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Green Day - 21st Century Breakdown

Green Day releases their eighth studio album, 5 years after the acclaimed 2004 release "American Idiot". The album follows the band’s new format of rock opera / pop-punk so you’re either going to love it or hate it!

Background

Since the release of the multi platinum, politically charged "American Idiot" in 2004, Green Day have been pretty quiet. However, they had been working on a side project, the "Foxboro Hot Tubs", releasing an album "Stop Drop and Roll!!!" in 2008. The album had a very different sort of sound - 60’s rock-and-roll. Since the release of "Warning" in 2000 and "American Idiot" in 2004, the band has seen a renewed popularity with a younger fanbase - many not aware of the punk rock origins of the band in the pre-dookie era. This distinct change in sound has led to criticism over being labeled a punk rock band. It has also divided the fans (myself included) into two groups divided either side of the "Nimrod" album - perhaps the middle ground between the transition from punk to a more commercial, pop-punk sound.

What’s It Like

"21st Century Breakdown" tells a story about Christian and Gloria, a young couple in love, surviving in a declining society. We revisit subjects found on the previous album such as politics, the decline in society, and the struggle to survive in modern America. It opens with a slow melody sung by Billie Joe that is produced to sound like an gramophone. This track opens what is a 3 part album. The songs are grouped into 3 acts, each dealing with a specific theme or subject matter.

The first act, "Heroes and Cons" dives straight into picking over the government and their control over the country. It addresses working class life, social struggles and on a larger scale - the war. The title track features some strong guitar riffs backed up by some doubled vocals, and a short drum interlude that almost sounds like the intro to "Longview". The next track "Know Your Enemy" is rather repetative with some pretty weak vocals: "Do you know the enemy? Do you know your enemy? Well, gotta know the enemy". The song is almost saved by an upbeat solo. Following this is "Viva La Gloria!" which opens with a piano and vocal section before breaking into a a rapidly moving verse and chorus that runs to the end of the song. "Before the Lobotomy" introduces one of the leading characters, Christian. This is followed by one of the better tracks on the album "Christian’s Inferno". The verses are a grungy riff / vocal combination, followed by a rapidly moving, more upbeat chorus. Simple lyrics again, but much more akin to their earlier work. The first act closes with a slower love song ballad.

The second act, "Charlatans and Saints" kicks off with "East Jesus of Nowhere" - an attack on religious fundamentalism, where Armstrong sings "the church of wishful thinking" and "The sirens of decay will infiltrate the faith fanatics". This track is followed by "Peacemaker", another rapidly moving song played on the acoustic. It’s a catchy despite the lyrical content regarding extremist religious behaviour. "Last Of The American Girls" is one of several tracks that seem to drop the vocals low down in the mix, making them sound forced and a bit weaked in comparison to the fullness of the bass and guitar riffs. The following track "Murder City" is much more like the earlier punk rock that we know and loved the back for in the 90s. Simple guitar power chords from start to finish make this one of the best songs on the album. The last two tracks of this act could be taken straight from the "Warning" album. Both follow a slower ballad style piano backed intro, followed by the wall of guitars. "Restless Heart Syndrome" has a great trem picked wah solo and a brilliant closing section - easily one of the better written tracks.

The last act, "Horseshoes and Handgrenades" opens with a track of the same name, sounding almost identical to "Main Offender" by The Hives. This track really bounces along, shouty vocals and another really solid sound from the rest of the band. "Static Age" and "21 Guns" fall into the same bag as earlier tracks. This is when you start to appreciate the runtime of the album is well over an hour. "American Eulogy" opens with the same lyrics as the first track, and covers off the subjects of the previous acts. It’s a breaking point dealing with anger and desperation at the state of affairs - "mass hysteria" and "I don’t want to live in the modern world" being the prominent lyrics. The act (and album) closes with "See The Light" that pleads to people to wake up and act on the current situation "I just want to see the light / I don’t want to lose my sight".

Track Listing

1. "Song of the Century" - 0:58
2. "21st Century Breakdown" - 5:09
3. "Know Your Enemy" - 3:11
4. "¡Viva la Gloria!" - 3:31
5. "Before the Lobotomy" - 4:37
6. "Christian’s Inferno" - 3:07
7. "Last Night on Earth" - 3:57
8. "East Jesus Nowhere" - 4:35
9. "Peacemaker" - 3:24
10. "Last of the American Girls" - 3:51
11. "Murder City" - 2:54
12. "¿Viva la Gloria? (Little Girl)" - 3:48
13. "Restless Heart Syndrome" - 4:20
14. "Horseshoes and Handgrenades" - 3:14
15. "The Static Age" - 4:17
16. "21 Guns" - 5:21
17. "American Eulogy" - 4:26
18. "See the Light” - 4:36

Overall

Fans of "American Idiot" are going to love this album. It’s another rock opera style album, with a running theme based around 2 people in a post-Bush America. Those of you that prefer the raw and unpolished punk rock sound that the band had through the 90s won’t be impressed. The whole sound is softened and produced with a view to pleasing the new resurgance of younger fans. The political slant is tiring, and the lyrics and themes drag on through each song with no respite. I got quite bored of this, however the occasional solid guitar performance was enough to keep me interested.

"Christian’s Inferno" and "Murder City" offer a glimpse into thier past, but we’re talking "Warning" and possibly "Nimrod". Unfortunately, this style of album seems to be the standard template for Green Day. Any hope of a raw sounding, energetic punk rock kick is pretty much gone.

Buy this now from: amazon.co.uk