Don't Believe the Hype (American Idiot: Parental Advisory - Green Day)

Member Name: rleigh

Product:	American Idiot: Parental Advisory - Green Day
Date:	11/07/08 (77 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: One excellent track.

Disadvantages: Most of the tracks are really rather bland.

Released in 2004, 'American Idiot' is the seventh studio release from the American pop punk band that is Green Day. The album was released through Reprise Records and consists of thirteen tracks, five of which were released commercially as singles. The first single released commercially from this album was title track 'American Idiot', the first track on the album and one that begins things really rather blandly. It's political punk rock devoid of any real life or energy, the bands music is right from the offset more than a little lacking and only on a select few occasions does the music ever really seem to get going here.

The first few times I listened to the tracks 'Holiday' and 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams' I found them both really quite interesting, I soon became tired of hearing them however and neither track is really anything particularly special. Both of these tracks are tolerable; nothing more, nothing less - just really quite dull and uninspired political pop punk tracks which do nothing too extraordinary vocally or instrumentally either. The bands sound is quite tired throughout much of this album, the tracks have been written with radio airplay in mind I feel and although the idea here is to put across political messages; it's done in an extremely radio-friendly way.

Every guitar hook here has been carefully placed here, the choruses are easy to sing along to but seriously lacking in substance, and there's also a great lack of musical intelligence on display here. The chord progression is extremely simple, the drumbeats are incredibly basic, and nothing ever really particularly stands out here. This 'American Idiot' album sounds terribly contrived more or less from start to finish and only one track do I really fully appreciate here. The track I'm rather fond of from this album is that of 'She's A Rebel'; it's the shortest track on the album at only two minutes in length but is a genuinely really good song. You can sense that the band really had fun recording this one, it's a great track and by far my favourite of the thirteen tracks present on this album.

Two tracks are over nine minutes long here; 'Jesus of Suburbia' and 'Homecoming' also, neither of which I really enjoy listening to. 'Jesus of Suburbia' is intended as a five part piece, it's a nine minute long track but has clearly divided sections as you listen. The problem with this track is that all five of its sections are horrendously dull, the track meanders along and never is a moment of excitement or intrigue ever really offered. It's not bad as such, it's just really boring.

As I listen to this 'American Idiot' album I can't help but feel that the political edge of the music is more than a little forced. The band wrote this album as it was felt that the music was caught in a rut and that something needed to be done in order to re-inject the excitement, power, and passion. The funny thing is that I actually enjoy all six of Green Day's previous albums more than this one, 'American Idiot' is I feel the weakest of the lot and one which I really don't achieve much enjoyment or listening satisfaction whatsoever from listening to.

If you're after an album of political punk rock then there are far greater albums out there than this. 'American Idiot' is an instrumentally limited, stylistically uninspiring bore of a seventh studio album from Green Day which I really wouldn't ever recommend listening to. There was a time when I loved the music of Green Day, I still do like listening to the bands albums from time to time in fact; not this one though, 'American Idiot' is just an album which doesn't really appeal to me on any level whatsoever. Give 'She's A Rebel' a listen, other than that though my best advice is not to bother with this 'American Idiot' album from Green Day.

Summary: 'American Idiot' is a Green Day album I really wouldn't recommend investing in.