I was reluctant to by this CD when it was first released. I've been a big Green Day fan for years, have all their CD's, and seen them live once in '94 in New Orleans. But their music was starting to get repetative. And they knew it. They had to go into the studio and expand their songwriting from the standard pop/punk they pioneered in the mid 90's. "American Idiot" is the result and it suceeds on every level. While the opening track (Amercian Idiot) and first single seems like pretty standard Green Day fare, it all changes from there. This album has been described as a rock opera, about the fall of a loser named Jimmy. I 'don't pay attention to lyrics much, so whatever. What I do here are songs that only resemble the Green Day of old in the tone of the vocals. Songs like "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" and "Are We Waiting" are basically simple in arrangements and structure, but seem fresh and new coming from Billy Joe, Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool (the best name in music today). Even these songs are dwarfed by the sprawling "Jesus of Suburbia," a nine minute musical assault in 5 movements. I rank this CD as Green Days second masterpiece. While it won't have the influence of 1994's "Dookie, " it's the most ambitious and rewarding work Green Day's ever done.
The Sneaky Cheetah's Grade: A+
Sunday, November 28, 2004
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