PICTURE THIS: UnderCover Presents, Green Day’s Dookie @ Fox Theater, Oakland 2/19/16
Leave all your preconceived notions at the door when you head to an UnderCover Presents show. Whatever you think you know will inevitably turn out dramatically different. The breadth of the music scene in the San Francisco Bay Area allows the musical director responsible for reproducing each chosen album to reimagine it as something that’s never been heard before. In this case, Brain Adam McCune went all out to diversify Green Day’s first major label record Dookie. The punk/pop album’s 15 tracks were exercised and massaged by 15 different local acts; acts as diverse as Goodnight, Texas with their Appalachian folk to MC Rai’s Arabic urban fusion. Creativity ruled the evening with a reimagined version of “Longview” employing a full gospel choir and Martin Luther singing “In the End” as a soul ballad with the Bay Area’s Awesöme Orchestra backing him up.
The fellas of Green Day wandered around the venue, chatted with all the bands on the bill, and overall had a great time. Mayor Libby Schaaf even presented Green Day with a proclamation declaring February 19th Green Day Day in Oakland. At the end of the show, it was amazing to see the stage crowded with over 100 musicians singing an A cappella version of “All by Myself.” One of our favorite things about UnderCover Presents is its mission to promote and expand the local music scene here in the Bay Area. Head over to the Undercover Presents Bandcamp page to purchase the incredible music these 15 acts put together for this show.