Sun has not set on Green Day

Spencer Patterson

Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2004 | 8:28 a.m.

The tattooed trio certainly fit the description Tuesday night at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel, evoking the rebellious spirit of the genre's godfathers.

Chucking their usual 2004 set, Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool instead played their latest album, "American Idiot," from start to finish.

"Tonight we're going to be playing 'American Idiot' in its entirety," Armstrong announced upon arriving onstage. "It's our first time doing something like this. What better place than Las (expletive) Vegas?"

Actually, if a Billboard.com review of Green Day's Sept. 18 show in Chicago is accurate, the band has performed all 13 tracks off the disc in a row at least once before Tuesday.

But that was three days before "American Idiot" was released to the public. And either way, it hardly matters.

What does matter is that Green Day chose a tack that, for many bands, would be a risky venture, and pulled it off with amazing ease.

The sold-out crowd of 2,050 didn't seem to mind that it didn't get to hear hit singles such as "Basket Case," "When I Come Around" and "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)."

Instead fans reacted to Green Day's curveball with rabid enthusiasm, happily dancing and crowd-surfing to new songs instead of old favorites. A fair number even sang along with every word on the 11-week-old disc.

In part, the unusual approach worked because the performers -- the core trio supplemented by a second guitarist, a pianist and a percussionist -- infused the new material with a special kind of energy.

Green Day's 2004 set lists don't usually include "American Idiot" cuts "Give Me Novacaine," "She's a Rebel," "Extraordinary Girl," "Letterbomb" and "Whatsername," and the musicians clearly relished the chance to tread on less-familiar ground.

The frenetic Armstrong worked the room into a tizzy, bobbing his head and shaking his left leg in time with Dirnt's throbbing bass lines and Cool's forceful drumbeats.

Still, enthusiasm alone wouldn't have made the show a success. Playing an entire album only works if the album itself is interesting enough to hold the attention not only of diehard supporters, but also of casual fans.

Tuesday night, "American Idiot" proved itself capable of doing just that. A sort of punk rock opera, the hourlong project is easily Green Day's most compelling work from a career that spans parts of three decades.

Themes of isolation and disillusionment are set against the backdrop of modern-day America, with a decidedly political bent. Characters weave their way through the narrative, reminiscent of the Who's classic concept albums "Tommy" and "Quadrophenia."

Musically, Green Day also pulled a page from Pete Townshend's playbook, piecing together a pair of nine-minute mini-operas, similar to the Who's 1966 masterwork, "A Quick One, While He's Away."

Those twin suites, "Jesus of Suburbia" and "Homecoming," highlighted Tuesday's live "American Idiot" rendering. The band's latest single, ballad "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," also stood out, as did a fiery version of the uptempo "Holiday."

Ultimately, Green Day relented slightly, leaving the completed "American Idiot" behind and returning for an encore that included "Longview" off 1994's "Dookie" and "Minority" off 2000's "Warning."

The band closed with a cover of Queen's "We Are the Champions," a fitting choice on a night that made believers of any remaining Green Day doubters.