American Idiot

It’s like a 10, probably. I’ve never heard this album in full until today. I’m an idiot. Perhaps the titular American idiot. I never knew there was a big running story and plotline and thread here; I’ve only ever heard the big tracks – American Idiot, Boulevard of Broken Dreams, and Wake Me Up When September Ends. I always knew there was a Broadway musical, but I never made the connection somehow. This was fucking awesome. There’s not a single missed beat here – from those opening guitar riffs on American Idiot, through the entire running plot of “home sucks, I’m leaving, let’s party, I’m in love, oh shit, never mind, this sucks, I’m going back home” that’s portrayed brilliantly throughout the lyrics and instrumentation of every single track until the sort of epilogue that is “Whatsername,” and the peace that Jesus has finally come to after all his St. Jimmy escapades. It’s a very malleable plot, but what really drives it are these damn songs; every single one of them is fantastic, from the compositions, the guitar riffs, the extremely high energy, and especially in the lyrics. I now understand why all of these are paired so specifically on streaming. You cannot hear one of them without the other, and you really can’t listen to some of these songs by themselves, unless you remember the sort of context of the album. It really is a damn play. One small thing about the plot itself… I dunno, it’s a little weird in the end, given how often people find success outside of their hometown in my experience, but in terms of this hellish post-9/11 suburbia that Jesus finds himself in, maybe he really is just more comfortable at home. Regardless of that, I thought this was fucking spectacular. Absolutely worthy of the hype. Really dumb of me to never listen before now, but I now feel as cleansed as Jesus did at the end of this album. One of the easiest 5s yet.

Great classic!! Brings back memories!

Had Rock Opera, so why not a Punk Rock Opera. Simultaneously too short and yet some songs feel too long. 20 years later and I'm still surprised Green Day had this in them

Decent rock.

Álbum of my teenage years

When I was in 4th grade I really wanted my parents to let me buy this album. Unfortunately, there is a giant "Parental Advisory" label on the cover, so my mom didn't let that happen. I was pissed. I'm not sure why 4th grade me wanted this, but I had great taste, this thing is still awesome 20 years later. What I missed at the time was the context. Green Day was very big at this time (Dookie came out a decade earlier), but their popularity had been declining throughout the '90s and they had a bit of a flop album in 2000 before this one came out in 2004. So in many ways this was a bit of a surprise comeback for them. They call this a "punk rock opera", and it's centered around a lower-middle-class suburban teen that's disillusioned about the state of the US at the time (9/11, Iraq War, Bush elections, etc.). Very few of the songs are explicitly political, but the story comes across regardless. This one has a bunch of their hits, "American Idiot" to kick it off, "Holiday", "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", and "Wake Me up When September Ends". I enjoyed a lot of the songs that I was less familiar with too, so it stays pretty consistently strong throughout. I tend to like punk that's pretty well-polished, and this meets the criteria. Great energy throughout, strong lyrics, multiple classic songs, a bit of nostalgia for my childhood, what more could I want? A great album overall. 5 stars. Take that mom. Favorite song: Wake Me up When September Ends Other: American Idiot, Jesus of Suburbia, Holiday / Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Give Me Novocain / She's a Rebel, Extraordinary Girl / Letterbomb, Whatsername 6/30/24

Good for what it was

American Idiot is, ultimately, listenable. I definitely found myself bobbing along and enjoying so tracks. The album goes on too long. But it's too important of an album for 90s to ignore. I think the thing that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth is calling it punk. Maybe they bought a mode of punk into popular consciousness that I just don't like very much. I wonder if it was called something else, I'd be left without that bitter taste.

Music is ok, but the lyrics really make this one

Nice one Green Day!

Not a big fan of "commercial" Green Day compared to their early work. But this album is still entertaining.

I have to be honest, I love the singles and have strong emotional connections to them but I find the album as a whole to only be average

Never was a Green Day fan growing up and I'm not one now. There are a few good ones on this album, but there are also certainly some tunes that have aged *distinctly* poorly. Just not super my vibe!

Had a ton of fun revisiting this. I never listened to a ton of Green Day but I always loved this album and I think most of it holds up pretty well. I bet they felt so clever making two songs actually one song

Right off the bat… a MAJOR album for me when I was a kid.. THE album, in fact. The singles actually don’t do a lot for me tbh, but the ambition of this project and a lot of the songs in particular within a pop punk concept totally works on me and kinda opened my eyes when I was young. There’s way more filler than I remember but tracks like Jesus of Suburbia and Homecoming have always kinda blown me away There’s also a lot of corny touches, and dated language here and there - honestly it’s more of a mixed bag than I remembered from my relatively recent re-listen, but most everything is catchy and the project as a whole (and a heap of nostalgia) color it positively overall in my eyes. Certainly an influential album and, while in my opinion this does not compare at all to these heights, I can’t deny that it influenced all-time favs of mine like MCR’s Black Parade - I mean the impact this had on steering other pop punk bands towards more “serious” music with emo aesthetics was huge for my personality. blink-182 beat them to it of course, and with much more creative success.

Intensely nostalgic and quite fun but it does feel like it’s tailor-made for 10-year-olds.

Famously my least fav band, I was shocked by how many of these songs I did remember from the last time i listened to this album (i must have been nine years old?) I will at a later date maybe try and do some research about the best art made during the bush era of political activism (there was basically nothing good made tho...) Anyways still think it sucks :)

I found this album to be underwhelming overall. I can understand why it resonates with people but for me this is nowhere near the masterpiece I’ve heard it is. I’ll start by saying I did enjoy a few songs off it, Holiday/Boulevard of broken dreams and Wake Me up When September Ends. While I didn’t enjoy American Idiot (the song) it was anthemic, I just personally felt it was annoying. Jesus of Suburbia is kind of goofy with how long it is but again I won’t deny it has hooks all over it. Unfortunately the album on a whole just dragged on for me, it’s just way too long with way too many songs that sound the same. Every once in a while they will use a motif but I found the story/concept not interesting enough to care when a musical idea was brought back. Idk it feels like more aesthetic than an enjoyable concept album. But hey maybe it’s just not for me, I still think it’s fair to call the album iconic because I know the impact it had but as a listening experience I have no want to every listen front to back again. Wake Me up When September Ends is in my opinion Green Day’s best song.

