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Live at House of Blues Anaheim
March 7th, 2025 Review by Kevin Gomez
Friday night saw a packed house at the House of Blues in Anaheim as Southern California’s Goldfinger played yet another sold-out show in the historic venue.
As they did last year at the Wiltern, the ska punk legends brought another all-star lineup filled to the brim with fellow ‘90s legends from top to bottom.
Anaheim, California
New Vaticans were a late addition to an already-massive lineup, having just been added a week prior. Featuring dual vocals from both bassist and guitarist, they were just good punk rock music. Their set included a song called “Minnesota” which their bassist said was about his ex-girlfriend.
As only the second opener of the night, you wouldn’t expect a lot of people or a big reaction. But when it’s Slick Shoes – who have built a loyal fanbase since the late ‘90s, and doesn’t play very often – the floor was already filled to the brim. After opening with “Feeble,” the crowd started the first pit of the night for “For Better, for Worse.”
The same energy kept up for their whole set as lead singer Ryan Kepke belted out hits like “Angel” and “Joe’s Sick.” “East on Tracks” saw a gnarly metal guitar intro from Jackson Mould, followed by an impressive solo on the next song, “Simon’s Quest.” Slick Shoes showed why you do not miss out on a rare opportunity to catch them live as they ended with the aptly titled “Last,” which saw a tapping guitar solo from Mould.
As the Mad Caddies took the stage, lead singer Chuck Robertson said, “We came for one reason – to have a dance party, and it starts right now.” With that they kicked off into the ragtime-heavy “The Dirge” and “Reflections.” Robertson said he hurt his back earlier – sitting on a curb watching YouTube – alluding to getting older, but that he took two gummies which helped tremendously.
They played “Palm Trees and Pines” off their last album, which saw a solo showdown between horns and guitarist Ian Cook. Their pit saw a lot of skanking and dancing, especially when they played the ska punk “Leavin” as the crowd sang back, “Life goes by so damn quickly for me, wanna have some fun!”
After bassist Jon Gazi said, “This one is for all the mamas and papas coming to our shows and now you’re bringing out your kids,” Robertson commented, “These are some old songs,” and they cut into the wild “Contraband,” which brought out one of the rowdiest pits of the night. Drummer Sean Sellers wailed on fan favorites “Road Rash” and “Villains.” They closed with the beautifully melodic “Drinking for 11.”
The Ataris were the last of the openers for the evening. They kicked off their set with the radio-friendly hit “In This Diary,” and for anyone that grew up with this song, those lyrics “Being grown up isn’t half as fun as growing up” really hit two decades later.
Their set consisted of songs mainly from their breakout album, “Blue Skies, Broken Hearts…Next 12 Exits,” and the huge commercially successful gold record, “So Long, Astoria.” As it does on the record, a speech from Chazz Palminteri from the movie “A Bronx Tale” began playing over the PA and the band cut into “Your Boyfriend Sucks.”
They did a fun cover of Jawbreaker’s “Boxcar” threatening, “You’re not punk, and I’m telling everyone.” Guitarist and lead singer Kris Roe announced they were going to stray form the setlist and play a different song, which turned out to be the ballad, “I Won’t Spend Another Night Alone.”
Roe began strumming the familiar guitar intro of their biggest hit, a cover of Don Henley’s “Boys of Summer,” switching “a Deadhead sticker” to the more punk appropriate, “a Black Flag sticker.” MxPx lead singer and Goldfinger bassist Mike Herrera hopped on stage and took lead vocals for “San Dimas High School Football Rules.” They closed with the powerful, emotionally charged “All Souls’ Day.”
Goldfinger took the stage, with all members decked out in full suits, and immediately launched into the ska-heavy “Get Up,” as a skanking pit exploded onto the floor.
“Spokesman” tells about not wanting to hear about phonies, and the lack of authenticity and integrity. Although written in 2002, the themes could not be more apparent today in the age of social media and influencers.
I could not have been more excited for them to include “My Head,” from their sophomore album, “The Hang-Ups,” which had been sadly left from their setlist for many years. They played their high-speed punk cover of The Cure’s “Just Like Heaven,” and their first big radio hit, “Here in Your Bedroom” which saw lead guitarist Charlie Paulson (clad in a priest collar) doing his famous helicopter spin as he played.
Lead singer and guitarist John Feldmann introduced Spencer Charnas from the band Ice Nine Kills who would assist with lead vocals on the next song, and NOFX guitarist El Hefe, as they launched into “Open Your Eyes.” Before anyone could catch their breath the band unexpectedly launched into a cover of NOFX’s punk rock anthem, “Linoleum.”
Feldmann invited as many kids on stage from the audience as could fit and the band played, “Mable.” They closed their regular set with the ska punk anthem “Superman,” highlighted by their horn section, Dan Regan, “Johnny Christmas” Christianson, and “Matt Appleton, all from Reel Big Fish.
As the band returned for their encore, Feldmann said they used to have a young guitar tech that traveled across the world with them. He then introduced that person who turned out to be none other than actor Joe Manganiello of “True Blood” and “Magic Mike” fame, who came out to sing “Enter Sandman” with the band.
They busted out another rare gem, “20¢ Goodbye” before going into “Miles Away.” The band finally concluded with their cover of Nena’s “99 Red Balloons” bringing an end to a Southern California night of ska punk magic.
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