I gotta agree with Conor to a certain extent but I put it down to the Odyssey factor and not the band. For me the Odyssey feels a bit sterile and Green Day in the Ulster Hall '98 still remains one of the best gig I've seen. The whole cowd were buck daft that nite and the highlight for me was bumpin into tre cool in the mosh pit for the support band!

Maybe i'm just a grouch but the odyssey don't float my boat. Top performance by BJ and the boys though - very few bands will put so much sweat into a show ;)

Posted by Cogre | 26.10.09, 15:51 GMT

Green Day 20/10/09 in Belfast was the best gig i've been to in all my life.
two and a half memorable hours, I'll never forget it. Sadly, this review does not give the night any justice at all.

Posted by alex70 | 23.10.09, 21:11 GMT

By far the best concert I have ever been to and will probably go to! 100 times better than when I saw them in Glasgow in 2005, and they were fantastic then.

Would have loved to see Green Day in Dublin too!
Amazing night!!! And loving Belfast too!

Posted by Carla Thomson, Orkney | 23.10.09, 12:19 GMT

Having attended this concert, and read the review, I have one question: were you at the same gig as the rest of us?!

This review drastically undervalues what was a fantastic performance from an amazing band. I have impatiently waited ten years to see these guys live, and, needless to say, I, like any other average attendee of the gig, was not at all disappointed. To give such an energetic and interactive concert only three stars is ridiculous, but then to go on to say, "the show seemed to have got bigger than the music," is blatantly insulting - I've never witnessed such an enthusiastic crowd response to each and every song, and I have been to, and covered, a lot of gigs!

Can I also just point out that it's 'Billie Joe,' and not 'Billy Joe.'

Posted by The Strummer | 23.10.09, 01:17 GMT

what is this guy conor talking about?? i was at the show and it was the best ive been to in years of gigging in all sorts of venues with all sort of artists, i was totally blown away by the tight punkrock riffs and showmanship! as for the large production and billy joe runnging around, what do u want? bands to stand still and ignore the fans pick up the cheque and straight to the airport, it was over two hours of pure class, this review was a bit daft and closeminded

Posted by jase | 23.10.09, 00:53 GMT

I for one loved the entire show. It had a beautiful mix of old and new Green Day, somehow amazingly mixed together blending one song into another, definately a well thoughtout setlist.

I feel that Billie Joe's presence on stage was great, and he interacted with the whole crowd as well as one man can with a huge arena. It was a show, not just a hall where people "blurt" out their music and then leave, he gave each and every one of us his full attention and we gave him ours.

It has definately been one of the most memorable of concerts I have been to, punk has never been about "just the music", maybe you should reconsider your definition of "punk"

I believe also, Billie Joe said that they hadn't been to Belfast since '91, a little longer than 12 years.

Posted by M.Kearney | 22.10.09, 22:34 GMT

Coming from someone who can't even spell the frontman's name right

Posted by Shazz | 22.10.09, 17:59 GMT

I also saw them 12 years ago and this recent show was just as good. What exactly were you expecting, a reformed Dead Kennedys with Ian MacKaye joining Jello on stage for a few duets?

Get off your high horse, Green Day were always a likeable pop punk outfit nothing more. Tuesday night's show was a pretty much an uniterupted 2hr 40mins of entertaining, well played live music. A lot of the bands I guess you like because you 'have' too, would do well to take a leave out of their book.

You can't appriciate an excellent live performance because it's not seen as 'cool'

Posted by DisgruntaledGoat | 22.10.09, 16:25 GMT

I can't believe this review. If any concert deserved to have a real music lover reviewing it, it was this one.
I logged onto the Belfast Telegraph site looking forward to the fantastic review I was sure such a great performance was going to have recieved. Instead I get this.

"The rhythm section was tight, if at times forgettable and predictable." Predictable? Its a Green Day concert, yes they are going to be playing Green Day music.. all the same chords, beats, notes.. what a shocker!... Forgettable? Never. I will never forget the best live gig i have EVER been to.

