Thus, Monday night's show (11/1) at Mesa Amphitheatre in Mesa, AZ, was a pseudo-gothic rendition of "The Stepford Wives." The crowd, mostly girls in their early teens, did everything to make their crushes happy, even though Good Charlotte seemed to be poking fun of them at times.

When Good Charlotte's crew was setting up their cemetery-themed stage, the cool wind blew giant black curtains just enough to give a sneak peek of the band. Fans went into a frenzy. Once the show began, lead vocalist Joel Madden merely had to clear his throat into the microphone before the screams were so deafening they rivaled a Backstreet Boys concert.

In between tightly wound songs, Good Charlotte playfully posed on stage, or approvingly pointed at young girls who attempted to dress "punk."

With his hoarse vocals, Benji Madden spared no shame in announcing that Arizona was the home to some of the most beautiful people in the world. During a breakdown in the song "My Bloody Valentine," Benji Madden encouraged the crowd to sing along with them.

"Let's all sing it together and put your hands in the air and sing it together like a choir of, I don't know, Arizona angels."

And then: "One time I fell in love with a woman from Arizona," Madden said. "She was an evil bitch from hell. All she left me with was a broken heart, empty wallet and a couple of STDs."

Prepubescent fans looked quizzingly at their parents or guardians for a brief explanation. Luckily, Good Charlotte quickly rolled into a bouncy version of "Girls and Boys," alleviating any uncomfortable feelings.

But Madden continued his sex-education lecture when the song wrapped. "Sex is a very serious thing. Wear a condom."

His brother continued, "A lot of your parents might not want to talk to you about that but we will because we love you. We want to love you but we want to be safe."

Some would argue that Good Charlotte's punk-rock style was purchased at a mall, but it was all good to the crowd. The band's sweet-natured boyish looks--complete with shirts, ties, sweaters and dress pants--clashed with the Alice Cooper-like eye makeup.

Joel Madden's eye makeup is apparently a big point of contention among the female sect. While waiting in line to be frisked for security, two teenage girls debated the eyeliner design that Joel currently prefers. If they saw girls sporting the wrong look, they verbally slayed them.

Toronto-based co-headliners Sum 41 [ tickets ] played off of their sophomoric humor, starting with the introduction of the show. The band showed a video of two of its members, drummer Steve Jocz and bassist Cone McCaslin, playing basketball. Jocz avenges his loss by beating McCaslin to death, dragging him back to his apartment, chopping him up and eating him.

Early in the show, diminutive guitarist/vocalist Deryck Whibley made Anna Nicole Smith his victim.

"Well, well, well, well. This next song is about a really, really stupid blonde girl with her own reality show, Anna Nicole Smith," he said before unleashing a stream of profanities.

Sum 41 primarily performed songs from its latest album, "Chuck," while trickling in hits such as "Fat Lip," during which the audience and the band traded vocal licks. The group's Metallica influence was evident in Whibley's and axe-man Dave Baksh's shredding guitar solos.

Like Good Charlotte, Sum 41's show featured lots of posturing. Sum 41 encouraged the audience to give the 41 salute--four fingers with one hand, and a middle finger with the other.