Green Day at the Garden (July 27)

*Reader Disclaimer: This is pretty long and it's more free-flowing so it might not be the most well written piece I have done.

Also: A lot of the videos from the show are up on Youtube, so if you search Green Day MSG or something like that you will find them. I was at the Monday show.

Say what you want about Green Day, they are arguably the biggest band of my generation. They are in the category with the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Radiohead as bands that have been incredibly popular from the beginning of the 90s and almost 20 years later, these bands are still at the top, more popular than ever.

So this past Monday, my roommate Nate from school and I shelled out the 60 bucks for floor spots at the Garden to see Green Day. After watching Billie Joe and Green Day mesmerize the crowd for almost 3 hours, i would of been willing to spend triple what I did. Granted this concert is fresh in my mind, I can confidently say that this was by far the best concert I have been too.

Before running through the show, I will say this. Green Day is definitely not the same band they were in the mid 90s. A lot of people hate on Green Day for their last two albums. They are very different from their old stuff and yes they provide a lot of political and social commentary that some may and will hate on. Regardless I think the fact that they have changed their style and have managed to arguably become more popular this last half of the decade just shows how talented they are.

So enough about what I think, O wait, this is my blog so you are stuck with what that.

Anyway to the show...

After leaving work I met Nate and we hung out in McDonald's around Penn Station waiting for the doors to open for the show. After trying to down a half and half mixture of warm rum and coke, (not pleasant at all, especially right after eating McDonald's) we made our way to the Garden. After receiving some well wishes from good buddy and fellow Green Day fan Eddie Small, Nate and I made it into the building. We were surprisingly able to make it to the floor of the arena where there weren't that many people yet. We moved as close as we could which was pretty god damn close. I would say 10-20 feet away from the stage. Then did what every good concert going fan does, wait a long fucking time.

Highlights of waiting for the show to start include talking to some legendary Wire fan about the show and buying an eight dollar beer with the guy staring at my ID for 2 minutes and finally giving me one. I knew that would work one day!

Kaiser Cheifs actually came out on time which was a good sign. They played for about 40 minutes and were actually pretty good despite the fact that I could not understand a word the lead singer was saying. I mean whatever, not important. After finishing, the stage was cleared and by 9 everything looked ready. I was a little disappointed that Green Day had still not taken the stage by 9:10. That feeling of disappointment would vanish rather quickly. The arena was filled and by 9:15 the lights went out, the place went nuts as "Song of the Century was being played in the background.

Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool rushed the stage and the Garden was kept in a state of frenzied euphoria until they finally left two and a half hours later. The first six songs they played were more or less played one after the other with little break in between. The place was rocking when the opening chords for "21st Century Breakdown" were played What helps with every concert is being kinda drunk and knowing the words to the songs. It just makes things more enjoyable. Right away you could tell this was the Billie Joe show as the guy just dominated the stage. The energy from the band and the crowd created electricity that lasted through "Know Your Enemy" followed by East Jesus Nowhere." There were mosh pits to the left of us, the stage to our right and everyones hands were in the air screaming.

As I figured they would start with stuff off their newer album. "21st Century Breakdown" stood out as it was the opener song. A lot of concerts I have been to, the opener is more of a build up to what is coming. As expected, Green Day would be the complete opposite. "East Jesus Nowhere" had Billie Joe find a kid from the audience and bring him up on stage, asking over and over "Who wants to be saved!"

The crowd only got louder when "Holiday" started blaring. What I love about the show is everyone is just loud, going nuts and screaming the lyrics at the top of their lungs. I have seen Spoon 4 times and I am always singing along but its nothing like this. The Garden was shaking as Billie Joe really got into this one. Gotta love the bridge segment in the song. In my opinion one of their best songs.

"The Static Age" followed as the energy level had not dropped since the show started. This song is one of their more radio friendly songs on their new album and I could see it being a single. Besides being radio friendly, it is one of the better and more classic sounding Green Day songs on the new album (When i say classic, I am not comparing it to Dookie or anything like that.) My point is listen to it first and then disagree with me.

