Seattle, WA - Mercer Arena
December 8, 1999

It was like getting a free super size on your extra-value meal. Rock performances are usually just that, a live performance of their songs. But the Offspring and the Vandals didn't just give us a song, they gave us a song and a dance. Mad props to them for actually trying to entertain. Like the Vandals said, "2000's coming up. This could be one of the last concerts you go to. You should all walk out with a smile on your face."

Of course, it didn't take much to entertain the predominantly white high school crowd at Mercer Arena. Except for the Offsprings' comic and catchy hit singles "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)," "Why Don't You Get a Job" and "Keep 'Em Separated," the rest of the music was uninspired punk-edged rock. Still, the band whipped their audience into a frenzy, with bodies surfing over the crowd like a nonstop conveyor belt. (Note to teenage girls flashing their breasts to the band: They can't see you with the lights in their eyes. Save it for the next pep rally.)

What made the show worthwhile, however, were the various stage acts the Offspring brought on. When the band opened, the stage was flanked by two oiled and buffed wrestler types in leather briefs. During "Walla Walla," the Washington-inspired single about their "favorite prison," a cop chased a jailbird around the stage. The stage blacked out, an emcee announced, "Ladies and gentlemen . . . the Backstreet Boys!" and the lights revealed five inflatable dolls dressed in BSB garb which singer Dexter Holland promptly took out with a bat. A trio of multiculti fly girls came out and shook their booty during "Pretty Fly." My companion all but drooled on my boots when he saw their skimpy string bikinis.

Halfway through their set, Holland asked, "Do you want some water?" He sloshed a water bottle into the crowd, then another man came out spraying from a pressurized water can, and finally Holland dragged out a fire hose and drenched the crowd. As if we didn't get enough water dropped on us in this city.

But the highlight was when Holland announced, "It's intermission time!" and they went '50s game show. Holland settled with a drink into an overstuffed daisy chair, a man pranced around with a lit-up intermission sign, a flabby man dressed in a lewdly shaped loincloth stood center stage with two midget security guards, and the dancers returned in skimpy Santa outfits to pass out punch. It was absurd brilliance.

Even more surprising, though, was the fun opening act, the Vandals. After a lackluster thrasher set by Teen Idol, the Vandals came on with a hilariously edgy version of Grease's "Summer Nights." The skinny lead singer danced around spastically singing songs such as "My Girlfriend's Dead," and "Live Fast Diarrhea," the title track from their last album. For their final number, the guitarist stripped off his shirt and climbed on the speakers, where he proceeded to spank himself with the mike. The group almost stole the show. But the only way they could have topped the Offspring was if they had hired female strippers.

By Sharon Pian Chan, from "Seattle Times" - December 10, 1999