Green Day’s Saviors tour is a celebration of rock ‘n’ roll: Photos

“And just like that, 20 years,” marveled Billie Joe Armstrong in the final seconds of “Whatsername” during the Green Day concert on Tuesday at the Azura Amphitheater in Bonner Springs, Kansas.

You could see how serious he was at that moment. Twenty years since the blockbuster American Idiot gave new life to the Bay Area punks and made them one of the biggest rock bands in the world for the second time — as well as their meteoric major label debut Dookie had done 10 years earlier.

With a combined 16 million copies sold in the US, these two highlights cemented Green Day’s status as one of the last rock bands with a monocultural influence. They play both in full on their current Saviors tour, named after their new album (which the band describes as a spiritual successor to Dookie And American Idiot), and on Tuesday they played 37 songs over the course of two hours and 15 minutes with timeless efficiency.

The different phases of the set showed the different strengths of Green Day — Dookie a vehicle for their snotty humor and Beatles-like melodies (kudos as always to bassist Mike Dirnt, whose masterful vocal harmonies enhanced the songs), while American Idiot showcased their muscular grandiosity and prog-punk theatrics. Thousands of Gen Xers, many with children in tow, pounded their fists on the stage and sang along to slacker anthems like “Burnout” and “Longview,” but the concert shifted into the next gear during the opening power chords of “American Idiot,” backed by the screams of those who came of age during the halcyon days of Hot Topic.

READ MORE: Why Green Day initially put “Good Riddance” on ice

“Put down the phones! Just be here, in the moment, right now!” Armstrong pleaded during “Longview,” directing the crowd with the zeal of a megachurch pastor or a seasoned politician. Yet despite his now-routine jab at former President Donald Trump during “American Idiot” (“I am not part of a MAGA agenda”), Armstrong tried to encourage people rather than provoke them.

“This is not division – this is unity!” he shouted during American Idiot Fan favorite “Letterbomb.” “This isn’t just a party – it’s a celebration!”

In recent years, there has been some existential doubt about whether Green Day can be considered a classic rock band. Those who came up during the true era of classic rock may recoil at the notion, but here are the facts: They’ve been doing it for nearly four decades and are one of the few rock bands (along with the Foo Fighters) capable of filling stadiums while still being agile enough to make steep leaps off stage platforms. Their hits are part of the pop culture vocabulary and continue to inspire hordes of disillusioned young people who find solace in screaming guitars and sing-along choruses.

Green Day are now a real star, but they handle this legacy responsibly and invite young, bright-eyed fans on stage every night to sing with them. (In addition to the planned audience participation during “Know Your Enemy,” there was also a brilliant, improvised duet between Armstrong and a 17-year-old girl on Tuesday during the closing song “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)”) And even if savior does not reach the dizzying peaks of Dookie And American Idiotits highlights show an impressive range and passion, from the Weezer-like “Bobby Sox” to the confessional alt-rocker “Dilemma,” one of their best songs of the last two decades.

They may not be your dad’s classic rock (unless your dad was born in 1981), but Green Day have earned their classic status and still rock with abandon. They’ve long since stopped needing to prove themselves – now they just need to party.