Dookie is better, but there are some bangers here for sure

Hyfsat rock album ändå. Många av låtarna är överspelade, men de är ju kända av en anledning. Inte riktigt min grej men fattar varför folk gillar dem och kan definitivt lyssna på dem då och då. Hade denna på LP hemma faktiskt så det är inte direkt nytt för mig men kul att få något känner igen.

quite bland musically, quite bland lyrically, couple of nice bangers that are relatively nostalgic, but they are genuinly alright. its not a bad album, but its not good, and its definitely not significant enough to be considered "blabla one of the greatest", its just a generic pop "punk". nothing in the world of music would change if this album didnt exist. In a vacuum id give it a 5-6/10, but in this list its a 4/10

Great production, great songs.

There are so many things I'd like to say about this album. In fact, that its taken me 5 months and 100 other albums to finally sit down and begin typing out my thoughts. As I sat down and began waxing poetic on each song—its instrumentation, lyrics, and place in the album’s overarching narrative—I realized that what I really wanted to convey was how much I absolutely love this album. So while this may not be the ten-thousand-word thesis I initially set out to write, the core message remains the same: this is one of my favorite albums.

Pure nostalgia

This album has it all great song writing great performance and straight in your face rock and roll. Green Day has kept punk alive and well.

Genius album! It’s equally fresh today.

the unwanted soundtrack to my middle school/high school years. nostalgic but not in the best way haha. probably would have been better to me if it wasnt so overplayed during that era.

Album 447 of 1001 Green Day - American Idiot Rating : 5 / 5 A favorite I had almost forgotten about. A good time to pull this out as it is somewhat as relevant today as it was then. Great tunes...great performance. Hopefully, 20 years is enough time for many to separate it from its politics and really appreciate it for the music.

Great sounds throughout

Top Classic punk rock but Not my genre

7/10

Pop punk probably at it's absolute finest. Excellent concept album at that.

It was ok.

The only American Idiots on this album are the political naïve members of this band. This cam out while I was an adult already, so I was able to see through all of their bullshit. About as terribly boring as the other albums on this list from the naughties. It really was the worst decade of Pop Music going all the way back to the 1950s. It seems that the albums that were really worth listening to, that managed breaking new sonic ground in the 2000s were not included at all on this list. For three chords and boredom, "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" is the only song that feels at all like an earworm on this album. I applaud the band for trying a couple of new things, but ultimately this a formulaic mess of a punk rock opera album that is also way too long for a punk rock album. What is more concerning is that are no new fresh ideas for the genre on here. Stormtroopers of Death did this idea better with SPEAK ENGLISH OR DIE way back in 1985 and their concept album character Sergeant D. There are countless other punk rock acts, NOFX is another, who did all of this more interestingly than these guys. About the only positive thing I can say is that Tre Cool, their drummer, is the best thing about this band and he shows it again on this album.

i'm not a part of the redneck agenda

Classic. Mark Knopfler a hero on guitar

An album from my youth 😂

This is a quality album, but I was not feeling it today. Maybe the sound isn’t for me anymore. I loved listening to some of the songs as a kid, and those are still good. Kinda funny to hear the singer ask, “Am I retarded?” Yeah, kinda. Standouts: Jesus of Suburbia, Holiday / Boulevard of Broken Dreams, and Wake Me Up When September Ends.

Started off really strong, but then faded a bit.

This is the Green Day I like. I am curious as to why there were so many combined songs. A bit outdated- said the r-word. But i actually liked this a lot more than our first album.

pogger and green-pilled

Punk classic

Corny, overproduced shite for angry teens. This list so white.

Way more stadium rock than I remember, and a lot of the tracks work much better within the full context of the album.

Seems all of these guys' hits are in this album. Even the 9 minute songs slapped all the way through (didn't expect it). Second half had a couple mediocre songs which made this drag on a bit, if only it was a bit shorter. 4.5 rounded down cause of the length Stand-out: Holiday, Jesus of Suburbia

Melodically 2-dimensional with some drum hooks lifted from better songs. Blink-182 without the special sauce.

Still a great album, lots of nostalgia. Made me pick up my guitar again.

Great album, just not a huge Green Day fan.

It wasn't a bad album. I'd even say it was a good album.

Very overplayed (I worked at HMV at the time) but nowhere near as bad as I remembered. In hindsight, you can sort of hear that they felt threatened by emo and were trying to do some of the progginess and shape of emo in their music to stay on top.

좋아하는 앨범

Bloody hell, some of these reviews! You'd think Green Day were the Second Coming! In fact, the singles are okay but the rest of it gets pretty dreary.

Thirty albums ago, I had 'Dookie', a nice surprise: how listening to it reminded me of my love with another, older melodic (hardcore) punk album, that it was 30 years old, from 'Cobain's dead' 1994 and how I learned that Green Day's music/musicianship is or was way above their pop punk contemporaries' output. 'American Idiot' does not have that. The last point still stands, but it doesn't work in their favour. In 'Homecoming', there's a "Jeez [exhale]" at 5:24 and that is me at this point when I hear another one of this concept album's breaks, marching drums, toy piano tchotchkes. It's all so weirdly strained and laborious that I can't find the fun I think I'm supposed to have with music like this. Instead, I'm just bored.

Almost every song is a jam.

Some great tunes.

Pure nostalgia

Epitome of music

My favourite album when I was 12, still a great album and easily Green Day's best work.

