American Idiot - Green Day
Release Date: September 21, 2004
Label: Warner Bros. Records
Billie Joe Armstrong: Guitar, Lead Vocals
Mike Dirnt - Bass Guitar, Vocal
Tré Cool - Drums, Vocals
With the breakthrough of '90s pop-punk teammate Blink-182's self titled debut album displaying their "grown-up" image and the not terrible but altogether lacking release of Shenanigans, Green Day needed something to help show that they are in turn a '90s band with the potential to excel into the 21st century. This album was exactly what they needed. Although you can tell from the lyrics, guitars, and even overall image of the album how this is a different kind of Green Day, many of those new things that the band has tried have worked out wonderfully. For instance, the 5 different movements on "Jesus of Suburbia" and "Homecoming" as well as the presence of additions like keyboards and guitar effects show how the band's songwriting skills' evolution. When it comes down to it, it seems as though the members are finally learning how to maximize the effects that can be created by their instruments. Billie Joe is using Tremolo and different settings on his guitar as well as singing words with much more universal themes, Mike's basslines are move evolved and Tré's drum parts have grown from the simple beats most modern drummers are sticking to. Overall Rating: 4.5/5.
Individual Track Listing:
1. American Idiot - If you hear this on the radio, you may think its crap or think that its the signal of just another Green Day album. Don't get me wrong, I think this song is great but it's a poor representation of the rest of the album. The song is very fast paced and has very catchy lyrics concerning the media's effect on Ameicans. Rating: 3/5
2. Jesus of Suburbia (etc.) - !!!! This is where the album gets This song is what really convinced me that this album is amazing. The five movements go very nicely together. They mix it up the stlyes of each movement: Jesus of Suburbia - Guitars work well and fills space with good singing, City of the ****ed - slows it down with piano and very well placed backup vocals (fav. movement!), I Don't Care - a very good fast paced movement to balance out the slow precedent, Dearly Beloved - slows down pace with bell tones and lyrically advanced questions, Tales of Another Broken Home - ends the song with a fast-slow-fast pace with an interesting bridge. Rating: 5/5
3. Holiday - The sticker on the CD says this is a single (along with Boulevard of Broken Dreams) and it definitely sounds like one. It's got that triplet or 12/8 feel to it and is very catchy. Billie Joe's singing is backed up well by occasional yells of HEY and AMEN and it seems to work out well. They effectively use space in this song, which I think is the most effective rhythym of them all. Rating: 4/5
4. Boulevard of Broken Dreams - Very cool intro with tremolo backing up the acoustic guitar and singing. A much heavier Green Day song, with the distortion and chord progression on the chorus really emphasizing the minor scale and key of the song. When I bought this CD I immediately tabbed this song because it was in my head all day due to the catchy lyrics and guitar lines. Rating: 5/5
5. Are We the Waiting - This is a song that shows how Tré's drumming has really improved. Not only does he start the song off with a simple yet appealing tom beat, his playing throughout the whole song compliments its slow march feel. The background singing sings the chorus, unusual but effective. Rating: 4/5
6. St. Jimmy - This song starts out with palm muted power chords and gives it a retro Green Day feel. Along with the simple singing and I IV and V power chords, this song gets the feel from its unusual bridge and solo part. The guitars are the thing to listen to in this song, but everything is still pretty cool. Rating: 3/5
7. Give Me Novacaine - Strange title, even stranger song. Tré's beat that starts it is followed by acoustic guitars and a very "hawaiian" feel to the song. They switch it up for the chorus and throw in some minor chords and my favorite technique again: space. Nice effect overall. Rating 4/5.
8. She's a Rebel - Another retro-esque Green Day song. The key to this song is the phrasing and the chorus. They have some predictable catchy lyrics and such in the chorus but they put a 2/4 measure after the chorus to serve as a hook to get you fired up for the average Green Day verse. Not too much here. Rating: 3/5
9. Extraordinary Girl - The intro is great. It's got some effects to add to the just plain "weird" intro. I don't really know how to explain it in words. Just listen to it... it's great! As for the rest of the song - it's pretty cool. They have some great lyrics that just plain stay in your head. "She gets so sick of crying". Rating: 4/5
10. Letterbomb - "Nobody likes you / Everyone left you / They're all out without you / Having fun". The song starts out with a girlish voice singing those lyrics. It's an interesting hook, and the song is overall very good. It starts out like it could be on the album Warning, but then gets interesting. It's kind of odd for a Green Day song to break 4 minutes, but it's all good. Rating: 3.5/5
11. Wake Me When September Ends - Acoustic intro with very beautifully written lyrics. "Seven years have gone so fast / Wake me up when September ends" My favorite song off the CD. This song gradually transforms before your ears from a few acoustic notes to Tré's drums and slight overdrive adding to a very well written song. The lyrics to this song will amaze you. Rating: 4.5/5
12. Homecoming - Another five movement song. I don't think this one captures the effect as well as "Jesus of Surburbia" however. This one just seems like a bunch of 2 minute filler songs put together in one song. Although it does have its moments, the song is overall average Green Day. Best Movement: East 12th street - the band trades fours with a simple acoustic measure. They pick up the tempo though and it ends pretty strong though. Rating: 3/5
13. Whatshername - Interesting end to the album. Great singing parts and guitars. They really bring out the best of switching from major to minor chords in the song. The bridge is really cool: a simple guitar riff followed by solid overdrive then a lead/solo. The singing is really the key here. The singing complete with the selection of major and minor chords really fits well into an interesting end to an even better album. Rating: 3.5/5
