Show Notes: Press & Sun Beletta: "There's a lot of love in a mosh pit. There has to be, or everyone would be dead. Thursday night at the Arena, there was a lot trust, a lot of lost sneakers and a lot of kids who should have had their parents drive them to General for a CAT scan. Welcome to the controlled anarchy of 90's punk, where 10 cops police the line around the block, everyone is frisked and everything that can be used as a projectile is checked at the door - except shoes. But this is not the punk of old. It's not about destroying the system, yourself and everything around you. It's about slacking off and never growing up. Green Day guitarist-vocalist Billie Joe is the poster boy of punk's new wave - Peter Pan with a bad attitude and vocabulary that would give Captain Hook pause. And last night he led a large and lively crowd with a mean age of 16 in an orgy of acting out - swearing, disrespecting parents and leading the crowd in a liberating singalong about mastubation. Billie Joe knows that everybody wants to feel they belong and he leads the crowd like a pro. He made them swear at each other, do the wave and exercise like a class clown would if the teacher stepped out. It was all very naughty and very fun. The band enjoys itself so much onstage it makes you feel they're glad you came. Those who didn't missed a moment when Billie Joe tweaked out a truly pathetic solo while on his back, then sprang with his arms up, wearing a grin that transcended irony. He was rewarded with cheers of adulation. And who would guess this juvenile goof is a sex symbol? Girls shrieked when he jumped. Shrieked! Most of the show, however, he paced like a caged rat and left the jumping for joy to gleeful bassist Mike Dirnt. Tight, quick and to the point, Green Day served up 45 minutes of pulse-pounding pop-punk; with only one discernible lull in their set. But pity the chaperones. What with the crowd diving off of the human platforms, slamming each other and the band makes fun of them, it was a tough night to be a parent. They must have been relieved to know there were rules in the pit. Green Day and their opener, the Chicago punk trio The Riverdales both stopped the show when the things got nasty, and told everyone to make nice. Punk in the 90's: Tick off your parents, but not so much they won't give you a ride home. And don't get hurt."

Opening Band(s): The Riverdales