Green Day finally gave the fans a break as the guitar riff for "Before The Lobotomy" as Billie Joe told a story for like 5 minutes about he was outside a bar and a guy drove by yelling "Billie Joe: Green Day SUCKS and so do you!" and how he saw the car stuck at a red light and he ran to the car and jumped through the window and starting punching the guy. Regardless if this every actually happened, it was pretty funny.

The next part of the concert featured "Before The Lobotomy" followed by "Are We The Waiting" and "St. Jimmy." All great in concert but songs that arent anything special in my opinion.

After getting the crowd back into it, Green Day dropped the bomb with "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" as Nate called it right before. The scene at the concert was just incredible. I don't care how overplayed this song was or is, it was incredible. I don't remember what was taking place on the stage but everyone was waving their hands singing as loud as they could drowning out Billie Joe.

The next shift in the concert took place as Green Day went back to the 90s after the first ten songs of the concert were off their two most recent albums. "2000 Light Years Away" was played but I really hadn't heard this song so I probably didn't appreciate it as much as others.

The next sequence might of been the best of the show.

It's hard for me to pick the number 1 song of the show but there was something extra special about "Welcome To Paradise." It's definitely in my top 3 for Green Day songs. It's one of those songs where if someone asked me to pick one Green Day song to play for someone who has never heard them, I would probably go with this. I was going ape-shit like everyone else in the audience so I dont remember much but the stage was glowing red as Billie Joe and the fans belted this one out.

Nate and I were in shock when the opening riff of "Castaway" began. In doing some research, Green Day had not played this song in like 6 years live. It definitely showed when Billie Joe couldnt get through the first verse before stopping saying "shit I forgot the words." While hilarious, Nate and I were pretty furious that this happened. This was reminisced to Rock the Bells 2007 when GZA did the opening chorus for Liquid Swords and then stopped in the middle repeating "Shit man, I don't think they are ready for this."

Anyway Green Day stood on the stage kind of deciding what to do. Finally Billie Joe asks the crowd, When I Come Around? This of course was met with everyone yelling and screaming enthusiastically. More research by me showed that this was the first time they played "When I Come Around" on their tour. One of the more legendary and classic Green Day songs, this one was incredible live.

They followed with "Disappearing Boy" which I didn't really know and they threw in some bits and pieces of other classic rock songs. This was followed by the guitar friendly "Brain Stew/Jaded" which was definitely another highlight of the show.

The concert was already 17 songs deep and still there was a lot more coming.

The opening baseline for "Longview" was played (fucking classic) and Billie Joe was looking for someone in the crowd to sing the first verse and he brought up some girl who did a pretty good job. He then got 2 different people on stage to sing a verse of "Longview" which ended with each person taking a stage dive into the crowd. Can you imagine singing this on stage at the Garden with Green Day? Unreal.

They followed "Longview" with "Basket Case," probably their most popular and well known song. I wouldn't say there was anything spectacular they did for this song but it was still amazing nonetheless. They stayed with Dookie and played another classic banger from the album, "She." This is probably one of their best songs on the album, which is definitely a top 10 album of the 90s hands down. (Another blog post?) Another great song to see performed live. The concert could of ended here and I would of been more than satisfied.

But of course it was no where near over. The came back with "King For a Day," which is nothing special for me and then transitioned into "Shout" which was good but long. If anything probably the least enjoyable part of the show. At this point I felt pretty tired. There was a short break on stage with some instrument switching. Before the song I told Nate that "21 Guns" was coming and I was right. Their newest single off the album, the song has grown on me. Definitely one of those Green Day ballads but their performance of this was legendary. It really got the crowd back into it. The setlist would end with a song off their newer album "American Eulogy." This was drawn out an extra few minutes but the energy level was incredible and it was a great way to end the set.

Green Day left the stage for a few minutes while the crowd was anticipating the encore. They came back and opened with "American Idiot" which definitely got the crowd going again. The stage was pretty cool for this one as the background screen was showing some cool images to go along with the song.

The coolest part of the show came next when Billie Joe announced he needed someone to play guitar for "Jesus of Suburbia." After a few minutes he found a girl near the front and asked, "Are you sure you can play this, what cord is it in?" The girl answered C sharp and Billie Joe was like "alright get the hell on stage."

