Green Day red hot at the LG Arena

Green Day

LG Arena, Birmingham

By Charlotte Barnes

A performance by Green Day is not just a concert, it's a theatrical masterpiece.

Filled with costume changes, pyrotechnics and crowd-pleasing interactions, Billie Joe Armstrong and the boys really know how to put on a show.

Opening with the latest album's self-titled hit, 21st Century Breakdown, the explosive beginning was merely the start of things to come.

Sporting a new bleached hairstyle, Billie Joe soon got the blood pumping with a stream of powerhouse tunes from the new album before taking the crowd effortlessly into an extensive back catalogue of mega hits, such as Basket Case and Brain Stew.

Playing up to the audience is a joy for these performers ­ their interaction and on-stage capers are a big part of the appeal. As the punk rock trio experimented with feather boas, police costumes and drag outfits, audience members were soon in on the act, as one lucky man was invited to sing Longview live on stage to the envy of everyone watching.

There was also a nod to the venue's location, with the band belting out Black Sabbath's Paranoid. Other well chosen covers included Teenage Kicks by The Undertones, AC/DC's Highway to Hell and, ahem, Lulu's Shout, which shouldn't have worked but most certainly did.

Billie Joe clearly relishes his role of frontman, getting the capacity crowd whipped up into a frenzy by a simple prop or snippet of a much-loved guitar riff.

The band's obvious musical virtuosity is never overshadowed by high jinks, as Billie Joe's solo encore proved, with lighters, cameras and mobile phones thrust into the air to stirring renditions of Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) and the suitably poignant When September Ends.

See our gig photo gallery below