After selling over 12 million copies of the album, many have certified Green Day‘s American Idiot a modern classic. The band’s concept album not only reintroduced the group to the mainstream, but American Idiot quickly became Green Day’s second highest selling album since it’s major label debut, Dookie, in 1994.
Fast forward five years from the release of American Idiot and you will find Green Day returning with it’s latest studio album, 21st Century Breakdown.
Unfortunately with this album, the band has decided to go down a similar route in writing and recording as they did with their last, they try to tell a single coherent story. 21st Century Breakdown is broken up into three “acts”, Heroes & Cons, Charlatans & Saints and Horseshoes & Handgrenades. The last is certainly the most enjoyable of the three acts, as it captures the true essence of Green Day. Unfortunately by listing to the album as a whole, one is likely to lose interest before ever getting there.
A concept album is only as good as it’s music. 21st Century Breakdown is good, but maybe not as good as it could have been. Don’t get me wrong it is well done; it’s just not very punk rock and the Green Day of old is continuing to fade away.
That’s not to say their old style is gone completely. There are definately a few tracks where the band reflects back upon where they’ve come from. Songs like “East Jesus Nowhere”, “Horseshoes and Hand Grenades” and “American Eulogy”, are all refreshing throwbacks to the Green Day we knew and loved.
It wouldn’t be much of a surprise to hear people call this album preachy. But as the concept of the record revolves around the perceived values of the band, it would be inexcusable if 21st Century Breakdown didn’t attempt to make a statement. If you’re able to put aside your preconceived notions about how a Green Day album should sound, you’re likely to hear something that is unique and creative.
All in all, 21st Century Breakdown does what it’s set out to do. It’s created yet another “punk rock opera” for the band. This time around, though, the “punk” portion seems to have been downplayed.
With all said and done, this was just not the album I was waiting for.
Popularity: unranked [?]
Couldn’t disagree more. Coming from a classic rock background rather than punk, and never having listened to Green Day before, I was surprised to find guitar style much like The Clash or the Ramones coupled with some decent melodies and a story. I have played this album repeatedly and it gets better every time I listen to it.
I also disagree. It doesn’t tell a story and it was never intended to. It’s a CONCEPT ALBUM in that it contains THEMES. Which are represented in Christian and Gloria, who aren’t so much PEOPLE as they are CONCEPTS. The themes are also represented in each act.
It’s not any sort of “punk rock opera.” It’s just a simple concept album, and the “concept” isn’t anywhere near as specific as in American Idiot. It’s much more broad.
Also, I disagree that Horseshoes And Handgrenades is the most enjoyable of the acts. It’s actually my LEAST favorite. I’m a fan of Charlatans And Saints.
I may be slightly biased as I’m a huge Green Day fan, but I’ve heard just about everything they’ve ever done and enjoyed almost all of it. (I can forgive them for the Sweet Children EP.) And I think 21st Century Breakdown is some of their best work, along with Nimrod and American Idiot. Warning is my favorite, but I recognize that there’s a strong differences between favorite and best.
21st Century Breakdown is a strong, cohesive album. It’s very well thought out, has tons of variety. It wasn’t at all what I was expecting. It’s very different, yet VERY familiar. It was more Green Day than I was expecting, and that’s a good thing.
Personally, I’m very glad for their evolution. The first half of their career, they were trying so hard to please their fans, and their roots. They were trying too hard to fit into a punk stereotype when they had never really been punk, at least as far as their music was concerned. (Gilman Street wouldn’t even let them play until they got street credit with John being in the band. In the early days, most of their songs were about girls…what’s punk about that?!) When Nimrod came out, they finally stopped caring what other people thought and let loose and did what THEY wanted to do. They just did what they enjoyed.
I realize I’m getting a little off-topic, but it leads up to where they are now. They got a lot of crap for signing to a major label, even though it was necessary if they wanted to continue making music. Then they put out Insomniac as a retaliation to the backlash. Again, one of my favorite albums, but it was just kind of thrown out there. Nimrod, they finally expanded on their sound, bringing in new instruments, trying new sounds, and FINALLY putting out Good Riddance, which had been out for years…but with such an established fan base already, how is that selling out? Same with Warning…there was more of an evolution, and it flopped. They had more to lose with it than they had to gain. American Idiot was also a risk, and that one paid off. It was different, but still essentially Green Day.
And now, with 21st Century Breakdown, I hear a little bit of every album in it…and a lot of classic rock influence. I even hear a little bit of The Network and Foxboro Hot Tubs in it. At very least with The Network, that stuff was put out separately because it wasn’t deemed “Green Day enough” before, but they found a way to successfully incorporate it into their sound and make it work as Green Day.
Their old style is FAR from gone. Green Day now is still very much the same Green Day they always were, only with more variety. There’s been an evolution over the years. They’ve gotten older, they’ve matured. They’ve gone through different experiences and are at different places in their lives. But they’re still Green Day. You just can’t expect those same songs about girls and drugs and teen angst. They’re adults now. They all have kids. They’re dealing with adult issues, and that’s going to affect their music.
As a Green Day fan, something I’ve learned is that you shouldn’t have any preconceived notions about what a Green Day album should sound like. Each album will pleasantly surprise you with some evolution, but still be the same Green Day you know and love.
This was exactly the album I was waiting for. May not be what I expected, but that’s because I didn’t expect anything except a Green Day album, and that’s exactly what they delivered, and more.