The song itself is a 9 minute classic and the girl was great. She was on point throughout the song and it was pretty amazing to watch her play this with Green Day. How is that for an experience. This video is online and is definitely worth checking out. They followed with "Minority" which got everyone including myself going crazy and jumping in the air. The show was practically over and everyone was going nuts like it was the beginning.

At the end of the song, Billie Joe thanked the crowd and gave shout outs to fellow band members Tre Cool and Mike Dirnt. The stage went dark and Billie Joe remained on, coming to the front of the stage. He ended the concert by himself with three songs all acoustic. He started with "Drama Queen" which i didnt really know but I thought was great. He followed that with "Last Night on Earth," which I think was made to be played as acoustic. One of my favorite songs on the newer album.

The last song fittingly was "Good Riddence." A great way to end what I thought was the best concert I have ever been to. So yea, 30 songs. Fucking hell of a show. They played enough old stuff to keep those fans happy while really showing off their new album, which is awesome.

Off the top of my head Green Day lists:

Best Albums: 1. Dookie 2. Warning 3. 21st Century Breakdown 4. American Idiot 5. Insomniac

Best Songs at the Concert: 1. Welcome To Paradise 2. Holiday 3. East Jesus Nowhere 4. Boulevard of Broken Dreams 5. When I Come Around/Jesus of Suburbia

Songs I Wish They Played: 1. Waiting 2. Blood Sex and Booze 3. Restless Heart Syndrome 4. Burnout 5. Pulling Teeth

And fellow concert friend Nate Grefe compiled his own lists:

Best Albums: 1. Warning (No Brainer) 2. American Idiot 3. Dookie 4. 21st Century Breakdown 5. Nimrod

Best Songs at the Concert: 1. Boulevard of Broken Dreams 2. 21 Guns 3. Minority 4. Good Riddence 5. American Idiot

Songs I Wish They Played: 1. Castaway (bastards) 2. Deadbeat Holiday 3. Waiting 4. Hitching A Ride 5. Having a Blast

Ok so yea I like Green Day. Enjoy the Monday!

A Beginner’s Guide to New Jersey Lingo (An Outsider’s Perspective)

The following article was written by fellow wicked awesome MRI intern Colleen McHugo. After being in the city for two months her claims to fame are guessing the correct amount of texts being sent a day total (50 billion or something) and finding quality restaurants to eat at in the city.

*Also Note: This is really Highland Park Lingo and not New Jersey Lingo. Most people in Jersey have never heard of these terms. But trust me, they would catch on.*

So after 9 weeks of spending 9-5 Monday through Friday with two hardcore NJ residents it is hard not to resist catching onto their everyday euphemisms. Immediately you want to hate the lingo, especially since most of it makes no sense and is said with hints of an NJ accent. Even though I am from Boston and we don’t exactly have the best impression of Jersey, I thought I would give the NJ lingo a try (not like you will ever hear either of them saying “wicked” but hey to each his own). So after extensive research… I have compiled 4 NJ euphemisms that will give you a jumping off point to understanding what the hell NJ residents are really saying…


1. “uhhh uh”/”ooyy”
-Now these are more than just words, they are noises that bubble up from within to express basically any kind of emotion. As I have been told, it is all in the delivery and tone, for instance if upset an “ooyy” will be lower and lengthened, but when excited the “ooyy” turns high pitched and short. Most of the time “uhhh uh” signifies something positive, and for a non-resident is the most fun to use. My vocal cords are still trying to adjust to the quickness of the pitch changes, but for NJ residents those noises basically come as second nature after a lifetime of usage.

2. “Stats me”
-Another term for “can I have…” or “give me.” This phrase can also have objects or nouns attached to the end (“stats me that pen”) or it can be paired with immediately (creating urgency in the request). This is one of my more favorite NJ terms, hilarious when paired with a ridiculous noun and helpful when trying to win over the hearts of 2 stubborn NJ interns.

3. “Get grizzly”
-This is one of the more interesting NJ sayings; there is no basic translation because NJ residents like to take it as more of a state of being than an actual action. It can be used when a person encounters an enormous amount of food, or if that food is eaten in a short period of time. (A better explanation can be given if refer to post http://jakerainblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/quick-guide-to-gettin-grizzly.html

My best example of seeing someone get grizzly would be watching Jake put a ridiculous amount of steak fries on a toothpick and then proceeding to fit them all into his mouth… the best part: the waitress thought he was so grizzly, we got free dessert.