Posted by Daizan | 22.10.09, 16:23 GMT

Sad progression? huh?! I'm sorry but that was the best concert I have ever been too! He played for his fans! Was amazing! Firing t-shirts into the crowd, getting 5 people onto the stage, an experience they will never forget, who does that?! how could anyone put that down?!

I was one of the lucky fans, Billy Joe came up our aisle and played right beside where I was standing, I still cant believe it! He's a legend like!

Just wish it was on every night!!

Love you Billy Joe!!

Posted by Roxanne | 22.10.09, 15:58 GMT

Well said Conor. I'm sick of reading glowing reviews for every big act that comes here. It smacks of "oh, thanks for playing in our wee country". I'd rather gig reviews called it as they are.

For example, the Kings of Leon gig last xmas was phoned in, yet reviewers were falling over themselves to praise it.

It's even more cringe-worthy than the continual fawning over Snow Patrol (boke).

Posted by McD | 22.10.09, 12:41 GMT

I'm an old school Green Day fan and I can safely say without a shadow of a doubt that was the best gig I have ever been to. The sound was incredible, the performance top notch, will always remember it 10/10

Posted by musicgirl | 22.10.09, 11:57 GMT

Brilliant gig with a good mix of old and new songs, plus more excitement than a band just standing around and playing the songs. A varied crowd with the new young fans and the older fans like myself. I wish more of the bigger rock/metal/punk bands would come to Belfast.

Posted by Kieran | 22.10.09, 11:05 GMT

I was at the show in the front row standing up against the barrier, woke up the next day with a massive bruise buy it was worth it. It was fantastic from start to finish, I will remember this gig for the rest of my life. Billie Joe got he crowd going, he was note perfect everytime and the whole band flew throught the songs.
They are without doubt one of the biggest bands in the music world and for this guy to say some of the music was "forgettable and predictable" is laughable. The only downside was that it didn't go on for longer!

Posted by Alex | 22.10.09, 10:20 GMT

I was at the Belfast concert, it was vibrant, energetic, exciting and theatrical and the band drew the whole of the crowd in with them. The only downside was that they couldn't keep playing until the early hours! All those years of waiting were worth it!!

Posted by Julie Whall | 22.10.09, 08:34 GMT

I am so sick of this music snobbery, "the show seemed to have got bigger than the music"
what pretentious rubbish.
In the words of ac/dc " Rock 'n' roll is just rock 'n' roll" , and green day did it better than any act, I have seen in a long, long time.
These guys played one hell of a set.
And why, " Playing to the crowd was the order of the night." is a negative criticism, I will never understand. If I go to see a band I sure as hell want them to play to the crowd, surely that is the point.
Perhaps you prefer to be ignored ?

Posted by Conor O'Neill | 21.10.09, 23:16 GMT

Wish BT would start reviewing concerts properly. This may have been acceptable during the Troubles when nobody came here - but now we are getting first class artists and bands. Therefore we should have first-class music journos reviewing them. Im not just criticising this reviewer. Most of the reviews (for all events not just concerts) on BT could've been written without anyone going to the gig or from a press release. Trust me - it shows. Readers - particularly music fans - are not stupid. Just look at the comments! Usually they give a better insight into the event than what the 'reviewer' has written. Anyone at BT listening?

Posted by Tom Jenkins | 21.10.09, 21:05 GMT

What? They were absolutely spectacular! That was without a doubt the best sound ever produced within the walls of the Odyssey! The best band in the world just played an absolutely electrifying show in Belfast, it's a 'sad progression' that this reviewer didn't realise that.

Posted by Sarah MB | 21.10.09, 19:42 GMT

That may well be a critic's review, but I doubt anyone else who was there would have anything as negative to say.
Any part of the show that wasn't about the music was about Billy Joe's connection with the audience. What an entertainer!
I was proud of Our Wee Country pulling off sing-a-long-a-Green-Day :-) There must only have been one person who wasn't singing the whiole night.

Posted by dwebb | 21.10.09, 19:30 GMT

the green day gig at the odyssey was the best gig i have ever seen at far. over two hours with hardly a break & they had the crowd going the whole time especially when they done teenage kicks excellent wish i had tickets for dublin.

Posted by ian | 21.10.09, 18:20 GMT