Green Day at Copps Coliseum, Hamilton, July 16, 2009 - Review, Live Photos and Setlist

Green Day at Copps Coliseum, Hamilton, ON
Concert review, photos and setlist by Music Vice editor Brian Banks - July 19, 2009

Shooting Green Day was a dream come true for a fanatic like myself. They are the band that got me hooked on music. I made a blog post to blah-blah about why this was such a big deal for me - check it out here if you're interested. - cheers, Brian

Green Day in Hamilton. Ah, easily the biggest show that’s happened in this town in a long time and just what the Steel City needed to blow away some of the recent doom and gloom, what with high unemployment and that whole saga about the owner of Blackberry’s thus-far failed attempts at relocating a hockey team to a town in desperate of rejuvenation. For the meantime the Phoenix Coyotes remain rooted in the Arizona desert, meaning that Toronto and their Leafs are the only hockey team around in an ever-growing populous of hockey-hooked Southern Ontario, and leaving Hamilton to build on its inferiority complex as it languishes in the shadow of Toronto. But - like an uppercut from an underdog! - tonight Hamilton and Copps Coliseum got one-up on Toronto as Green Day came to town.

Support band The Bravery had seemingly played and exited long since their 8 p.m. slot, and I wasn’t at all bothered about missing their set. Actually, I was just really surprised to see their name on the bill as I thought this band had been left behind in 2005, when they had that one hit single An Honest Mistake.

At around 9 the concert began proper with the traditional Green Day show-opening gag of a dude in a pink bunny outfit staggering around on stage swigging a couple of beers. I stood from the photo pit below the stage and looked around the packed-out Copps Coliseum - the venue reminded me a lot of Hamburg’s Sporthalle, which had been the setting for my first Green Day show, during the American Idiot tour. The atmosphere tonight in Hamilton was fantastic but it wouldn't touch that euphoric night in Germany.

The American Idiot tour had the extra ingredients of Anti-War and Anti-Bush overtones that added a whole lot of weight and fuel to the fire. The atmosphere tonight for this stop of the 21st Century Breakdown tour was different, with all the “fuck Bush” anger long since put to the back of minds (but not forgotten; American Idiot was sung with furor) and tonight became a celebration of the old and new music. Musically, 21st Century Breakdown wears many of its influences on its sleeve from the band's own back catalogue - take American Eulogy which is a sound-a-like to Deadbeat Holiday from Warning, while Christian's Inferno is a trojan horse sneaking in music very much in the vein of Green Day's 'secret' new wave side project The Network. The new songs were embraced as fondly as old as the thousands of fans in house at Copps Coliseum sang a long to every moment for what became one big Green Day love-in.

An intense Billie Joe Armstrong stares into the crowd as Green Day play Copps Coliseum - photo by Brian Banks

"Billie Joe was wide-eyed and sprightly from the outset as he bounded around the stage, reveling in the audience’s glow and rapturous support."

After the intro Song of the Century played out over the speakers, Green Day opened with the title track from 21st Century Breakdown. Frontman Billie Joe Armstrong was wide-eyed and sprightly from the outset as he bounded around the stage. Seeing Billie Joe from the touching-distance of the photo pit below the stage allowed me to see the shear intensity in his eyes, as he was reveling in the audience’s glow and rapturous support, frequently gazing into the eyes of members of the crowd. A man who lives to play his music, and who clearly gets a kick performing to his fans and sharing in the moment.

By the conclusion of second song Know Your Enemy, Armstrong had already plunged into the crowd on stage left, emerging with a young boy who he took on stage to stand beside him in the spotlight while he finished the number. That kid was one of a handful of lucky fans who would be invited up on stage throughout the evening, with Billie Joe always eager to share the stage with his fans. Later on a blonde girl and then a guy would both get the chance to take the mic for Longview. That guy was pretty good but the star of the evening was a guy called Sam who Armstrong plucked from the crowd after seeing him holding up a bristle-board proclaiming;
“Me + Guitar = Jesus Of Suburbia”. Sam nailed it, taking the limelight as he played B.J.’s lead guitar for the entire five-part duration of Jesus Of Suburbia while Armstrong sang. The song ended and Sam made a stage diving exit which led to him being held aloft for two minutes as he crowd surfed his way around the floor area, the spotlight still shining on him while Green Day played into Minority. Brilliant!

Green Day played a marathon set that ran over two and a half hours, with the key moments from 21st Century Breakdown being played together with hits going back to their breakthrough album Dookie. The first half of the set was As if that wasn’t enough, midway during their set Green Day broke out into a trio of teasers, playing snippets of Ozzy Osbourne’s Crazy Train, Van Halen’s Ain't Talking About Love and Metallica’s Master Of Puppets. Some mighty fine showboating that got a huge response from the crowd, and it was a great lead-in to Brain Stew.

"...with American Idiot and now 21st Century Breakdown, Green Day have provided music that has become a pinnacle part in the soundtrack of this decade. They have defined an era and brought a whole new meaning to what it means to be punk rock."

The level of stamina and commitment shown tonight by Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool was immense. Sure they had a bit of help from the wings with the familiar faces of a few back-up players, but that doesn’t detract anything from the core of the band who only stopped for a two minute breather the whole evening, before returning to the stage for the encore. Green Day have kept the energy and credibility to their performances which are peerless. The band have continued to challenge themselves and evolve their music - with American Idiot and now 21st Century Breakdown, Green Day have provided music that has become a pinnacle part in the soundtrack of this decade. Their music has progressed as such that they have not only redefined their own careers, but by creating and touring American Idiot and now 21st Century Breakdown they have defined an era and brought a whole new meaning to what it means to be punk rock. Playing a marathon length set and allowing your fans to be part of the proceedings? That's what its all about! - that's entertainment and a new archetypal for stadium rock. Green Day's move into the world of epic rock opera concept albums may be remembered in history as being as bold and pioneering to punk as the likes of Jerry Lee Lewis and Iggy Pop.

Green Day are true veterans of their craft, and on the evidence of this evening I can only hope that there is no letting-up and that there will be another album and another tour in the next decade.

Song of the Century
21st Century Breakdown
Know Your Enemy
East Jesus Nowhere
Holiday
The Static Age
Before the Lobotomy
Are We the Waiting
St. Jimmy
Boulevard Of Broken Dreams
Hitchin' A Ride
Brain Stew
Jaded
Longview
Basket Case
She
King For A Day
21 Guns
American Eulogy