Green Day- American Idiot

Hey, y'all! It's time for me to talk about another CD on my shelf! As always, I put my iTunes on shuffle, and the CD containing the first song that played is the one I'll be talking about!

Release Date: September 20, 2004

Genre: Pop Punk, Punk Rock, Alternative

Track Listing

1. American Idiot
2. Jesus of Suburbia
3. Holiday
4. Boulevard of Broken Dreams
5. Are We The Waiting
6. St. Jimmy
7. Give Me Novocaine
8. She's a Rebel
9. Extraordinary Girl
10. Letterbomb
11. Wake Me Up When September Ends
12. Homecoming
13. Whatsername

Green Day lineup:
Billie Joe Armstrong- vocals, guitar, piano, harmonica
Mike Dirnt- bass guitar
Tre Cool- drums, percussion

L-R: Mike, Billie Joe, Tre

About Green Day: 
I'm sure I don't have to tell you too much about Green Day, since they're pretty famous. They have released 11 studio albums to date. And that's not even including compilations and live CDs. They've sold millions and millions of CDs. Fun fact that you may not know: Dookie, their first big success, has actually sold 10 million copies in the US, while American Idiot, which is often considered to be their most well known and commercially successful album, has only sold 6 million in the US!

My Opinion about Green Day:
I really like Green Day, but they don't quite make my top 10 bands. They'd definitely make my top 20, and probably my top 15, but they don't quite get up there. I've found that of all the bands I like, the ones that are super commercially successful (like Green Day, Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, and Panic! At The Disco), while I do really like those bands, they're almost never the ones that end up as my absolute favorites. IDK if I subconsciously like really popular bands less, or if the ones that are popular only among alternative fans just make better music. Although I would say that among the alternative bands, Green Day is definitely one of the most talented ones. 

About the CD:  

What could I say about this CD that you may not already know? I'm thinking NOTHING. One fun fact about the CD is that the band originally recorded an entire album, before the master tracks were stolen and they decided to start from scratch, writing new songs, which would go on to become American Idiot, which is possibly their most commercially successful album

IMHO: 
I hate to be "that" Green Day fan, but I would be lying if I said that this wasn't my favorite CD by them. Even the songs that I don't like as much are really great. Green Day created a masterpiece with this CD, and I honestly don't think they'll ever be able to outdo themselves.

As always, I'm going to give each song a rating out of 10 and then give a brief explanation of why it got that rating. 

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American Idiot- 10/10. There's a reason that this song is one of Green Day's most well-known songs. It's so true to Green Day's whole vibe and so in your face that it's hard to dislike it. Plus, it's just so fun to jam to.

Jesus of Suburbia- 10/10. Generally, I have trouble making it all the way through songs that are nearly 10 minutes long, but I could listen to this one on repeat. Granted, it is a 5 act song, a la Bohemian Rhapsody, but it's just so great, and each section is just as strong as the last.

Holiday- 9.5/10. The guitar part is just really great and recognizable. And I really love the bridge. I don't know what else to say, I just really enjoy this song! Also, the way it seamlessly transitions to Boulevard is great. 

Boulevard of Broken Dreams- 9/10. This is a really great song. It would have a higher rating, but I'm just incredibly burnt out from hearing it as many times as I've heard it. 

Are We The Waiting- 8.5/10. It's a good song, but it's not one of my favorites on the CD. I can never seem to enjoy the slower Green Day songs as much as the fast ones.

St. Jimmy- 9.5/10. This is what Green Day does best, heavy guitar, fast tempo, gritty vocals. It just works so well, and it shows off all of their strongest skills.

Give Me Novocaine- 9/10. I really like the contrast between the relaxed verses and the heavy chorus. This is one of Green Day's strongest slower songs, in my opinion. And once again, the transition into the next song is really great.

She's a Rebel- 10/10. Possibly my favorite song on the whole CD. Although it's really short, it embodies Green Day's vibe almost perfectly. It's so loud and jam-worthy. Any time it comes on, I crank up the volume. 

Extraordinary Girl- 8.5/10. Good, but not one of my favorites on the CD. I actually tend to forget that it's on the CD, so that shows how much I really pay attention to it! But when I actually listen to it, I enjoy it. 

Letterbomb- 9/10.  Surprisingly, I don't like this one quite as much as some of their other fast songs. Although, I do really like the line "It's not over 'til you're underground" as well as the tie-ins to all the other songs.

Wake Me Up When September Ends- 9.5/10. If you'd asked me a year or two ago, this probably would've gotten a 10. But like Boulevard, this one has just been played far too many times. It's a great song, I just need some distance from it, after how much I used to listen to it. 

Homecoming- 8/10. This is one of the long songs I have more trouble making it through. This is probably my least favorite song on the CD, just because it keeps going and going. Obviously, I still like it since I gave it 8, but it takes some patience for me to get through the entire song.

Whatsername- 9/10. I love the simplicity of all of the instruments' parts, and how although they're playing basically the same thing over and over, it creates a really good song.

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Favorite Songs: She's A Rebel, American Idiot, Jesus of Suburbia, and Holiday.

Least Favorite Songs: Homecoming, Are We The Waiting, and Extraordinary Girl.

Video! 

American Idiot music video

Jesus of Suburbia music video

Rating: 9.5/10. I'd say that this CD is probably one of my favorites of all-time. It's not perfect, but it's pretty close. If I were giving 1/4 points, this would get a 9.75, but since I'm not, and since 10 is getting reserved for the best best of the best, this one loses out a bit. But it's such a great CD and it is an extremely cohesive CD, which gives it major brownie points

Hope you liked my newest "The CDs on my Shelf" post! Have any questions? What are your opinions on Green Day? Let me know in the comments. If you like my posts, I'd really appreciate if you'd subscribe/follow, because it lets me know y'all are liking them! Hope you enjoyed! Comment, comment, comment! I love feedback! Thanks for reading!