4. “Flats me a flogie”/”Strrrrats me a stoogie”
-Thus far one of the weirdest sayings I have encountered… the translation is “can I have/give me a cigarette.” The second version of the euphemism has a slight Transylvanian accent (complete with rolled R’s). As a non-resident I would love to know the origin of both insane phrases, but I doubt one will ever surface. Therefore a caution to non-residents, when approached with this NJ euphemism, don’t worry sexual favors are not in order, just pull out your pack of cigarettes and hand one over.

Although I am a hardcore Bostonian, I definitely will take some of these euphemisms with me when I leave NYC; let’s just hope I don’t sound wicked stupid.

Top 5 Things Wrong with the Last 30 Minutes of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

The following article was written by contributer Jeff Feldman, author of "Bands You Never Heard Of" and the complete biography of Joseph Stringer. Feldman is a well known Harry Potter expert and is a legend of the computer game Backyard Baseball.

Reader Disclaimer: If you have not seen Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, don't fucking read this. Unless you don't care then by all means, go for it!

First off, Half-Blood Prince was a decent film, perhaps one of the best of the series thus far. The acting for the most part was solid, the effects were good, the jokes were funny, and my favorite Potter book was fairly well-represented, at least for the first two hours. However, nothing can excuse the absolute abomination that David Yates and co. called the film's conclusion. Absolutely desecrating the finest chapters Rowling ever wrote, the last half hour of the movie was an utter travesty. Here are the top five reasons why:

5. "Shh..."

In one of many terrible and unnecessary plot changes, Dumbledore does not freeze Potter to prevent him from taking on the Death Eaters right before his death. Instead, Harry stays under the floor where he runs into Snape, who signals that Harry should remain quiet while he goes upstairs. I have two problems with this alteration. First, what the hell is the point? It's not like staying true to the book would have taken up any more time. Plus making Potter go downstairs instead of under the invisibility cloak led to forcing the audience to watch the whole scene through the goddamn floor (more on that later). Second, it makes no fucking sense. Dumbledore is unarmed in front of, among other people, the woman who killed Sirius Black (who Potter frantically chased less than an hour ago), and we're supposed to believe that by choice Harry decides, "You know I never did quite like that Severus fellow but this seems like a good time to trust him and shut up." I understand plot changes have to happen when a book becomes a movie, but this one absoluetly pointless, and if that wasn't enough it's illogical.

4. No Funeral

Perhaps the title is misleading. I'm not exactly mad that they didn't have a funeral for Dumbledore like they did in the book. Things need to be cut, and that seems like a fair thing to get rid of. But if you're still going to spend five minutes of post-death time focusing on Dumbledore, why not have something exciting. A funeral would be hard to shoot, with tons of people and whatnot? Okay, I get that. Except you took 3 minutes showing all the fucking people who would be at Dumbledore's funeral standing like dumbasses around his body, holding their wands up in what I assume is supposed to display determination or something. The brilliant thought process here: "The most baller character in our series just died, so lets mark the occasion by having everyone wave lighters like it's a fucking U2 concert." Sounds great.

3. Alan Rickman

Alan Rickman is one of my favorite actors, and I think that for the most part he's done an excellent job in the series, but what the fuck was he doing in this movie. In the sixth book, we finally see Snape snap, turning from a bitter albeit slightly mysterious dick into a legendary badass. Rowling fooled many into thinking, until the seventh book, that he truthfully was an evil character. But in this movie, Rickman is just wimpy. He always looks like he's going to cry, and every time he's in a scene with the death eaters he makes a point of hesitating before every word he says. And like three different times he ran into Potter, didn't say anything, and ran away. Yes Alan, we all know that Snape is conflicted and really likes Harry's eyes, but cut out the "subtlety" and show some passion. The Dumbledore death scene and this entire movie, which should have been Rickman's shining moment, was one of the actor's most forgettable performances.

