Live review: Bad Religion and Social Distortion live at Masonic Temple

Detroit, MI – 11 May 2024

Aging punks turn out in droves for double bill of aging punk bands.

I'm a sucker for these kinds of shows. Put two old school punk bands on tour together, and I'm probably going to be there. This time it was Bad Religion and Social Distortion, a pair of bands with a lot of shared history that had somehow never toured together. Both bands are from Southern California, both have been around for over four decades, and both currently call Epitaph Records home. 

I chose the Detroit show, partly because I've always wanted to see the inside of the Masonic Temple. It's a 14 story, 1000 room monolith that has loomed large over the Motor City for 100 years. I must admit, my first impression was not good. The line to get in was ⅓ of a mile long, (we mapped it) and stretched over multiple blocks. I was shocked that it only took 40 minutes to get in. We got to our seats just in time to see the last song from The Lovecrimes. 

I didn't anticipate the tickets selling so quickly, so we ended up sitting towards the back of the balcony. The beautiful 4600 seat theater was filled to the brim with aging punks, and a few of their children. Speaking of children, The Lovecrimes are fronted by Social Distortion mainman Mike Ness' son Julian. I didn't really hear enough to form much of an opinion, but the kid certainly looks and sounds a lot like dad. 

Speaking of dad, Social Distortion were up next. Ness has recently been treated for tonsil cancer, but any concerns about his voice were quickly laid to rest. He sounded good throughout the band's 14 song 70 minute set. The most surprising thing was probably the inclusion of three new songs. While Ness and company have supposedly been working on a new record for the last decade, it's actually starting to seem like a possibility. The three new tunes were good. I'm going to allow myself to get a little excited. 

The rest of the set was dedicated to favorites like “Bad Luck”, “Mommy's Little Monster”, “1945” and “Story of My Life”. “Reach for the Sky” featured an extended piano jam that worked really well. Ness seemed in good spirits and his stage banter came easy. He didn't get too deep into his “how hard it was growing up a punk in Orange County in the ‘80s” schtick. It's almost as if he could sense that a bunch of 50 year olds who grew up in what was the most violent city in America don't have much sympathy for a guy getting picked on by jocks in the California sun. 

I do have one complaint, but it's a minor one. Ness has alway sung behind the beat, but it's starting to get ridiculous. The chorus on the “re-imagined” version of “Ball and Chain” was a mess. Even so, by the time they finished “Ring of Fire” all was forgiven. I know Social D are kind of a divisive band, but I love them. I've seen them more than a dozen times over 30 plus years and they constantly deliver the goods. SD setlist: Bad Luck, Through These Eyes, I Wasn't Born to Follow, Tonight (new), Mommy's little Monster, The Creeps, Hour of Darkness, 1945, Over You (new), Reach for the Sky, Ball and Chain, Story of My Life, Born to Kill (new), Ring of Fire.

It wasn't long before Bad Religion hit the stage. From our vantage point in the cheap seats, we could see how little of the massive stage was being taken up by the band's drums and amp stacks. They played a good mix of old and new, and managed to cram 24 songs into their 70 minutes. Bad Religion are a band that's been so consistent that it's easy to take them for granted. I'm sure they only make it look easy, tearing through track after track and sounding impressively close to the records. 

Singer Greg Graffin looks more suited to his day job as a college professor than a punk rock lifer. Guitarist Mike Dimkich and bassist Jay Bentley both wore hats that would lead you to believe they spent the day picking fruit in the hot sun. Drummer Jamie Miller contributes quite a bit of backing vocals. Guitarist Brian Baker remains the coolest motherfucker in the band. They left the stage after an hour or so, then came back out to play “Sorrow” and “American Jesus” as their encore. They left the stage again after a jamming on a minute or so of Thin Lizzy's “The Boys are Back in Town”. 

Overall, the show was great. So much so that we forgot all about the earlier hassles. BR setlist: The Defense, Los Angeles is Burning, Only Rain, Stranger Than Fiction, Fuck You, Wrong Way Kids, Stuck a Nerve, Anesthesia, My Sanity, I Want to Conquer the World, 21st Century (Digital Boy), New Dark Ages, The Streets of America, Do What You Want, Dearly Beloved, Infected, No Control, Generator, We're Only Gonna Die, You, Sorrow, American Jesus. 

Confessions of a merch whore: The merch was downstairs, and the line was so long that we didn't even bother checking it out. Ditto buying any beer. Once we got to our seats, we pretty much stayed there. It was kind of a shame. The buzz we worked so hard for during a good afternoon of day drinking was left to wither on the vine.