There was a magical time in the late ’90s when we all wore JNCO Jeans and bucket hats and listened to bands like KORN, Sevendust, and of course, Limp Bizkit.
Face it, we did.
And in the heat of such a special period in music history, specifically the summer of 1999 just before the infamous Woodstock ’99 festival, Limp Bizkit paid a visit to Boston to perform a “guerilla show” on a roof on Brookline Ave in Boston, right behind WBCN.
Here, we observe MTV’s special “behind the scenes” footage chronicling how this show came together, how it happened, and how the band totally got away from the police. The performance was one of three “hit and run” style shows, as MTV News host Kurt Loder describes, to promote the band’s hit album Significant Other.
“These shows were illegal, of course,” explains Loder, even though the video points out that they had secured a permit for the performance. Even animated frontman Fred Durst is quick to point out, “We’re not doing anything wrong, really, we’re just playing music.”
Great call, man! Sounds like a similar mindset to that time when Green Day played the Hatch Shell, riots ensued, and free music in Boston was kept on a tight leash forever more, huh?
The whole video is a glorious bit of nostalgia, and a reminder of how playing on Boston rooftops is unfortunately a thing of the past. Below is a collection of our favorite moments, but the whole thing is truly gold.
– Bro rock-screaming at 2:30
– Pre-mosh pit awkwardness at 3:16
– Durst’s “stick it up yo YEAH!” dance at 3:47
– Disgruntled man with mustache looking on at 3:54
– Poor mosh pit etiquette at 4:35 (chill with the punches, guy)
– Exchange with Boston Police at 5:12
– Durst’s remark at 5:53
Let’s never forget about this ever again, OK Boston?
