What was it that made the Green Day concert the fist pumping, heart stopping event of the summer? It could it have been anything between the ring leader of the show Billie Joe Armstrong and  the deafening sound of music mixed with the shouts of the crowd and the explosion of fireworks.

There was never a dull moment with Armstrong onstage to use his magic as an entertainer to rally up the crowd throughout the show. The concert took place August 26^th at the Super pages center in Dallas.

Impatience was well seen on the faces of the fans in the pit as they waited for the set crew to ready the stage for Green Day to play. The band seemed to have a thing for dramatics for when the band finally burst out from the wings it was closer to dark and they were met by screaming fans and an abundance of fire crackers and strobe lights flashing.

Talk about a dramatic entrance, the strobes lights and fire crackers were a consistent part of the concert while Green Day played to illuminate the stage and make the songs all the more dramatic for the fans. Thanks to the giant screens set up on either side of the stage even the fans with lawn tickets could see Green Day up close and in action.

The artists of Green Day (Armstrong as guitarist and singer, Mike Dirnt as bass guitarist, and Tre’ Cool as the drummer) never seemed to lose their excitement or enthusiasm even though they played 30 plus of their songs. They started off by playing songs from their albums 21^st Century Breakdown and American Idiot to get the crowd going then began playing some of their classic songs such as “St. Jimmy”, “East Jesus of Nowhere”,  “Know Your Enemy” and “Holiday”.

The excitement kept going when the band brought up fans to the stage to sing songs including “2000 Light Years Away” where 50 younger fans were called up. Green Day also played some of its older but classic songs such as “Geek Stink Breath”, “Hitchin a Ride” and “When I Come Around”. Armstrong also made it a point to scare parents in the audience by the language he used and his gestures.

However Green Day also found a way to appeal to the older generation by playing songs such as the Isley Brother’s “Shout”, Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin’” and the Rolling Stone’s “Satisfaction”. By the time these songs were played it was getting late and their closing songs where some of their best ever such as “Minority”, “American Idiot”, “Jesus of Suburbia”, and “(Good Riddance) Time of your Life”.

But of course Green Day couldn’t have a normal exit, with a such a love of dramatics it had lights flashing, fire crackers going off and cannons firing off confetti into the pit as they played its final songs until both Cool and Dirnt had walked off the stage leaving Armstrong playing “The Time of Your Life” alone on his guitar. Deep emotion was seen in his face as it turned into “Wake Me up When September Ends”, a song about his father’s death, when suddenly his band members reappeared finishing the song with a boom, quite literally as the firecrackers all went off and the concert was over.

Before Green Day even showed up on stage the excitement was flowing through the air especially in the pit area where all the die-hard fans clustered together getting as close to the stage as they could. When opening act AFI came on stage it were met by the cheers of the crowd and immediately burst into one of their songs. With little hesitation the fans cheered and started singing along with lead singer Davey Havok.

Havok had recently changed his appearance for this concert and slightly resembled John Travolta from Grease with his gelled up hair, grubby black clothes and memorable dance moves throughout the concert. After AFI played for an hour it signed off with its well known song “Miss Murder” to get the  crowd  wound up and ready for the main act (Green Day) to come on out.

It was a memorable night for all who was at the concert no matter where they sat they could all enjoy the entertainment of Armstrong, Cool and Dirnt as they played their hearts out.

Staff Writer 

Here I go again – sit back and enjoy yet another concert review from your reliable music guru / Sidekick staff writer.

Flogging Molly. Photo Courtesy of http://www.floggingmolly.com/.

The Flogging Molly ‘Green 17′ tour was launched last night with a sold out show at the House of Blues in Dallas. Flogging Molly’s ‘Green 17′ Tour has become a yearly tradition, where the Celtic Punk band stretches out the St. Patrick Day’s celebration, ultimately ending up with a big St. Patrick’s Day blowout in Arizona on March 17.

I had 7:30 dinner reservations at the House of Blues restaurant and walked over to my balcony seat at about 8:45. There wasn’t anyone on stage and I assumed the opening band wouldn’t start until around 9:00, but, to my surprise, Dave King was standing on the stage right as I sunk into my seat.