At least it’s an album of importance and broad critical acclaim even if I don’t like it that much. It’s more of a throwback than a progression. It’s not bad at all. But is it punk? I will concede it belongs on this list.

Propulsive popular punk: We rocked along to it, our mock hero's, and they appeared on the Simpsons: Mindfr*ck America - let's commercialise our satire and rage, that's show the capo Basterds. it's good fun.

Never really been a fan. Title track’s okay, although I prefer the follow-up single, Boulevard Of Broken Dreams. Apart from those, i enjoyed the change of pace with Wake Me Up & I liked the closing track, Whatsername, but the most of the rest of it all sounds the same to me.

American Idiot; for American idiots by America idiots. Jeez, this stuff just writes itself... I am a little bit prejudiced against this record on a number of counts. But mostly because of Bloody Matthew (not his real name). In 2004, I recently been promoted to a team leader position, and my most difficult team member was Bloody Matthew, so called because his behavior so frequently prompted people to cry out "Bloody Matthew!". He was a major pain in the arse, exacerbated by the fact that he believed _he_ should have been made team leader. He was a considerable thorn in my side and made life unpleasant for me and other people in the office. Example behaviour; the office manager had OCD, so Matthew would go to the stationery cupboard and mess things up, so that the officer manager would have a fit and spend the rest of the day making sure all the boxes of paper clips were lined up properly. Just being deliberately provocative. One day, Bloody Matthew came into work very excited that there was a new Green Day album coming out. He loved this record; he couldn't believe their 'artistic growth'; it's a concept album! it's political! it's got rockin' tunes aplenty! Just the fact that this was Bloody Matthew's favourite record is an immediate strike against it. This record is a prime example of Steve Albini's dictum that anyone with enough time and budget can make a record that sounds "good". I watched the 'making of' documentary (which contained almost zero insights, except that Billie Joe is secretly obsessed with Broadway musicals and refuses to tune his own guitar, and the band was signed by the same A&R guy who signed the Goo Goo Dolls), and the sheer number of guitar overdubs is astounding. The expensive studio and equipment and the budget meant that this record was always going to sound huge. And there are precedents for punk rock albums that are well produced, like Never Mind the Bollocks or Nevermind, but those are also the subject of controversy about whether they are 'real punk rock'. Bille Joe Whatsit can craft a fair tune and crank out an energetic performance, but I wonder if I would like it better if they had banged the record out in a week at Electrical Recordings. So that's two strikes. And then there is the pretension of the album concept, a punk rock opera. I defer to Robert Christgau: " The emotional travails of two clueless punks--one passive, one aggressive, both projections of the auteur--stand in for the sociopolitical content that the vague references to Bush, Schwarzenegger, and war (not any special war, just war) are thought to indicate. There's no economics, no race, hardly any compassion. Joe name-checks America as if his hometown of Berkeley was in the middle of it, then name-checks Jesus as if he's never met anyone who's attended church. And to lend his maunderings rock grandeur, he ties them together with devices that sunk under their own weight back when the Who invented them." Strike three, dudes. It doesn't surprise me that this ended up on Broadway (winner of two technical Tonys!) I think punk rock was a cheap and accessible musical genre for Billie Joe to get started in, but, in his heart of hearts, he really wants to write musical theatre numbers (in the same way that Billy Joel used rock and roll as a commercial delivery mechanism for his musical theatre aspirations). Not that there is anything wrong with musical theatre, but 'fess up, fellers. Just be open about it. I recently watched a documentary about the Descendents, who really invented the genre of tuneful, apolitical, technically competent punk rock. While I don't necessarily dislike any one of those aspects in themselves, this did become a rabbit hole that bands followed in the 90s into a melodic punk rock style that had the audio trappings of punk rock (fast pace, distorted guitars, lots of down strokes), but also the naked ambition to sell a million records. And I really don't like it. It's the same obnoxious alpha jock blokes in the punk rock outfit, which dilutes the cultural meaning of punk; the willingness to examine social norms from the outsider position. And Green Day were always part of that commercial movement, as far as I could see. This album is where their peak ambition gave them the courage to stop pretending, hire an expensive studio, buy some vintage guitars, and get a stylist in. Pass the lucre, boys! We're cashing in! Summary: I admire the chutzpah of wanting to sell a bajllion punk rock albums. And they did what they needed to do; they wrote a bunch of catchy tunes, spent a fortune recording them to sound awesome, added enough content to seem like a meaningful artistic statement (without being too challenging) and made some rad videos. But the corporate polish just turns me off. I don't believe their Teen Rebellion (tm). It's commodified teenage protest, with almost nothing to say. Sound and fury signifying very little... good tunes, but a tiring listen overall. 2.5 stars.

loved it, one of my fav gd albums

inoffensive rock

Holy shit! It's been a while since I listened to the entire album, and I forgot how good it is. The same guys that sung about masturbation and were known for being able to play 3 chords put together one of the defining albums of the early 2000's. It's poignant and topical. It's also catchy as hell. I was able to sing along to almost every song on the album. I don't think there is a bad song on this entire album.

Was never a big green day fan. Overall pretty bland

I’m not here

Unless you're Taylor Swift, a 9 minute song is not needed, let alone TWO. The double titles on half the album is also unnecessary just pick one title. Music was not super interesting and the album was too long. Favourites: holiday/Boulevard of broken dreams, give me novacaine/she's a rebel. I'm in a hater mood today. 2/5

This is really good actually. I love punk rock and I forgot about how many bangers Green Day has. So classic and a great way to get me back into trying to finish up this generator. I think another 5 star for me, favourites are literally the entire album

Holiday and boulevard of broken dreams 100% best songs but not great for me

First half starts strong then peters out. Double tracks take interesting turns.

