_The JD Set - Good Charlotte, Amy Meredith @ The Forum, Melbourne (10/11/2011)
For Weezer fans, the idea of Good Charlotte covering their
iconic 1995 debut, The Blue Album,
would be an exercise in unnecessary desecration. If Weezer was the most pure,
pristine water (we know there’s nothing immaculate about Weezer, but for the
sake of this analogy, humour us) Good Charlotte would be the cholera that
transforms the water from a glorious life-sustaining substance to a lethal,
germ-infested horror. That’s not to say that Good Charlotte has nothing of
value to offer. Amidst the overwhelming abundance of aspiring pop-punk bands of
the early 2000s, Good Charlotte managed to surface themselves from the pack and
rise to be kings of the genre. They are good at what they do… but what they do
isn’t Weezer.
Performing as part of The JD Set, on this night at Melbourne’s The Forum, it’s immediately apparent that there seems not to be a single member of the audience (aside from this writer) who was drawn here by the exciting prospect of seeing The Blue Album performed live. Of course, a Weezer fan runs the risk of having the songs ruined in a situation like this, but given Weezer’s apparent hatred for Australia (their lack of Australian tours is clearly symptomatic of some serious hostility towards kangaroos or koalas), this may be the only opportunity we get to see it performed live.
Polarising the audience, Sydney pop-punks, Amy Meredith, perform an energetic support set. Many fans are ecstatic, enjoying their energised and catchy tunes, while a number of diehard Good Charlotte fans seem decidedly unimpressed by their pop-punk sound – it’s more pop than punk – but which isn’t dissimilar to their beloved Good Charlotte’s more recent releases. Amy Meredith’s basslines are dangerously invasive, the penetrative vibrations from which will cause your heart to beat in time with the song.
Met by ear-shattering cheers and applause, Good Charlotte finally emerges. They immediately launch into My Name Is Jonas, track #1 from The Blue Album. Barely two bars in and the crowd is already bored. It’s somewhat upsetting to see the songs from one of the greatest albums of the ‘90s completely ignored by the majority of the audience. (Perhaps it should be noted that The Blue Album would be on of this reviewer’s list of top five favourite albums ever, so there might be some level of bias… but it’s still hard to believe that such amazing songs could be performed directly in front of people, yet are so easily ignored!)
Despite Amy Meredith guitarist, Joel Chapman, divulging that “Good Charlotte have even dressed up like Weezer, glasses and all”, there’s nothing reminiscent of mid-‘90s ‘ironically-cool-nerd’ style to them. They’re sporting their typical attire – nothing but black clothes, skate shoes and arms full of tattoos. They’re almost a parody of themselves.
Guitarist Benji Madden asserts “We’ve had more rehearsals for [The Blue Album] than we’ve ever had in ten years”. The validity of this statement is immediately in question when it becomes apparent that vocalist Joel Madden is incorrectly singing the lyrics (half of which are just mushed mumbles), despite having large sheets of paper with the lyrics directly in front of him. As for the rest of the band, errors are made, but you’d only notice them if you’re familiar with the original songs. The band is clearly a tight and surprisingly professional musical force.
Throughout their Weezer set, Benji Madden repeatedly jokes about and makes excuses for the poor quality. “You thought we played our songs bad, but we play other bands’ songs even worse”. “I won’t even try to deny that we f’ed that one up”.
However, musically, it’s really not that bad. After all, they’re playing Weezer songs. It’s not like they’re covering Radiohead or another band whose music is composed and performed to perfection. Weezer is loose and relaxed, witty and casual. To try to imitate their music perfectly would be a crime against Weezer. Not even Weezer does that.
When Good Charlotte introduces the final song from The Blue Album, the opus Only In Dreams, it’s met by an rapturous applause. The band cites Weezer as the band that originally inspired them to start their own band. It seems somewhat odd that the music they claim to be most inspired by had never sparked the interest of their own fans. It’s clear that Joel Madden’s voice has been influenced by Rivers Cuomo’s singing style.
