Local music fans had been waiting for it to happen for a very long time.
Then, finally, it did — Green Day, one of the most popular Bay Area bands of all time, headlined Outside Lands in San Francisco on Aug. 6.
And it turned out to be every bit worth the wait as the Contra Costa County-born band — consisting of vocalist-guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist Mike Dirnt and drummer Tre Cool — had tens of thousands of fans bouncing along to their platinum-plus-selling pop-punk tunes on Day 2 of the festival in Golden Gate Park.
It was a triumphant showing for these hometown heroes, who fans have long expected — and hoped — would top a Outside Lands bill one of these years. Most assumed it would’ve already happened by now, especially given that the Bay Area’s other biggest band — Metallica — has already headlined the festival twice (in 2012 and 2017).
Yet, it turns out that fans weren’t the only ones eagerly awaiting for Green Day to play the festival
“Green Day is a conversation that we’ve been having for a long time,” says Allen Scott, president of concerts and festivals for the Berkeley-based Another Planet Presents, which co-presents Outside Lands. “The idea for them was actually for them to play last year, but because their stadium date (at Oracle Park in San Francisco) got moved a year due to COVID, we pushed to this year. So, Green Day has been booked for several years.”
The group did its most to make up for lost time, rolling through pretty much all of its big hits during a high-energy 21-song set that ran some 100 minutes.
Green Day opened its show with a powerful double shot of “American Idiot” and “Holiday,” two of a half-dozen numbers that the group would offer up from its multiplatinum-selling “American Idiot” album from 2004.
From there, Green Day powered through “Know Your Enemy” from the 2009 “American Idiot” follow-up, “21st Century Breakdown,” before returning again to the earlier album for a rousing version of “Boulevard of Broken Dreams.”
Armstrong was at the top of his game from the very start, pouring a ton of energy into his performance, drawing mightily from his bag of tricks — playing the guitar behind his neck, pulling fans out of the crowd to perform onstage with him, adding plenty of humor to the mix, etc. — and, in general, coming across like he wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else on this night.
“I’m so happy right now,” he said to the crowd.
The band mostly stuck to the hits — which is usually the right move for a festival appearance– as it delivered basically the same set it did one week early for the fans at Lollapalooza in Chicago.
Green Day completely ignored its mediocre newer material — including its most recent full-length, 2020’s “The Father of All (expletive)” — and just keep dealing from the earlier fan favorites like 2000’s “Warning” and, of course, the 1994 major label debut “Dookie,” which was well represented with four songs on this night.
The group’s live show hasn’t changed all that much over the last 15 years or so, and can seem more than a little repetitive for those folks who have been consistent Green Day concert-goers, so it was nice to see Armstrong and company spice things up a little bit in the form of cover songs on this night.
The highlight in that regard was the faithful take on the KISS nugget “Rock and Roll All Nite,” which showed without a shadow of a doubt that Green Day could’ve had a career as a fraternity-party band at nearby Cal Berkeley had that whole pop-punk thing never really taken off.
Armstrong also sang a brief part — no more than a snippet really — of the Journey song “Lights.” It was a nice salute to being back in the Bay Area, although one that probably felt a little less poignant for those who know the song was originally written about Los Angeles — not San Francisco.
The group also tipped the hat to fellow East Bay punk legends Operation Ivy by performing a cool cover of “Knowledge,” during which Armstrong brought a 10-year-old 49er fan named Montgomery up on the stage to play guitar. Montgomery didn’t shy away from the spotlight, as he strummed for the stars in front of the massive crowd. It must have been an awesome moment for young Montgomery, one made all that much better when Armstrong let him keep the guitar.
Green Day brought the show to a close with a flurry of great numbers — highlighted by a gorgeous take on “Wake Me Up When September Ends” — solidifying what thousands will likely remember as the signature set of the 2022 Outside Lands.
Set list:
American Idiot
Holiday
Know Your Enemy
Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Longview
Welcome to Paradise
Hitchin’ a Ride
Rock and Roll All Nite
Brain Stew
St. Jimmy
When I Come Around
Waiting
21 Guns
Minority
Knowledge
Basket Case
Lights
King for a Day
Shout
Wake Me Up When September Ends
Jesus of Suburbia
Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)
Source: www.mercurynews.com