Look, anything by Green Day that's not Dookie or Nimrod is a big ol' eye roll for me. It has a couple of good tracks, Jesus of Suburbia and Holiday come to mind, but the title track being the worst song on an album doesn't sit right with me. I could go on a whole rant about how lame that song is, but there's a whole album to write about. It's ok I guess. For me, this does signify Green Day's downfall of quality and relevance.

Good but not my style

Loved it as a kid but hasn't really aged well for me. I think a 7/10 is generous even if there are a couple of great tracks on here.

3 bc I wont listen to it again. Just the 3 songs

I mean, it's not terrible. And I get that they're doing modern punk rock operas. I was well off the Greenday train by this album and not sure I'd heard it full. Like a high 2.

My boyfriend said this album radicalized him when he was 12 so I'd have to give it a four.

Fuck Green Day

Yes, I know it’s not punk like punk should be. But who cares? It’s non-stop energy, great songs and great musicians. Have always liked Billy Jo’s vocal. Whilst I hate rock operas and musicals, this is the exception to the rule.

Big songs on this, some of Green Day's best on my opinion. The first 4 songs are bangers, with 'Boulevard' probably my favourite GD track. ' Are We the Waiting' is the sound of a band embracing their Stadium credentials and coming across life John Farnham bless them. Thank goodness for 'St Jimmy' to bring it back to some sense of normality. I could go on but the essence is that there are so many pace changes, from Punk to ballads going on and to punk purists, it's probably a step too far. Luckily I'm not one and can appreciate a band trying to add a bit of versatility to their sound. It works do a 4 star.

Evidemment !

This was the album that REALLY got me into music in 2004. I was a junior in high school when this was released and I remember it really resonating with me. For years after that, American Idiot was all I would listen to. I became obsessed with learning about what the lyrics meant, which helped awaken me politically as well. This was at a time where 9/11 was still on everyones minds and America's vengeance was being taken out on a country and people who had nothing to do with it. American Idiot (fortunately or unfortunately) helped shatter the illusion of the USA being the moral and just country that we were all told it was growing up. While we still fight for it, in some ways it seems we're further away from that now then we were when this came out. I also remember discovering those tracks that would play on the radio sometimes (Longview, When I Come Around, Basket Case) were also by my new favorite band. This lead me down a rabbit hole, giving me even more music to fall in love with, despite it being very different. While I don't keep up with Green Day's newest music, they'll always have a place in my heart as the band that made me both musically and politically aware. In 2024, this album is still incredible and still 'hits' for me.

I love how theatrical this album is. Even without seeing the musical, I can picture all of the characters painted throughout the album. I’ve been a big fan of this album since middle school, and it is still holding up even at (almost) 30!

8/10 definitely not as annoying as I was expecting, actually pretty well written songs not really my genre, but I can still appreciate it

over rated

Hey, hey, we're The Punkees!

what can I even say. it's American Idiot

Surprise of the year for me. I loved this. Obviously I was obligated to like “American idiot” as a “misunderstood” eighth grader trying to play into a narrative of being cool. In reality, I don’t think I even listened to the whole album when I was a kid pretending to like this to seem cool. But as an adult woman, I was surprised that I actually loved the whole album. Maybe I’m still trying to be cool? Or maybe I just don’t care what people think of me anymore and like what I like because I fucking like it. So Green Day and Taylor swift and Janelle Monet, here I am. I love you all.

Very solid recording that stands up well over time

klasyka, zmora hipsterow i ludzi z czarnego kota, jest monotonnie ale przyjemnie

definitely the most ambitious green day album, and i think it’s pretty great for it even though the execution isn’t perfect. one of the first CD’s i ever picked up too!

I don't really have any comments on this - I'm not the audience. Seems competent

Favorite Track: Bouievard of broken dreams Other picks: Wake me up when september ends, american idiot

Stadium punk.

This album was great when I was younger. Not so much anymore

Greenday was greated with cheers when they published Dookie,,, 10 years later.... I skipped through most of the songs on this album, as song A sounds like song B sounds like song C... How has this band managed to captivate so many people for so long? This is the first album that I am giving 1 star...

One of my favorite albums of all time! Together this album is amazing and each song can stand so well on its own. This one came out when I was in college and really allowing me to to question and change a lot of world views/stances. I have listened to this album numerous times before but still love it today.

If you love pop punk anthems, these guys are the kings. This is probably their best album. Appropriate to get this one on Memorial Day. 20 year's later the American Idiocy has spiraled into American Insanity.

Awww yeah, love how much Green Day rocks out against the fuckery of society, while being so catchy too. The lyrics are as relevant now as they were then. So many great songs on here, and as a whole, it’s a very complete feeling rock opera. They are so fun live, and this was also a cool show to see on Broadway :)

Sounds like an album Blake would fondle himself to …10/10

At first I was surprised to see this one. Now, I am good with it. Will be my highest rated album thus far because it definitely was a piece of my youth.

Love this album. Many of these songs are still regularly listened to.

Not a fan of Green Day.. but this was probs their best album. Where is Offspring?!

Never been a huge fan of Green Day but this is a pretty decent album.

Simple Enjoyable

Very overplayed when it came out, but it's been long enough that I can enjoy it now. Some very good songs. Bit too much filler towards the end, but still good overall.

always felt this was an overrated generic sounding album

Better than I remember

Very nice album! American Idiot and Wake Me Up When September Ends tracks are the masterpieces! And all other are perfect! Thanks for this album listening, I never heard it before!

Green Day! Really good album, Aged very well.

Absolute staple of an album. I'd overlooked it.

this album is mega and i barely listen to green day wake me up when september ends will never not be a banger

I really don’t like Green Day

behold, the last decent music green day ever made! (dookie still washes this album btw)

Would rather listen to the real punk/new wave rather than this 20 year's too late sanitized rubbish. Not for me

It deserves a higher rating than my other 4s, but is also not Fleetwood Macs Rumours. This is a true 4, I'll be stricter with my ratings moving forward.