After leaving the stage for several minutes, Good Charlotte finally returns to play some of their own hits. They open with The Anthem and the mood immediately changes. During the Weezer set, the band stood still in their spots, as if moving would mean they’d forget what to play. Now, they’re leaping around the stage, pointing and clapping towards the crowd. Following The Anthem is Girls and Boys, two songs that were seminal in gaining the band popularity.
Simultaneously, the best and worst thing about any Good Charlotte show is the stage banter between Joel and Benji Madden. Twin brothers, it seems the inevitable juvenile fight for attention has followed them into adulthood – although, they’re really just like giant, oafish, tattooed six year olds. Both are not averse to making self-deprecating jokes that are supposedly aimed at the identical brother. Joel starts a story with “I used to get made fun of in high school”, to which Benji immediately responds “yeah, they used to make fun of him because of his face”.
Both Benji and Joel continually comment on how much they love Australia (particularly Melbourne). Benji states “when I have kids, they’re going to have Australian accents”. They also declare their love for Melbourne band, The Living End, claiming they’re “both good and bad ambassadors for your country”, then playing the opening riff to Second Solution, before stopping abruptly and claiming “we’ll play that tomorrow”.
The most disappointing aspect of the night was the repeated excuse making for their supposed “poor playing”, mostly by Benji. They needn’t have bothered to excuse the mistakes in the Weezer songs because there would probably be less than ten people in the audience who had even heard any of the songs before. The errors weren’t even notable in their own songs, yet Benji determinedly defended himself saying “I didn’t remember how to play that song because I was thinking of playing a Weezer song. You can’t come to a gig sponsored by Jack Daniels and expect the band to be great” he jokes. “We called our band Good Charlotte, not Great Charlotte. There’s a reason”.
After a set that featured songs like I Just Wanna Live, I Don’t Wanna Be In Love, Last Night, Like It’s Her Birthday and The River, that went until forty minutes after the time it was supposed to end, the band finally closed with Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
Despite the disappointment of the Weezer set, the crowd certainly got more than their money’s worth. There are few bands that are more candid and entertaining on stage, and the extended set meant that fans didn’t feel cheated. The problem is that Good Charlotte fans are generally not Weezer fans. The idea had merit, but the execution was unfortunately a disappointment. Nevertheless, it’s an exciting idea, and we can only hope that the JD set continues to pair popular contemporary bands with influential albums of the past.
Lara Moates
Check out our full gallery here!
Performing as part of The JD Set, on this night at Melbourne’s The Forum, it’s immediately apparent that there seems not to be a single member of the audience (aside from this writer) who was drawn here by the exciting prospect of seeing The Blue Album performed live. Of course, a Weezer fan runs the risk of having the songs ruined in a situation like this, but given Weezer’s apparent hatred for Australia (their lack of Australian tours is clearly symptomatic of some serious hostility towards kangaroos or koalas), this may be the only opportunity we get to see it performed live.
Polarising the audience, Sydney pop-punks, Amy Meredith, perform an energetic support set. Many fans are ecstatic, enjoying their energised and catchy tunes, while a number of diehard Good Charlotte fans seem decidedly unimpressed by their pop-punk sound – it’s more pop than punk – but which isn’t dissimilar to their beloved Good Charlotte’s more recent releases. Amy Meredith’s basslines are dangerously invasive, the penetrative vibrations from which will cause your heart to beat in time with the song.
Met by ear-shattering cheers and applause, Good Charlotte finally emerges. They immediately launch into My Name Is Jonas, track #1 from The Blue Album. Barely two bars in and the crowd is already bored. It’s somewhat upsetting to see the songs from one of the greatest albums of the ‘90s completely ignored by the majority of the audience. (Perhaps it should be noted that The Blue Album would be on of this reviewer’s list of top five favourite albums ever, so there might be some level of bias… but it’s still hard to believe that such amazing songs could be performed directly in front of people, yet are so easily ignored!)
