Concert Review: Green Day (PNC Music Pavilion)

BY CHRIS HOCKER

On Monday night, Green Day brought their sold-out Saviors Tour to Charlotte's PNC Music Pavilion. Along for the ride were Rancid and The Linda Lindas.

The Linda Lindas kicked off the night with the one-two punch of "Too Many Things" and "Growing Up." When the dust settled, they had played seven songs and gave many in the crowd their first taste (and a memorable one at that) of The Linda Lindas.

Rancid's set seemed too short. Having seen them before as headliners, I was a little disappointed that they were only able to play eleven songs. But this was a Green Day show and not a Rancid one, so I guess I shouldn't be whiniing too much.

Taking most of their setlist from the legendary ...And Out Came The Wolves, Rancid sounded great. They ripped through fan favorites like "Maxwell Murder," "Roots Radical," "Olympia, WA," before closing the set with "Time Bomb and "Ruby Soho."

The Saviors Tour was a way to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Dookie and the 20th anniversary of American Idiot, play a few hits, and a few tracks off of 2024's Savoiors album. And celebrate they did! Two+ hours of explosions, fire, and rock 'n' roll! Thirty-seven songs! What more do you need?

Highlights from the evening: Tre Cool prancing about the stage in a leopard-print bathrobe, singing "All By Myself;" performing snippest of others' songs like "Jack And Diane" and "Free Fallin';" and the performance of the song "American Idiot." Oh, and I've got to mention DJ, the fan they brought onstage to sing "Know Your Enemy."

I have maintained that Green Day became rock's Most Important Band when they released American Idiot. They still are.

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CHRIS HOCKER, Editor

Strange Carolinas started as a hobby for Chris Hocker who often dragged his family to offbeat detours on family vacations. Hocker decided to start photographing and writing about these roadside attractions and in June 2014, launched Strange Carolinas with a story on Myrtle Beach's KISS Coffeehouse. In addition to chronicling over 400 attractions across the Carolinas, Strange Carolinas has also become an impressive music blog.