Photos by Kevin Martinico
The first time I saw Green Day was 30 years ago, at Lollapalooza ’94 in San Diego. That festival was also my introduction to The Smashing Pumpkins. So, when I heard Green Day was coming to town to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Dookie and the 20th anniversary of American Idiot, with The Smashing Pumpkins and Rancid opening, I knew I had to be there.
The Linda Lindas, an all-female group of teenagers ranging from 14 to 19 years old, kicked things off for a small but enthusiastic crowd. Playing an early set on a four-band bill at a stadium show is always tough, but those who showed up early were treated to a high-energy blast of rowdy Pop-Punk.
Next up was Rancid, and I was almost as excited to see them as the headliners. I remember catching Rancid for the first time at a small club in ’95, wishing they’d throw in some Operation Ivy tracks. Now, Rancid are the elder statesmen of California Punk. Tim Armstrong, Matt Freeman, and Lars Frederiksen might be getting older, but their crusty ways remain intact. Their set leaned heavily on …And Out Come the Wolves, with Old Friend dedicated to Jello Biafra. They also mixed in a few tracks from this century and a couple from Let’s Go (another album turning 30 this year).
The Smashing Pumpkins took the stage next. Not celebrating an album anniversary, but still three-fourths of the band I saw back in ’94, they delivered an hour-long, decades-spanning set. Unfortunately, I was juggling both photography and writing duties, so I didn’t get to stay on the field for their whole set. From what I did catch, the highlights were “Today” and “Tonight, Tonight.” I didn’t recognize all the songs I saw, but I could hear—through a twinge of jealousy for those in the crowd—a good chunk of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness played with precision.
The weather was perfect, the crowd primed, and the place exploded when Green Day kicked things off with “The American Dream Is Killing Me” from their latest album. Being in the pit, the pyro was intense—so much so that one of the photographers next to me literally screamed when an explosion went off.
“Welcome to the 30th anniversary of Dookie!” Billie Joe Armstrong shouted, and the stage transformed into an animated version of the Dookie cover art. They launched into “Burnout,” taking me straight back to high school. The entire album was performed front to back, in order, with no interruptions. The only detour was when Billie sang a bit of “Jack and Diane” as an intro to “F.O.D.” The Dookie set wrapped with an acoustic version of “All by Myself,” performed by Tré Cool in a bathrobe.
The set between albums featured a handful of songs from Saviors, including “Know Your Enemy.” Billie brought a girl named Ruby, who had crocheted a doll for him, from the front row on stage to help sing and dance like a pro during that song. A standout from the middle set was “Brain Stew”—the sole Insomniac track of the night. The Heavy Metal medley that kicked it off had the crowd going wild.
Then it was time for American Idiot. A massive fist holding a heart grenade dominated the stage as the Bush-era classic was played front to back, transporting us from the days of Pop-Punk in all-ages clubs to the era of arenas and stadiums. The performance was flawless, with Billie looking and acting like he hadn’t aged a day since the album’s release.
The night closed with “Bobby Sox” and “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life).” The entire set lasted about two and a half hours without a break. While it wasn’t exactly the Punk-Rock version of the Eras Tour, it was a night full of music that soundtracked multiple generations’ formative years. It was one hell of a time.
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