautiful People (Marilyn Manson cover) / Longview
9. 2,000 Light Years Away
10. Brain Stew
11. Jaded
12. Knowledge (Operation Ivy cover)
13. Basket Case
14. She
15. F.O.D.
16. Paper Lanterns
Encore
17. When I Come Around
18. Scattered
19. Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)
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