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For years Good Charlotte have cavorted under the guise of a punk rock band.
But take away the eyeliner, the tattoos and the head-to-toe black clothing and they really are the quintessential pop band.
So it should come as no surprise that Friday night's concert at the St James was the quintessential pop show. Playing a back catalogue of radio-friendly hits that included every major single from the group's past four albums, the band put on an energetic set, free of lulls, filler or general boring bits.
Beginning the night with Misery and The Anthem, the band went from strength to strength before ending the night with their latest single, The River, and 2002's chart-topping Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
Twins Joel and Benji Madden kept the crowd happy with their regular, if somewhat rambling, shout-outs. At times trite - "have you noticed how good-looking people in New Zealand are?" - the boys made a poignant dedication before the song March On, during which they implored the mostly teenage emo crowd not to resort to suicide in times of despair. "We've lost too many friends, we don't want to lose anymore."
The brothers also addressed the minor ticket controversy surrounding the night - namely that tickets were originally sold at $79 then dropped to $60 in the week leading up to the show.
After calling the concert promoter a "dumb ass", a genuinely apologetic Benji, said: "I'm really sorry. It's bull s*** and we didn't know."
The band also promised their next New Zealand show would be an all-ages event, eliciting whoops of delight from the younger members of the audience, who had been subjected to the humiliation of parental chaperones for the evening.
It was cheesy, it was fun, it was pop.
After more than 10 years in the game, the band knows how to put on a show and proved they are more than adept at achieving the impossible - making a room full of dark, brooding teenagers smile.
