OK, let me just get this off my back: I FUCKING LOVE GREEN DAY. Now, with that said, let's talk history: it all started when a Big Bang- wait, sorry, too far back. Let me get back on topic: In 1987, friends Billie Joe Armstrong and Mike Dirnt, 15 years old at the time, formed a band called Sweet Children. Its first live performance took place on October 17, 1987 at Rod's Hickory Pit in Vallejo, CA where Armstrong's mother was working. In 1988, Armstrong and Dirnt began working with Sean Hughes and the former Isocracy drummer Al Sobrante....actually, let's skip forward a little....
Green Day released two albums in 1988-1990, 39/Smooth and Kerplunk. However, in 1994, Green Day released the album that rocketed them to punk stardom, Dookie, whose quality CANNOT be described with the album title's linguistic cousin, shit. Dookie seemed to fall from heaven on a gilded chariot with the boozy "When I Come Around", the LSD-fueled bassline magnum opus "Longview", and the dearly beloved "Basket Case". This caused a bunch of knuckleheaded naysayers to cry "Bullshit! This isn't punk! GREEN DAY HAVE BECOME SELLOUTS!", which may have caused the band to go into an identity crisis similar to Nirvana and released Insomniac, which featured hits like "Brain Stew", "Geek Stink Breath", and "Walking Contradiction". Two albums later and Green Day dropped off the radar and into obsolescence.
Who knew an Idiot would save them?
In the summer of 2003, the band went into a studio to write and record new material for a new album, tentatively titled Cigarettes and Valentines. They recorded 20 songs for it, and one day they came in, only to discover- Whoop!- THE ENTIRE FUCKING ALBUM DISAPPEARED! The band decided not to re-record C&V, Green Day collaborated with Iggy Pop on two tracks for his album Skull Ring in November 2003. On February 1, 2004 a new song, a cover of "I Fought the Law" made its debut on a commercial for iTunes during NFL Super Bowl XXXVIII. The band underwent serious "band therapy", engaging in a number of long talks to work out the members' differences after accusations from Dirnt and Cool that Armstrong was "the band's Nazi", and other claims born from stress.
The resulting album, American Idiot (2004), debuted at number one on the Billboard charts, the band's first album to reach number one, backed by the success of the album's first single, "American Idiot". The album was labeled as a "punk rock opera" which follows the journey of the fictitious "Jesus of Suburbia".[32] American Idiot won the 2005 Grammy for "Best Rock Album" and the band swept the 2005 MTV music awards, winning a total of seven of the eight awards they were nominated for, including the Viewer's Choice Award.[33]
Through 2005, the band toured in support of the album with nearly 150 dates—the longest tour in its career—visiting Japan, Australia, South America and the United Kingdom. While touring for American Idiot, they filmed and recorded the two concerts at the Milton Keynes National Bowl in England, which was voted 'The Best Show On Earth' in a Kerrang! Magazine Poll. These recordings were released as a live CD and DVD called Bullet in a Bible on November 15, 2005. This CD/DVD featured songs from American Idiot as well as a songs from all its previous albums, except Kerplunk and 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours. The DVD featured behind-the-scenes footage of the band, and showed how the band prepared to put on the show. The final shows of its 2005 world tour were in Sydney, Australia, and Melbourne, Australia, on December 14 and 17 respectively. On January 10, 2006 the band was awarded with a People's Choice Award for favorite group.
Now, let me finish with my full opinion: These guys are my favorite band. In a world dominated with singers like Gaga, Perry, and that one high-pitched singing boy (may he burn in Hell while Lucifer cuts his tongue out) it's nice to know there's someone still awesome in the 2000's. My only question is: Where the hell are they!?!?! We need another American Idiot more than ever!
PS: Yes, I know a majority of this is from Wikipedia, and what is my own writing is shitty, but when you got only 1 lunch period to write something up, beggars can't be choosers.
No comments:
Post a Comment