2. The Worst-Shot Death Scene Ever

Ever since reading the chapter where Dumbledore dies, I have been waiting for this scene in the movie. I don't think I can fully describe how incredibly dissapointing it turned out to be. But first, the good: Helena Bonham Carter gets props for another excellent batshit-crazy performance to add to her long list of batshit-crazy performances. Also, I thought Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy, despite looking like he's about 30 years old, did an excellent job. But that was it. Rickman was choking back the tears as usual and Michael Gambon showed none of Dumbledore's weakness and desperation from the book. And to top it all off, why the fuck did they shoot the scene from beneath the fucking floorboards!? I went to ths movie because I want to see the stuff that happened in the book, so when you don't show me it what the fuck is the point. The ratings board is really gonna penalize you for showing a clear shot of a wizard taking a green flash of light to the chest? This is a textbook example of how not to shoot the climax of your movie: no tension, no shock, and no god damn visibility.

1. That Pathetic Excuse for a Duel

The chase/duel that closed out the book was one of my favorite parts of the whole series, when Snape and Potter finally go head to head and Snape completely kicks his ass even while he struggles with the most difficult part of his double-agent role. "DON'T -- CALL ME A COWARD!" may be the five most important words in his story, screamed at the peak of an incredible rivalry. The scene was the perfect opportunity to mark the turning point of the series, where confrontation becomes inevitable and secrets start to unravel. Instead, someone thought it was a better idea to make the chase out of Hogwarts a leisurely jog, have the characters shoot off a stunning total of about four spells, and reduce the dialogue to Potter's weak "fight back!" and Snape basically whispering "Hey, I'm the Half-Blood Prince" before waltzing off into the sunset. It was absolutely and unforgivably pathetic.

My Top 5 Favorite Will Smith Movies

"You know the difference between you and me? I make this look good. "-Will Smith

This article is dedicated to Abe Kim, holding it down in the Far East, trying to make moves.

So I guess it started in December 2006. We had just suffered a buzzer beater defeat to Middlesex in Basketball on a Friday Night. Abe and I had contributed but we weren't on the court when some scrub on Middlesex got very lucky.

We were pissed but it wasn't going to ruin our day. In the end we didn't really care. I didn't really like our basketball team my senior year. There was a lack of talent and poor coaching. Usually that equals failure and as the season went on, things got worse.

My point is that I didn't care that we lost. Normally Rob, Abe and I would chill after the game but after the game, Rob had a legendary blow up. One of those where you just know to avoid the person until they speak to you without every other word being "Fuck"

The bus ride was pretty much silent on the way back and Abe and I decided to go see a movie that night. Both of us being huge Will Smith fans, the choice was simple: Pursuit of Happyness. After that we decided that we would make it a tradition to see any Will Smith movie when it came out, even if that movie really sucked. (Seven Pounds)

So here is the Top 5 in order, In My Opinion of course. So that means this list is 100 percent right. I pretty much am factoring in how much I liked the movie and his performance.

5. Ali (2001)- I first saw this when it came out and I must admit, I was a little young to appreciate it. I honestly was a little bored watching it but seeing it again a second time gave me a new appreciation for it. This is on the list though more for Smith's performance than the movie and he was rewarded with a Best Actor Nomination. I am a big fan of movies that are portrayals of historical figures. Will Smith does a great job playing Muhammad Ali and all the fight scenes, key for boxing movies, were well done. The Rumble in the Jungle at the finish is fabulous. Great supporting cast too.

4. Independence Day (1996)- The movie itself is a classic. One of the better summer blockbusters of the 90s and I honestly don't know a person who has not seen this. Great cast headlined by Big Willie Style. Smith delivers his usual blend of comedy, drama and all his action scenes are great. Also I love the chemistry between Jeff Goldblum and Smith. Some classic lines too. The "Welcome to Earth" after punching the alien. Talking to himself while dragging the alien in the desert. And when Goldblum asks him "You really think you can fly that thing.

Smith responds "You really think you can do all that bullshit you just said?" Good Stuff

3. Enemy of the State (1998)- I love this movie. I remember first watching this with my brother at my Grandma's house on a shitty TV in a dusty room. It honestly added another element to it. While this might be Smith's most sub par acting performance of the movies on this list, he still delivers. Smith surprisingly does well with older white guys as you will see later on the list. Him and Gene Hackman are a killer combo and they carry the movie. This movie also has a great supporting cast. Also I love the end of the movie in terms of how Smith and Hackman finally beat the guys that are chasing them. The shootout is beastly.

