Tonight was my first time all summer that I had the opportunity to check out a show at The WhiteLies Lawn at White River State Park. This venue is one of my favorites, aside from the little bugs flying around that seem to only be attracted to me. This evening the Soundtrack of Your Summer Tour was stopping here in Indianapolis. The tour has been on the road since July 8th, and would be coming to a close in just a few weeks. Good Charlotte was the 3rd band to take the stage tonight, and as soon as the first note of “Just Like You” was hit, a mass of kids rushed the stage. I was amazed to see fans just take off running towards the stage. This song was immediately followed up by “The River,” and I think the entire crowd was singing along.
Lead singer, Joel Madden, took an opportunity to chat with the crowd before their 4th song and discussed the headliners of the tour, Boys Like Girls. At the mention of their name, girls began to scream in excitement. He expressed his surprise at the amount of girls that were at the show. The crowd seemed to be enthused about this, and began to scream and cheer. As Joel stood at the front of the stage, the girls in the crowd began to chant “Take it off!” in hopes of having him remove his shirt. For a moment, it looked like he was about to do it, but then did not. As if there wasn’t enough screaming going on, Joel encouraged it even more saying “The interesting part about the girls from this part of the country is their blood curdling screams.” Needless to say, it began again, but with more intensity. He asked if the guys in the crowd could compete, but they fell very short of being able to compare themselves to the females in the crowd. At his request, they all began to cheer as they went into “Girls & Boys.”
During their next song “Little Things” I heard some screams stage left, and looked to see what was going on. One of the Metro Station members Trace Cyrus had appeared for a few seconds. Suddenly that area was flocked with girls anxious to catch a glimpse of him again, or any other Metro Station member, for that matter. I wasn’t necessarily interested in participating in this, so I went back to watching the show, and listening to Good Charlotte play “Hold On.” After this tune, Good Charlotte kicked into some heavy thrashing guitar riffs and heavy drum beats, and I wondered what was going to be played next. Joel led the crowd by shouting “1,2” and the crowd would follow him up by shouting “1,2,3,4,” which lead into “Young and Hopeless.” During this song I noticed some feedback coming off the stage, which was a shock to me. That is not something that one would expect at a venue like this. It was troubling to think that they were having some sound issues.
Before their last song, Joel teased the crowd by singing “…I feel like a hero….” And the crowd immediately followed it up with “you are my heroine.” You knew at this point that their set was almost over, which was a bit of a disappointment, as they defiantly had put on a great show. Their energy level never dropped and their stage presence was confident and strong. The band has been together for about 12 years, with only one member not being from the original lineup. These guys work well together, and the songs that they write are catchy and easy to sing along to.
The last tune of their set was “Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous.” This is one of their bigger singles and even if you don’t really know many Good Charlotte tunes,you know this one. The crowd was genuinely having a great time during this tune, singing along and jumping up and down during the chorus.
Good Charlotte is a punk band that should be admired. Bands do not stay together for this long anymore. People change, the passion dwindles, and the fans disappear. This group is comprised of all but one original band member. That is dedication. The energy level at which this group played demonstrated that their passion is still there, and they are moving forward to see what comes next, on their road to success.
Lead singer, Joel Madden, took an opportunity to chat with the crowd before their 4th song and discussed the headliners of the tour, Boys Like Girls. At the mention of their name, girls began to scream in excitement. He expressed his surprise at the amount of girls that were at the show. The crowd seemed to be enthused about this, and began to scream and cheer. As Joel stood at the front of the stage, the girls in the crowd began to chant “Take it off!” in hopes of having him remove his shirt. For a moment, it looked like he was about to do it, but then did not. As if there wasn’t enough screaming going on, Joel encouraged it even more saying “The interesting part about the girls from this part of the country is their blood curdling screams.” Needless to say, it began again, but with more intensity. He asked if the guys in the crowd could compete, but they fell very short of being able to compare themselves to the females in the crowd. At his request, they all began to cheer as they went into “Girls & Boys.”During their next song “Little Things” I heard some screams stage left, and looked to see what was going on. One of the Metro Station members Trace Cyrus had appeared for a few seconds. Suddenly that area was flocked with girls anxious to catch a glimpse of him again, or any other Metro Station member, for that matter. I wasn’t necessarily interested in participating in this, so I went back to watching the show, and listening to Good Charlotte play “Hold On.” After this tune, Good Charlotte kicked into some heavy thrashing guitar riffs and heavy drum beats, and I wondered what was going to be played next. Joel led the crowd by shouting “1,2” and the crowd would follow him up by shouting “1,2,3,4,” which lead into “Young and Hopeless.” During this song I noticed some feedback coming off the stage, which was a shock to me. That is not something that one would expect at a venue like this. It was troubling to think that they were having some sound issues.
Before their last song, Joel teased the crowd by singing “…I feel like a hero….” And the crowd immediately followed it up with “you are my heroine.” You knew at this point that their set was almost over, which was a bit of a disappointment, as they defiantly had put on a great show. Their energy level never dropped and their stage presence was confident and strong. The band has been together for about 12 years, with only one member not being from the original lineup. These guys work well together, and the songs that they write are catchy and easy to sing along to.
The last tune of their set was “Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous.” This is one of their bigger singles and even if you don’t really know many Good Charlotte tunes,you know this one. The crowd was genuinely having a great time during this tune, singing along and jumping up and down during the chorus.Good Charlotte is a punk band that should be admired. Bands do not stay together for this long anymore. People change, the passion dwindles, and the fans disappear. This group is comprised of all but one original band member. That is dedication. The energy level at which this group played demonstrated that their passion is still there, and they are moving forward to see what comes next, on their road to success.
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