Eh

One of the worst things to come out of 9-11.

Wildly dated clown show

Absolutely hated this album when it 1st came out. Still super tired of hearing the main singles from it, but really the rest of the album is pretty great. The rock opera really works out in it's favor.

Are you kidding me???

Correcto pero no demasiado de mi agrado.

When I got this generated, my immedieate thought was "ahh a modern classic". But there is nothing modern about this record anymore. It's 20 fucking years old. It's now a classic. The singles are Green Day's strongest, and so is the rest of the album. Just so consistantly strong, every song an anthem. Truly one of the greatest career resurgances ever seen

Jesus of Suburbia alone can put this up to five stars. Overall though, this record was essential listening as a tween. It's so memorable in my mind, from the rebellion that felt so relatable to me at 10 years old(?!?) to the black shirts and red ties that made up a lot of of the visuals from this era. There's just something about the albums that you grew up with. There's no replacing them.

Good album, but I think dookie is slightly better

Absolutely love it. I miss 2004 and this is full of absolute bangers. More of this sort of thing!

Not for me.

This is the first generated album that I’ve actually listened to before. I really liked the album as a teenager and still do now. Great, solid album. Favorite songs: American Idiot, Holiday, Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Wake Me Up When September Ends.

There is something that doesn't fully get me on the side of Green Day. I think it's the timing. I wasn't a greatest listener of rock in 2004. Nevertheless I recognize it's a important album in America.

very good later stage grunge punk.

This was pretty good.

I forgot how epic this album is. True rock opera.

One of my most favorite albums of all time

Long songs - hits mixed in with eh

Good Green Day

Good as Always. Not sure I\"m going to bother re-listening to things I've listened to hundreds of time and own.

One of the few (and I mean *few*) punk albums that could stand the test of time. 20 years later and there's still so much new artists could learn from an album like this.

Gotta say, BJA can write a melody. It’s weird because I listen to her plunk, and Dookie and insomniac so much but I was already pretty much done with them when Nimrod came out and I didn’t think it was a very good album. That was i was probably making fun of Green Day by the time American idiot came out. Some songs are so much a part of the culture now and his voice is really kind of iconic its own way that when I hear it it’s so familiar and hits that nostalgia for the mid teenage years angsty thing but because I don’t know the lyrics to the songs, there’s an eeriness about it. Except Boulevard of broken dreams. I was coming back from NCAAs in Atlanta our fifth year, I just went down to watch with Mooney and Leo Salinas and maybe a couple other guys. I drove Fran’s Crown Vic down there with a couple people, but they stayed or flew back or for some reason I drove home alone. One of Mooney‘s friends, a girl who knew from Jersey, lived down there and we stayed with her and a roommates last night. I was wrecked and made some bad choices and it was embarrassing and I got up early the next morning and fled. Well, I had to rouse Leo from the backseat of the Crown Vic first because that’s where he had slept. Of course. So I’m driving north back to cville and feeling bad, bad, bad—about the things I’d done, but also physically. I was very hungover. It’d been three days of steady drinking and my liver felt like it was flowing backwards and secreting toxins into my bloodstream instead of filtering them out. And it was an ill-fated journey. I had printed Map Quest maps out because this was flip-phone era still, right, and of course I’d lost the printouts but a) assumed I could just reverse engineer the trip and b) could not comprehend trying to find somewhere to look it up and print out another set—imagine searching blindly for an Internet cafe in rural Georgia on a Sunday in 2005–and it was, of course, absolutely impossible to go back into the girls’ house to figure out how to print my getaway plan. ANYWAY, this song was on like three radio stations between Atlanta and the Blue Ridge Mountains—and was the last song I heard before the radio went out so it was stuck in my head the rest of the trip and was already starting to feel like some kind of fateful punishment BEFORE the snowstorm started. Freak late spring storm that dumped and dumped the higher and higher I climbed. By the time I reached the pass (84?) to get to the east side of the mountains, it had reached blizzard conditions AND THE HEATER HAD GONE OUT so there was no more defrosting the sleet Jack Frost piss raining down from the sky and caking the window in a sheet of blurry ice. Luckily there were very few others on the road. None by time I got to a trucker gas station to get some hot water to melt the ice on the windshield so I could see. “Road’s closed,” dude yelled from behind the counter as I walked in. “You must be the last one they let up.” He told me to wait it out there with him but that seemed impossible, too, and after having listening to Blvd. Broken Dreams 9,000,000 times in my head I figured it was really my destiny to either finish this trip alone or die out there, alone and deserving of all the solitude and lonesomeness the world could devise for me. So on I went, after dumping nine styrofoam cups of boiling water on the windshield and filling the wiper fluid reservoir up with antifreeze on the recommendation from the dude from behind the counter. I also got a six pack of PBR, which I started drinking immediately and which, though I wouldn’t recommend this to my kids, might have saved my life because I stopped worrying so much and just settled into the curves and slides instead of working every inch of that freeway and every tiniest bump to absolute white-knuckle death. Once I’d gotten back down to sea level or whatever level cville is at, and made my obligatory “thanks for getting me outta that foxhole, bro” appeal to the Lord and thawed out my feet, I asked Coop if I should tell any pertinent people about all the bad decisions I’d made. “Do you want to tell anyone?“ “I do not.” He shrugged. “Then don’t.” Also, is “Jesus of Suburbia” a country song?

3/5. It has high highs and meh lows. Not Green Day's best or worst works.

When I saw this was my album I once again was very curious what my take was going to be. I was 16 when this came out, and I was really not a big fan of the hits. I know in retrospect I just wasn't there for it taste wise, even if I had listened to the whole album. I went in with an open mind and definitely enjoyed more than I expected! I do definitely enjoy the hits more in the context of the album. There is also something about the shift from Holiday to Boulevard of Broken Dreams that is magic and is lost entirely when you just listen to the radio edit of the later. The album starts strong, and finishes strong. That said the middle section kind of loses me entirely. His voice also used to annoy me at 16, and now I like it more but still get a little tired of it after a bit. Overall this is a worthwhile listen. I'll probably return to it again at some point. However, I will probably only listen to the first 4 and last 4 tracks and just skip over the middle entirely.

