Green Day conquer the world with a new album of curses and pessimism
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Green Day’s new album has become the first release of the new year, the content of which can be debated. It is unlikely that fresh tracks from a group whose career has lasted for more than thirty years can become big musical news. However, a big band in terms of the market – and Green Day certainly is – is still a matter of debate. Add to this the politicized context of punk rock – and it turns out to be the topic of the day.
Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool sit on stage equipment boxes and try to answer questions in the most succinct and punk way possible from journalists gathered before their performance at Irving Plaza in New York. As part of the promotion of the new album Saviors, the punk trio is playing a series of concerts called the Small Stage Series.
Instead of the usual arenas, a large group performs in a historic New York venue with a capacity of no more than a thousand people, as well as on a subway platform or in a London pub. It’s very cozy, although passions run high at such concerts.
The main members of Green Day are now in their early fifties, but their positions as punk messiahs suggest eternal youth and mockery. Therefore, biker jackets, tight trousers, tousled hair dyed in appealing colors, smokey eyes, plus a good old-fashioned look.
“Social media is great for kids, but if you’re using algorithms to find your music, it’s just laziness. You have to clear your search history to find something new,” bassist Mike Dirnt notes melancholy.
“There are a lot of lies on the Internet. But there are those who make medical diagnoses through TikTok. This is absurd,” says Billy. — I don’t like writing on social networks about politics, because this way you help crazy people who are just arguing. I write about this in my songs.”
In general, everything is to the point and within the framework of the image. We also love punks for their spectacular surroundings. To talk a little, but enough, joke to the point and hate big politics. Of course, it would be nice to add music to this, and in this regard Green Day of the beginning of 2024 disappoints few people.
Saviors is the band’s fourteenth album, and at this stage one can already forgive musical insanity. However, in terms of the latter, the punk stars realized themselves well on the last release Father Of All Motherfuckers, released four years ago. On that record, grown men decided to produce exemplary hysterical pop-punk, but neglected the very wise rule that in the music business it is better to think through even hysterics first.
The new album is somewhat reminiscent of a well-planned special operation (a common definition these days) on a global scale. The musicians began throwing singles at the people since the fall of last year; by the release date, four songs were already available, from which it became clear that the group, after a break, again wanted to make loud statements.
Before the New Year, Green Day played the twenty-year-old hit American Idiot on television, changing the lyrics of the song to suit the moment. Instead of the line “I’m not a part of the redneck agenda” – an obvious “dedication” to then-President George W. Bush), the leader of the group sang: “I’m not a part of the MAGA agenda” ( “I’m not a MAGA Agenda” is an explicit reference to Donald Trump’s Make America Great Again). American musicians can afford to spit on current and future authorities, and, as a rule, nothing happens to them for this. First Amendment of the Constitution…
Understandably, comments poured in, and even Elon Musk couldn’t resist noting that the group was moving “from rage against the machine to outright rage for it,” apparently hinting at the current situation in which those who are now against Trump are definitely playing for Biden , and Musk probably has a lot of questions for him personally. If you look at all this from the outside, you would like to pay a compliment for the excellent hype right before the release of a politicized punk album and be glad that the artists are not immediately declared enemies of the state.
It’s useful to remember what the resurfaced American Idiot album was remembered for besides the crazy sales and stadium tour. The album was released in 2004 and marked Green Day’s return to the league of musical heavyweights. A bunch of hits, flirting with the rock opera genre and a fairly accurately reflected reflection of the creative class on the tragedy of September 11 and the Iraq war. At least two tracks expressed active disagreement with the “idiot” policy, which, however, did not stop the group from conquering all the charts and receiving a whole carload of various awards.
Twenty years later, there are no less reasons for curses, and Green Day are not shy in their assessments. In the album’s two program tracks, opening American Dream is Killing Me and Strange Days Are Here To Stay, the mood of American Idiot pops up, which again comes in very handy. “Everything has changed since Bowie died”, “grandmothers are on fentanyl”, “everyone is racist”, “we are under siege on our private property”… It must be admitted that Mr. Armstrong’s accuser is very convincing, and even the teenage cries in the spirit of “the media makes you want to puke” is not out of place here.
Another strength of Saviors is that social concerns do not impoverish the album musically. The riotous punk rock of Look Ma, No Brains and Bobby Sox tracks here is shaded by the very intelligent and even sentimental Suzie Chapstick, Goodnight Adelaine and the very richly arranged Father to a Son.
In general, Green Day continue their confident path along the Boulevard of Broken Dreams, and anger mixed with pessimism is still perfectly monetized.
Newspaper headline:
The punks were loud
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