Goo Goo Dolls: O2 Institute, Birmingham

Goo Goo Dolls
Birmingham O2 Institute
Thursday 15th June 2023

Buffalo rock legends make their regular stop to Birmingham with more sun, but the same amount of surefire hits. Sam Lambeth reviews.

It’s certainly a lot warmer this time when compared to the Goo Goo Dolls’ previous visit to Birmingham, mere weeks before the world shut down due to Covid-19. Back then, the Buffalo stalwarts arrived amid a blitz of unprecedented ice and snow. This time, it’s so sweltering that the word Naked on the band’s setlist could either be a song or an instruction.

John Rzeznik and Robby Tabac don’t really score hits in the UK these days, but they’re still a prominent live draw. On tonight’s showing, it shouldn’t come as a surprise. The band are a well-oiled machine, perfecting their craft over decades of relentless touring. More importantly, though, they seem like genuine buddies who still can’t believe that they get to do this for a living.

Both are skilled raconteurs and establish an early, easy-going rapport with the ample Brum crowd. They’re here for the songs, though, and Goo Goo Dolls deliver a strong blend of contemporary stormers and nostalgic classics.

Songs from 1998’s globe-gobbling Dizzy Up The Girl dominate the set and for good reason – it was a real sliding doors moment, where the band went from Replacements-indebted rascals to arena-ready rockers. The uplifting, acoustic-drenched rockers Slide and Black Balloon combine beauty with brawn.

The rest of the setlist is a timely reminder that Rzeznik has the songwriting chops to rival any of his contemporaries. Big Machine and Here Is Gone are arms-aloft anthems, Miracle Pill is buoyed by kaleidoscopic keys and Come To Me is an elegant ditty.

There are so refreshing throwbacks of the band’s rawer days in the taut, bruising Long Way Down and the jagged melodies of Naked. Name, meanwhile, serves as a moment where the band took their first steps to more refined, tuneful territories.

Closing with the magnetic, monstrously popular power ballad Iris, the crowd sing back every word. It’s a hot night and Goo Goo Dolls ensured everyone left with a sweat on.

Goo Goo Dolls are on Facebook and Twitter.

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All words by Sam Lambeth. Sam is a Birmingham-based journalist and musician. More of his work for Louder Than War is available on his archive. He also runs his own blog and his music can be found on Spotify.

Photo by Naomi Dryden-Smith – Louder Than War | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | portfolio