The World's most Disney "Punk" band are here to complain about something. But don't worry kids they've bought a load of highly polished commercial pop songs that all sound similar apart from the really heartfelt slow one. Still less cringe than Blink 182 and that bloke sure can play the drums... in exactly the same way on every song.

Such a classic. I also had never noticed this before but this album has some freaking long songs! Punk hardly ever has songs this long. I really respect that.

American Idiot, the first album I immediately loved and then was taught to immediately hate. There’s no question that Green Day “sold out” and went completely mainstream. Delivered punk music to the masses while simultaneously ruining the genre. Punk didn’t plateau after this record, it pretty much died, became emo, pop, hardcore or indie. Blink-182 broke up and Green Day filed the void with this record. Despite all the bullshit about selling out, it’s hard to not see and understand the vision of this record. It’s kind of genius and really well executed. There hasn’t really been anything like this since or before. So avoiding pre-conceived notions about how I feel about this album personally and culturally, I think there are some really awesome songs. -American Idiot is such a rad way to start an album. -Jesus of Suburbia is brilliant. Full on punk rock opera. Maybe the sneaky best song on the record. -Holiday is so fun. Such a good anthem. -Boulevard of Broken Dreams is the most important song for 7th grade Blake. -Are We Waiting / St. Jimmy were always my favorite 2 though. I always felt like it was a perfect break mid-record before taking off with St. Jimmy. No idea what it’s about, but it makes you feel things. -Give Me Novocaine is maybe the most unique song on the record. It’s different but it’s a good pace change before She’s a Rebel, which rocks my socks off. -Wake Me Up When September Ends was a sad song that soon became a summer song, which I always thought was hilarious. Also everyone learned the intro of this song on acoustic guitars. The biggest knock on the record musically is that it’s a bit front loaded. The back half isn’t nearly as strong as the front half. Ultimately, this record is always going to be a stamp for a moment in time. Bush Administration / War in Iraq / the peak and crash of mainstream punk rock. And it deserves it. It was important when it came out and it still holds up.

It feels very Nostalgic when I hear Green Days. It is a classic Album. The music brings me back to the 2000s.

I wrote a whole thing out but forgot to save it. C'est la vie. Mostly good.

This isso insanelynostalgic for me like i am so fucking tapped into this. paolo and i used to bond over this album so much i love the vibes and i think that this is their best album by a long shot. I am going to revisit this again so soon

green day type album

The quintessential cultural text from the 2004 Bush/Kerry election, probably the coolest rock and roll album of all time if you were between the ages 10-12 when it came out. Really it's a bombastic, grandiose, kind of milquetoast record that is quite long in the tooth. "Jesus of Suburbia" is by far the best thing here, an epic, anthemic song chock full of amazing earworm melodies and interesting ideas--it is dated and partially ruined by a regrettable use of an ableist slur that was [i]way[/i] too prevalent in the lexicon around this time--but it is what it is. The singles from this are rightfully seen as pop rock classics, even if in the case of like "Holiday" they're definitely a little cringe. This definitely overstays its welcome and despite how good of a songwriter Billie Joe Armstrong is I have no time or interest for most of the back half of this album, but when this hits its peaks though it's still pretty great.

MEU PUNK ROCK FAVORITO

A massive pop punk hit that spawned a Broadway show. There are undeniably studio crafted hits on here but the rest are more by the numbers. Not for me.

Not bad, I still remember when this album came out. Can’t believe it’s 20 years now! Wow.

A couple of stand-out tracks, a lot of energy and pretty emblematic of the 00s soundscape

Very nice album from back in the day, but half of the songs sounds like it is from a American Pie movie. That is not a bad thing, but it throws you back to what all songs sounded back then. I was a fan of slightly more "classical" type of rock at the time, but you can't deny the number of hits in this album. Although American Idiot has the most listens, I like Boulevard of Broken Dreams more.

Oh yesss!!!! Made me really happy!!! Great album!

Tolles Album von einer Band die Vollgas gibt vom ersten bis zum letzten Ton!

Eine super Platte, vom ersten bis letztem Song!

There's nothing worse than bands spouting political opinions held by the retarded class

Fun, topical rock

5/5. This is another one of those albums where although some might call it punk, there are definitely some punk elements but this is more of a rock opera, especially with songs like Jesus and Homecoming. This is a façade and on purpose. You see on the surface, those only listening to the first song and Holiday that is a rebellious album. This is a story about the American Dream. The songs are full of sadness and hope and the need to create polished rock is the only way to tell this story to match the fakeness of radio rock and try to get your message out there while appealing to the masses, counteracting yourself. It's beautiful and wonderful. Also all the songs are so good. Best Song: Jesus of Suburbia, Holiday / Boulevard, Wake Me Up, Whatshername

Green Day has always made me want to shut Green Day off. If I'm gonna listen to poppy-punk, I'll choose a band that does it well (Operation Ivy, NOFX) I wanted to shut this off several times too. I do commend them on stretching out a bit for this album. I'm sure if you like GD then this album works for you, it just doesn't for me. I almost long for the days off Kerplunk or Dookie. Almost

I know my rating is mostly due to nostalgia. I own that. Because nowadays this type of artistic activism drives me nuts. It’s performative and makes it feel like you’re doing something when you’re actually doing nothing. But the songs slap and I enjoy listening to it. 4/5

