Green Day – 21st Century Breakdown

Releasedate: 15-05-2009; Label: Warner
By: Nina Mende

Green Day is an American rock trio formed in 1987. The band has consisted of Billie Joe Armstrong (vocals, guitar), Mike Dirnt (bass guitar, vocals), and Tré Cool (drums, percussion) for the majority of its existence. Green Day was originally part of the punk rock scene at 924 Gilman Street in Berkeley, California. Its early releases for independent record label Lookout! Records earned them a grassroots fan base, some of whom felt alienated when the band signed to a major label. Nevertheless, its major label debut Dookie (1994) became a breakout success and eventually sold over 10 million copies in the U.S. and 15 million worldwide. As a result, Green Day was widely credited, alongside fellow California punk bands The Offspring and Rancid, with reviving mainstream interest in and popularizing punk rock in the United States. The band’s eighth studio album “21st Century Breakdown” is now released.

“21st Century Breakdown” continues the rock opera style of its predecessor “American Idio”t. The album is divided into three acts: “Heroes and Cons,” “Charlatans and Saints,” and “Horseshoes and Handgrenades”. Its loose narrative follows a young couple named Christian and Gloria through life in the United States following the presidency of George W. Bush, as they “deal with the mess our 43rd president left behind”.

Listening to this Green Day album you might get the impression the guys grew up, but keeping in mind that the album was written as a story you totally forget about the first impression and are amazed about many other things. The story begins and ends on the radio. In between you are on a journey through time and places, and of course through the life of the young couple. In some songs the beat changes right in the middle of it, some songs blend so well, that you don’t even realize that a new one has begun. “Know Your Enemy” is a typical Green Day song and I can well picture that one being a sort of festival hymn of the fans when Green Day performs. This piece of art is not as punky and crazy as the old Green Day was, but you can still hear the typical Green Day sound in it. The album plants images and motion pictures in your head, pushing you forward and not letting you stop or slow down. You can hear theatrical elements in some songs that fire your imagination even more. These Green Day album is more than just a rock album, it is a piece of art. I hope they will make a musical out of this one as well, just like they planned it with American Idiot.

Links:
Green Day Official