Green Day at the House of Blues, AnaheimIn mid-March, punk powerhouse Green Day was neck-deep into its four-day Saviors rehearsal at Anaheim’s 2,200-capacity House of Blues. But playing to a virtually vacant venue wasn’t a particularly telling measure of the band’s bearing and it lacked the all-important audience energy. So the trio elected to put up an actual show and at noon on Monday, March 18, a pop-up at Anaheim’s House of Blues was announced for the following day. Like a Taylor Swift show squared, the intimate jamboree sold out in minutes rather than hours.

In a case of tasty timing, Punk opener Ultra Q – fronted by Billie Joe Armstrong's youngest son Jakob – had released its second record Empty Eddy on March 13. Following the solid thirty-minute warm-up set, Green Day took the stage and launched into “American Idiot,” its de facto signature anthem. Throughout the hundred-minute, thirty-song performance, every track from the fifteen-song Saviors was played, virtually in order, save for the title track. “Saviors” was delivered second, which marked its live debut, as did several other first-time tunes, as below. Selections from American Idiot and Dookie – which this year celebrate their twentieth and thirtieth anniversaries, respectively – were likewise sprinkled in. Accordingly, bangers such as “Homecoming,” “She” and show-closer “Minority” electrified show-goers. Spotted in the audience was Green Day’s longtime master mix engineer and friend to Music Connection Chris Lord-Alge accompanied by his assistant Brian Judd.

After the post-show house lights had come up and the crowd had thinned, drummer Tré Cool doled out drumsticks from the stage, which had the feeling of an after-dinner mint. The remaining flock of fans couldn’t have been served a daintier dessert. Produced by longtime collaborator Rob Cavallo alongside the band, Saviors dropped on January 19. The world tour kicks off May 30 in Spain.

Setlist

American Idiot

Saviors

The American Dream Is Killing Me

Look Ma, No Brains!

Bobby Sox

One Eyed Bastard

Dilemma

1981

Goodnight Adeline

Coma City

Corvette Summer

Suzie Chapstick

Strange Days Are Here to Stay

Living in the ’20s

Father to a Son

Fancy Sauce

Burnout

Chump

Pulling Teeth

Coming Clean

She

F.O.D.

Give Me Novacaine

She’s a Rebel

Extraordinary Girl

Letterbomb

Homecoming

Whatsername

Encore:

All By Myself

Minority