When I was a pop punk obsessed preteen in 2005, you were either a fan of American Idiot or From Under the Cork Tree. I stood staunchly in the latter camp, and even deep into my teens, defended my stance against this era of Green Day. Listening to it now as an adult, I admit my wrongs! I still replay a lot of the emo classics, as any Elder Emo does, but very few actually hold up beyond nostalgia, and even then, “hold up” is a loose term. American Idiot, on the other hand, really does hold up! The production is incredibly tight, and sounds excellent and fresh to this day. The musicianship is top-notch, and it’s even more evident now how their elder-statesmanship helped them stand out at that time. And for a lofty concept album, it’s rarely a boring or pretentious listen, where 8 minute songs rarely feel longer than 4 minutes, and the energy is also there, even during the somber moments. And now, with maturity and the hindsight of time, the political critique feels especially on point, and maybe even works better today. I’d say there’s a handful of critiques to throw at this. The amount of slurs is a bit of a dicey minefield, and even looking beyond the short-sighted Conservative BS of Political Correctness blah blah blah, it does feel counterintuitive to the point being made; at the same time, punk has a history of white men saying slurs to be subversive and then realizing in retrospect that that was a dumb move and distracted from the message, and I think that’s the case here too. I would also say the fact that tracks are glued together as single tracks is dumb, but that’s a very specific streaming-era critique that feels almost ahistorical; sure, it annoys me today, but during the CD era, it would’ve only annoyed me when/if I was trying to make a mixed CD. Finally, I think Tré Cool should never sing ever again, but it *is* only for a moment and during a medley, so it’s forgivable. These critiques are not enough to bring this album down from its height. The only reason I hated this in 2005 was because I thought calling something pretentious and hating it made me smarter. I’m now an adult and know that’s an equally pretentious move. I have ears. I love pop punk. I always have, and I always will. And while my favorite pop punk/emo albums were solidified a decade ago, from a critical perspective, this is a high-water mark for pop punk and a crucial listen, especially today.

I have this on CD. Sailed close to the wind ripping off Ring of Fire and Wonderwall but overall it's good. 3.5

Objectively, this is probably not a five. Having said that, this is subjective, so, YEEHAW.

One of the last great rock bands and this was one of their best.

HELL YEAH 5/5

kinda fun album, already had listened to it so didn´t pay much attention

I know it's just not my jam

This isn't really my kind of thing and it started losing me by the end but it was OK.

A bit late but I listened to it. Took me back to being 13 and discovering rock music. Very good stuff

Pretty prettty pretty pretty good

I enjoyed a couple of tracks, but it was all a bit the same. Like the other punk albums, I also find the lead singer a tad monotonous.

3.7 - Couldn't help sing a long. Not listened to it in like 10 years but some song still bang.

Nostalgic, but not my vibe.

I had a really good time listening to this. I thought perhaps it would have aged terribly or come across as corny, but I think it holds up well. The album is really well produced and there are some absolute pop-punk bangers. It captures a moment in time and I think is a vital inclusion on the list. Fave Tracks: American Idiot, Jesus of Suburbia, Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Are We The Waiting, Give Me Novacaine, Wake Me Up When September Ends, 4.6/5

This album inspired me to move to America and become an idiot. Thank you, Green Day.

You know, my track record for punk albums hasn't been the best so far. I mean, there's a reason why, as of me writing this review, punk is listed in the "worst genres" part of my summary. Until now, there was really only one punk album I'd gotten that I felt passionate about (Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables). On top of that, while it's not necessarily a bad thing, every punk album I've gotten until now, with one exception, was from the 70s or 80s. What about the 21st century punk, huh? Well, if you want a punk album from this century, you'd be hard-pressed to find one better and more important than American Idiot by Green Day. Green Day has always been a band that I've liked, but have never really dived deep into. I've gotta say, American Idiot is a modern masterpiece. The sound in this thing is just amazing. The guitar and bass work is practically perfect, with the riffs for each song standing out in their own unique ways. The drumming is really something special. Tré Cool is just an absolute beast. The singing is great. I think Billie Joe Armstrong is a strong contender for the best singer in punk. The way each song stands out is just amazing. You have of the best energetic songs I've ever heard with songs like the title track balanced out by deeply emotional tracks like "Wake Me Up When September Ends." The addition of the Bohemian Rhapsody-esque multi-part suits with "Jesus of Suburbia" and "Homecoming" do a lot to aid in this album's story. Speaking of which, let's talk about the story. This is a concept album through and through. The overarching narrative is quite possibly one of the best I've seen in an album. The sharp song transitions represent the rapidly changing mental state of the main character, and the story actually feels complete. Overall, this album's awesome. It might just be one of my favorite albums of the project so far. 5/5.

Fake punk music. Musicianship is good but message is lacking substance.

I enjoyed the sound of quite a lot of the songs. The guitar throughout all of it was amazing. American Idiot was my favourite song. I think I would’ve enjoyed this album more if there were less swear words so I could share it with my family. 3.5

Only one Green Day is required in the collection, Dookie. Interesting lyrics, same-y songs.

I mean I only liked boulevard of broken dreams, but it was okay all around

Almost every song is fun and catchy. The populist anti-Bush lyrics make me feel nostalgic about hanging with my pseudo-intellectual high school debate team friends.