2. Pursuit of Happyness (2006)- By far the best performance of his career. Deserved all the rave reviews and that best actor nomination. It's classic Will Smith but on a whole new level. I don't think I have ever felt for a character or was rooting so hard for someone then Will Smith in this movie. The chemistry between him and his son is great and is the key to this movie. Obviously there is the scene when Smith is crying in the closet with his son (always gets me) or when he finally lands the job and does the Will Smith clap outside the office (i wanted to do the same thing when i saw this), but just the other little things Smith does in this movie, trying to fit in with a world that he tries literally harder than anyone else to become part off. Honestly just watch the scene when they tell him he gets the job. Incredible.

"You got a dream... You gotta protect it. People can't do somethin' themselves, they wanna tell you you can't do it. If you want somethin', go get it. Period. "-Classic

1. Men In Black (1997)- Fun Fact: First time I saw this movie was with Ben and Dick Simons after I went to his birthday party that nobody but me showed up for. This is quintessential Will Smith. He is basically the fucking man in this movie. In this science fiction comedy, the combination of Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith is perfect. Whoever thought that these two would be a legendary on screen duo has some serious foresight. Not only is this movie incredibly cool, Smith is absolutely hilarious. Honestly the highlight of the movie is when he comes in for the audition/examination to find Kay's partner. I was at the perfect age when this movie came out and I will still watch it any time it is on. Rip Torn is also great as Zed. Everything just works. Too many classic lines.

"Do you see this? Huh? NYPD! Means I will Nock Yo Punkass Down!"

Also Bonus points for the Men in Black song. That song is still the shit.

Late Edition: The one movie that could easily be on this list that I would have no problem arguing is Bad Boys. One of his earlier movies, Smith and Martin Lawrence are great. I should of made this 5A

Real Quick Mets Rant

I really dont want to get started because I could go on all day. My point is too Phillies fans who are so thrilled to beat the Mets. I really don't want to sound like a sore loser but the Mets really are a triple A team. The defense displayed and the horrendous attempts the Mets made at trying to hit the ball are laughable.

For Phillies fans, yea sure be happy. You just swept your rival so I wont take that away from you. But if you seriously think this Phillies team has a chance to do something in October again, you are kidding yourself.

Rodrigo Lopez, Jamie Moyer and Joe Blanton would get their tits ripped by any other team with a major league lineup. (This includes most if not all Major League teams besides the Mets) There is a reason that the Phillies had a terrible record in June. No matter how good their lineup is, and trust me its one of the best in the league, the Phillies pitching will not lead them to any postseason glory. Hamels isn't half the pitcher he was last year. Myers is out for the year. and like I said, Jamie Moyer can only take you so far. Joe Blanton sucks. I dont care what he did on Sunday. And Rodrigo Lopez, need I say more. at least Chan Ho Park is in your bullpen. Lidge hasnt and wont repeat last years second half success.

Regardless, the Mets suck. I just wish we had an excuse, like we are a small market or something.

But yea the sad facts are that we have the second highest payroll and play in the biggest market and still have a triple A team on the field.

Omar Minaya: You have spent the second most money in the league and the product on the field is terrible. I really have nothing against these players but if you look at who is out there, only David Wright is a true everyday major league starter.

Santos: Backup Catcher
Schinder: Backup Catcher
Murphy: Platoon player who cant field and cant hit
Castillo: In the waining years of his career. should be a backup or the 8th hitter on a team
Cora: Backup
Sheff ,Tatis and Reed: platoon players and great bench options
Church: I guess you can call him an everyday major league player.
F-Mart: 20 years old and clearly needs more time in the minors.

Hopefully the Dodgers sweep the Mets and all us Mets fans can enjoy watching this train wreck. It is far better than trying to root for this team to win.

I also love the people that are like "o well we have played this poorly and are only 4 games back." By the allstar game that number will be 7 and the team will be no better.

Hey at least Oliver Perez is starting on Wednesday. For the sake of the guy I hope he pitches well but i hope he gets rocked just so Omar Minaya looks like a bigger idiot.

Ok so that wasn't that quick.