The band was awesome. There is is. That’s all there is. It isn’t debatable.

The base drum vibrated by vocal cords from the balcony and when I went down to the lower level for the 2nd half of the show, I seriously thought I was about to go deaf. I loved it.

If it wasn’t for the unbelievable talent leaking from each of the band members, I would believe Flogging Molly was made up of Irish geeks who one day said “Hey! Lets’ play music.”

I was so impressed with the band last night that even after jumping up and down for 2 straight hours, have drinks spilt on me from the other people jumping up and down and having 30 people crush in on me from all sides – I didn’t want to leave. And I’m claustrophobic.

I encourage you to buy CD (I have them all), buy a t-shirt (I have 2) or see a show (I’ve seen 2) – I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Flogging Molly Fun Facts!

Studio Albums:

2000: Swagger

2002: Drunken Lullabies

2004: Within a Mile of Home

2008: Float

Band Members:

 Dave King: Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Bodhran
Dennis Casey: Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Vocals
Matthew Hensley: Accordion, Concertina, Piano, Vocals
Nathen Maxwell: Bass Guitar, Vocals
Bridget Regan: Violin, Tin Whistle, Classical Guitar, Uilleann Pipes, Vocals
Robert Schmidt: Mandolin, Mandola, Tenor Banjo, Five String Banjo, Vocals
George Schwindt: Drums, Percussion

The ‘Green 17′ tour dates:

February
9 – Dallas, TX, House of Blues
10 – Houston, TX, House of Blues
12 – Memphis, TN, Minglewood Hall
13 – Atlanta, GA, Tabernacle
14 – Tampa, FL, The Ritz
16 – Orlando, FL, House of Blues
17 – Orlando, FL, House of Blues
18 – Charleston, SC, The Music Farm
19 – Charlotte, NC, The Fillmore
20 – Myrtle Beach, SC, House of Blues
22 – Norfolk, VA, The Norva
23 – Baltimore, MD, Ram’s Head Live!
25 – Hartford, CT, Webster Theatre
26 – Philadelphia, PA, Electric Factory
27 – Boston, MA, House of Blues

March
2 – New York, NY, Hammerstein Ballroom
3 – University Park, PA, Penn State University
4 – Columbus, OH, LC Pavillion
5 – Cleveland, OH, House of Blues
6 – Detroit, MI, The Fillmore
8 – Indianapolis, IN, Egyptian Room
9 – Cincinnati, OH, Bogart’s
10 – St. Louis, MO, The Pageant
12 – Milwaukee, WI, The Eagles Club
13 – Chicago, IL, Aragon Ballroom
14 – Kansas City, MO, Uptown Theater
15 – Tulsa, OK, Cain’s Ballroom
17 – Tempe, AZ, Tempe Beach Park

Last Friday, Canadian-born Joel Zimmerman, otherwise hailed as “Deadmau5″, preformed at the House of Blues in Dallas. As a personal fan of progressive house (his genre) I expected to find what I usually encounter. However, such was not the case.

Deadmau5, kicked off the night at the early time of 10 p.m. With a sold-out show, I could only hope the somewhat smaller venue could accomodate for so many people. It did, but that’s not to say the employees can be attributed with the same success rate.

In reality, upon going to pick up the tickets at will call I was told that my name wasn’t on the list. Despite e-mail verification, the card of purchase and my i.d., it seems the House of Blues had misplaced something. Rather than help me in dealing with this discrepancy, I was told to leave because ‘there was nothing they could do.’ A little while later, however, they mysteriously came upon a new list and realized I was in fact on it.

So, an hour of waiting in utter despair and the House of Blues was slowly becoming a place of literal and emotional blues. Needless to say, I advise to anyone attending the House of Blues (at least for an electronic concert) to call ahead and confirm their name on the list. First and foremost, however, be persistent in making sure they don’t jab you out of a must-see show.

Thus, although Deadmau5 proved his title, I can’t say the same for the House of Blues.

See more about Deadmau5 here: http://www.deadmau5.com/