Flashback to when this album came out: I had a calendar of stupid George W. Bush quotes, wore a thrifted child-size Max Headroom sweatshirt and checkered Vans, and had the lyrics to every Green Day song printed out and organized in a binder. Not nearly the shiniest jewel in Green Day’s crown, but have to give it a high score because of how pure my love is for this band and this album.

didn't listen 1/5

😴

I will preface this by saying that I've never really been the biggest fan of this record. I'll be straight up when I say this is one of the most overhyped and overblown rock records I've ever heard. But even so, I gave it the benefit of the doubt with relisten and here's what I ultimately came away from it thinking: It does start pretty strong with the opening title track. There's a reason it's iconic: it has an instantly recognizable guitar riff and first verse along with a very upbeat and catchy instrumental alongside lyrics that are quite fitting for the album's clear anti-war sentiments: "Don't wanna be an American idiot / Don't want a nation under the new media / And can you hear the sound of hysteria? / The subliminal mindfuck America" Moving on, we have "Jesus of Suburbia," the first of two long cuts on this record. The first two parts of this song demonstrate some of the issues I have with the record: the overblown sound and almost annoying choruses this record has. In particular, in the song's second part, we hear audible *hey!* chants that bog down an otherwise solid chorus. It does pick up with the more up-tempo third part, even if the intro for that part is weak with its repetitive lyrics and guitar riff. The last two parts (four and five) do provide a nice contrast in sound, particularly with the fourth part, where we get a more acoustic backing instrumental and some surprisingly introspective and venerable lyrics within the so-called character of the song (that being the "Jesus of Suburbia) that seems to be reflective of frontman Billie Joe Armstrong's sentiments towards American society. Though with that being said, I will say that the lyric "Am I retarded or am I just overjoyed?" is one that I don't think holds up very well in retrospect (for somewhat obvious reasons). Things pick up again in the fifth and final part of the song, as Billie songs about running from a "hurricane of fucking lies," referring to American propaganda on a rocking instrumental, but transitioning into an admittedly beautiful piano ballad moment that abruptly ends and goes back to the rocking instrumental to end off the song. Overall, it's one of the better tracks on the record, even if I don't think the first half of the song is all that great. Following that is "Holiday," a track that I've never really cared too much for, in part because I find the song to be overly preachy and also annoying, particularly on the bridge where Billie does this screechy voice while acting as a US representative that comes off as forced more than anything else. After that is "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," arguably one of the big highlights on this record. Admittedly, I've never been the biggest fan of these sorts of power ballads, mainly because they come off as sort of cheesy and maybe a little dramatic for their own good, especially with lyrics like "My shadow's the only one that walks beside me My shallow heart's the only thing that's beatin'", but there is a certain sincerity in Billie's vocal performance that helps elevate the track. The song ends on a strong high note with its thunderous instrumental towards the last minute or so. From here on out, I find the middle stretch of the tracklist, specifically from "Are We the Waiting" to "Extraordinary Girl," to have a myriad of problems that each track demonstrates. Either a song is wildly overblown (as is the case with that chorus for "Are We the Waiting"), has some relatively mellow instrumental moments ("Give Me Novacaine"), or contains some rather shallow lyrical content and repetitive song instrumentals ("She's a Rebel" and "Extraordinary Girl"). I will say that "Letterbomb" does manage to sort of avoid the issues mentioned above with its catchy and powerful instrumental, even if it is a bit straightforward overall. However, "Letterbomb" is largely overshadowed by the next track after it: "Wake Me Up When September Ends." I previously mentioned that I'm usually not the biggest fan of these sorts of power ballads. However, this song is an exception as it's executed wonderfully not just from Billie's sincere vocal performance and genuinely heart-wrenching lyrics that not only reflect his feelings about the passing of his father at a young age but can apply to anyone who has mourned the loss of a close one (Here comes the rain again / Falling from the stars / Drenched in my pain again / Becoming who we are / As my memory rests / But never forgets what I lost), but also in the instrumental that contrasts beautifully from acoustic guitar and subtle percussion into powerful guitar chords and drumming while remaining very heartfelt. I can more than see why this track resonated with so many people at the time of its release and how it continues to do so nearly twenty years after its release. After this, we get the second of the long cuts on here: "Homecoming." This track contains many of the same issues I mentioned earlier with other tracks, but all combined into a track that clocks in at just a little over nine minutes. It starts sufficiently with another rocking instrumental that works well enough for the first four minutes or so for the track (even if it feels like it overstays its well by then by just a bit) before transitioning to these vocal parts performed by guitarist Mike Dirnt and drummer Tre Cool that honestly just come off as sort of annoying due to their vocal inflections sounding rather forced more than anything else. This is before we reach the final part of the part, which might as well have the most overblown part in the whole record, with this huge chorus that tries way too hard to feel grandiose above anything else. I will say that the record does close out with another more straightforward rocker in "Whatsername," as the character of Jesus of Suburbia reflects upon his journey throughout this record. In closing, I don't necessarily hate this record, as I've certainly heard worse records (especially coming from this same band in the years following this record). Still, at the same time, I don't think I will ever understand how it was as acclaimed as it was upon its release when it features a tracklist that, frankly speaking, has only three or four tracks that I see myself going back to for sure. The rest feels either overblown, overly preachy, or shallow at many points. I can honestly say that many other rock operas that have come before or after this outdo it not just in terms of overall execution (including a specific record that would come out two years after this one *cough* *cough* The Black Parade *cough* *cough*) but are more worthy of your time than the nearly one-hour length of this album.

Highschool lightning captured in a bottle. Still great to this day despite some of the tracks being VERY worn out / overplayed. Bonus of a great followup playlist in the Spotify recommendations.

crrrriiiiinnnnnggggggeeeeeeee bin genervt dass ich mir das anhören "musste"

“You either die the hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” By some accounts the last truly big rock album, and it is still an awesome listen with raucous energy and ear worm hooks. This is ‘sold out’ Green Day, but it’s first-line-obituary material as well. kind of wild to hear 2005 anti propaganda lyrics from BJA now given what he’s crystallized into. Lol

Better than I give it credit for.

I’m really glad I listened to this one after I listened to “Dookie”. The evolution of Green Day is insane. They’re still clearly themselves, but there’s no way they were doing a mini rock opera back then, much less two of them. This is an awesome protest album, maybe the last great one of its kind. I really miss this kind of album. Maybe encapsulates its era better than any other album of the 00’s. Nailed the zeitgeist.

Super cool rock opera album but not my favorite green day or my recommendation to those wanting to try them. