Berkeley, CA - Greek Theater
July 18, 1999



Offspring Assault Backstreet Boys?

Backstreet Boys watch out: the Offspring are out to get you.

At an Offspring concert on Sunday in Berkeley, California, vocalist Bryan "Dexter" Holland bludgeoned the band members (or, rather, life-sized inflatable representations of A.J., Brian, Howie, Kevin, and Nick) with a bright orange whiffle bat as a crowd of frenzied fans cheered him on. When he was through with his dirty work, the band celebrated by launching into "Cool to Hate" from the 1997 album "Ixnay on the Hombre."

These and other between-song antics made the afternoon show at the Greek Theatre a visual as well as auditory spectacle. Highlights included Holland's dousing the mosh pit with a fully charged firehose, an almost entirely naked man running loose on stage, and an unusual intermission during which Holland, guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman, and bass player Greg Kriesel sat in inflatable chairs. Claiming to be "tuckered out," as Holland said, they sat back and relaxed while a backup singer served drinks to sweaty fans in the front row. Once properly rested, the band roared back with "Come Out and Play."

Musically, the Offspring offered about an hour and a half of energetic pop-punk, including "Self Esteem" and "Gotta Get Away" from "Smash," "Gone Away" and "All I Want" from "Ixnay," and several songs from their latest album, "Americana." Near the end of the show, Holland took a moment to be honest with the audience.

"We're going to go away and pretend we're done," he said frankly, "but then in a few minutes we'll come back out and play a couple more songs." They did as he said they would, returning with two encores: "Why Don't You Get a Job?" and "Feelings."

You can catch the Offspring next when the band hits Fresno, California on Tuesday night.

From MTV Online