Despite Amy Meredith guitarist, Joel Chapman, divulging that “Good Charlotte have even dressed up like Weezer, glasses and all”, there’s nothing reminiscent of mid-‘90s ‘ironically-cool-nerd’ style to them. They’re sporting their typical attire – nothing but black clothes, skate shoes and arms full of tattoos. They’re almost a parody of themselves.
Guitarist Benji Madden asserts “We’ve had more rehearsals for [The Blue Album] than we’ve ever had in ten years”. The validity of this statement is immediately in question when it becomes apparent that vocalist Joel Madden is incorrectly singing the lyrics (half of which are just mushed mumbles), despite having large sheets of paper with the lyrics directly in front of him. As for the rest of the band, errors are made, but you’d only notice them if you’re familiar with the original songs. The band is clearly a tight and surprisingly professional musical force.
Throughout their Weezer set, Benji Madden repeatedly jokes about and makes excuses for the poor quality. “You thought we played our songs bad, but we play other bands’ songs even worse”. “I won’t even try to deny that we f’ed that one up”.
However, musically, it’s really not that bad. After all, they’re playing Weezer songs. It’s not like they’re covering Radiohead or another band whose music is composed and performed to perfection. Weezer is loose and relaxed, witty and casual. To try to imitate their music perfectly would be a crime against Weezer. Not even Weezer does that.
When Good Charlotte introduces the final song from The Blue Album, the opus Only In Dreams, it’s met by an rapturous applause. The band cites Weezer as the band that originally inspired them to start their own band. It seems somewhat odd that the music they claim to be most inspired by had never sparked the interest of their own fans. It’s clear that Joel Madden’s voice has been influenced by Rivers Cuomo’s singing style.
After leaving the stage for several minutes, Good Charlotte finally returns to play some of their own hits. They open with The Anthem and the mood immediately changes. During the Weezer set, the band stood still in their spots, as if moving would mean they’d forget what to play. Now, they’re leaping around the stage, pointing and clapping towards the crowd. Following The Anthem is Girls and Boys, two songs that were seminal in gaining the band popularity.
Simultaneously, the best and worst thing about any Good Charlotte show is the stage banter between Joel and Benji Madden. Twin brothers, it seems the inevitable juvenile fight for attention has followed them into adulthood – although, they’re really just like giant, oafish, tattooed six year olds. Both are not averse to making self-deprecating jokes that are supposedly aimed at the identical brother. Joel starts a story with “I used to get made fun of in high school”, to which Benji immediately responds “yeah, they used to make fun of him because of his face”.
Both Benji and Joel continually comment on how much they love Australia (particularly Melbourne). Benji states “when I have kids, they’re going to have Australian accents”. They also declare their love for Melbourne band, The Living End, claiming they’re “both good and bad ambassadors for your country”, then playing the opening riff to Second Solution, before stopping abruptly and claiming “we’ll play that tomorrow”.
The most disappointing aspect of the night was the repeated excuse making for their supposed “poor playing”, mostly by Benji. They needn’t have bothered to excuse the mistakes in the Weezer songs because there would probably be less than ten people in the audience who had even heard any of the songs before. The errors weren’t even notable in their own songs, yet Benji determinedly defended himself saying “I didn’t remember how to play that song because I was thinking of playing a Weezer song. You can’t come to a gig sponsored by Jack Daniels and expect the band to be great” he jokes. “We called our band Good Charlotte, not Great Charlotte. There’s a reason”.
After a set that featured songs like I Just Wanna Live, I Don’t Wanna Be In Love, Last Night, Like It’s Her Birthday and The River, that went until forty minutes after the time it was supposed to end, the band finally closed with Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
Despite the disappointment of the Weezer set, the crowd certainly got more than their money’s worth. There are few bands that are more candid and entertaining on stage, and the extended set meant that fans didn’t feel cheated. The problem is that Good Charlotte fans are generally not Weezer fans. The idea had merit, but the execution was unfortunately a disappointment. Nevertheless, it’s an exciting idea, and we can only hope that the JD set continues to pair popular contemporary bands with influential albums of the past.
Lara Moates
Check out our full gallery here!