Just when it was safe to dismiss Green Day as the most overrated band on the planet, they slip out of that pigeonhole and emerge with a terrific new pop punk stomper that knocks the taste out of your mouth. To say I thought Green Day were done, is only to state the obvious. "Oh Love" was an horrendous song, too clever by half mess of a poorly written snoozer that sure didn't come within a million miles of the chart. If this was Billie Joe's concept of reintroducing himself to the world after their Broadway horrorshow, BJ should just dye his hair purple and call himself Gerard.But the follow up is what Green Day do best, a relation to "J.A.R." and a fiery little guitar rock manifesto, with a neat little countdown in the tail (a nudge at the new album titles, no doubt). It makes you wish would stop trying to prove something to themselves. They don't appreciate the blessedness of being at ease in your own skin, of doing what you do best: writing other worldly catchy catechism. Instead everything is a bottle neck manifesto about the American Condition. A subject they know amazingly little about.
Except… "where do the free in this place get down?" sounds like it might mean something and so what if it doesn't, right? Who cares if it only sounds profoundly fun when it is really easy word up fun?
Plus, a nice yelp before the guitar break.
Grade: B+