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Old 04-30-2021, 07:35 PM   #485
Leo656
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Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: nWo Country
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One of my all-time favorites, ever since "Smash". Got to see them live twice, both times at the Stone Pony; once in 1997 right after "Ixnay on the Hombre" came out, and again in 2012 when they were touring in support of the last record, "Days Go By". Front row both times. Indoor the first time, outdoor the second time. I got the setlist from the 2012 show, I still have it.

The '97 show was my first "real" concert, and I have so many great memories. AFI and L7 were the opening acts. Did my first crowd-surfing when L7 played "Pretend We're Dead"; I was trying to save it for when Offspring came on but it just couldn't be helped. At one point Dexter asked if anyone had any requests; I was listening to the first Offspring record a ton at that time so I yelled out for them to play "Jennifer Lost The War". He was like "We forgot how to play 'Jennifer Lost The War', sorry man!" Then someone else called out "Sweet Child of Mine", and Noodles actually started playing the intro for a minute before he went off into something else. Then during the intermission, while they played the "Intermission" track from Ixnay on the PA, Dexter came out and handed a bunch of people in the front row some giant plastic cups of beer (and spilled a few on other people). That was much appreciated, as it was hot as Satan's ballsack in there that night; they over-sold the show so the Pony was at like one-and-a-half capacity. It's NJ, nobody gives a sh*t about fire codes.

After the show we met Davey from AFI in the parking lot, super nice guy (I got to be front row for them a few years ago when they headlined Starland Ballroom, too). Then we looked up and the guys from Offspring were just hanging out on the corner outside the venue like a couple'a bums. It took everyone a minute for the "Holy sh*t, it's THEM!" to sink in among the rabble, which the guys were visibly quite amused by.

They couldn't have been more gracious, Dexter in particular. They took time to sign for everyone who had anything and talked to everyone like they were pals. Just really great, down-to-Earth guys. I asked Dexter if they really forgot how to play "Jennifer...", he's like "Nah, we just don't really play stuff from the first record much anymore, most people don't know it, they wanna hear newer stuff." They DID play "Beheaded" off the first record, but that was pretty much a constant staple of theirs for many years by that point so I guess it would've been weirder if they hadn't played it. I asked him why he cut his hair and he was like "Eh, I just got sick of it. Time for a change, y'know man? Plus it was kinda starting to smell..."

Awesome dudes. Never got stuck-up or pretentious despite selling like 40 million records and Dexter having a goddamn Doctorate in Molecular Biology. Doctor f*cking Dexter, I still can't believe that one. By all accounts they're still the same humble, goofy guys they always were, which not a lot of guys can say after a 35-year run.

I read an interview recently where they asked Dex how he feels about the fact that it's never been "hip" to admit liking Offspring, and how they never got the respect or attention a lot of their peers have gotten despite selling tons of records and almost constantly being a presence. He just laughed it off and was like "Yeah, nobody likes us except The People. I can live with that." Such a dude.
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