Devoting
Destiny
THE SAVIORS TOUR
On July 29th, 2024, Green Day brought their Saviors Tour to the US with support from The Linda Lindas, Rancid, and The Smashing Pumpkins. The show began at Nationals Park in DC, where temperatures were high and anticipation was higher. Fans came from all over the US and even outside the country (more on that later) to witness the first night of the Saviors Tour, where Green Day promised to play not only one, but TWO iconic albums in full; Dookie and American Idiot.
THE LINDA LINDAS
Despite their age, the Linda Lindas put on a powerful show with incredible stage presence to start the night off right. Their raw, teenage energy brought a sense of nostalgia to the show with garage-band punk vibes. Rougher songs like Fine and Racist, Sexist Boy mixed with the smoother sounds in Growing Up and All in My Head to create the perfect summertime blend in a live performance.
RANCID
Unfortunately, Rancid’s set was cut short due to a brief storm in the area, but they still managed to keep the audience on their feet with Maxwell Murder and Tomorrow Never Comes.
THE SMASHING PUMPKINS
The Smashing Pumpkins seemed to play a bit of a subdued, more structured set thanks to the rain slightly dampening the crowd's increasing enthusiasm. It’s clear their performance was catered towards the older audience members, although they managed to get the whole crowd dancing to classics like 1979 and Bullet With Butterfly Wings. All in all, the Pumpkins brought a very powerful sound to the show despite having slower, calmer songs.
GREEN DAY
Before Green Day took the stage, the iconic Drunk Bunny came out sporting a Nats jersey to hype the audience up, even throwing a Saviors scarf into the crowd for one lucky fan. Finally, the band made their appearance, transitioning straight into The American Dream is Killing Me. Green Day lit up the night with their impressive fireworks and pyro displays in nearly every song, it was a truly explosive performance. Their playthrough of Dookie featured an inflatable mushroom cloud from the album cover on stage for the first few songs and beautiful graphics on screen.
In between the two albums, Green Day played a couple songs off their new record Saviors and staples like Know Your Enemy, Minority, and Brain Stew. Those who have seen Green Day before know that singer Billie Joe Armstrong always calls a fan onto the stage during Know Your Enemy, and the Saviors Tour is no different. Dylan, all the way from London, England, was the lucky fan that night, taking the stage by storm with a bisexual pride flag in their pocket. Somehow, Billie mistook their name to be Johnson when leading the crowd in a cheer for them, which they of course accepted as their new nickname. Because when Billie Joe Armstrong calls you something, you don't question it.
To end off the night, Green Day played their entire American Idiot album, and much like with their Dookie playthrough, they had an inflatable version of the album cover as part of the set. Overall, their performance was beautifully crafted from the setlist to the lighting; even if you didn’t know every single song, it was still an amazing show. Green Day have an extraordinary reputation and the Saviors Tour certainly lived up to it. It was a night to remember without a doubt.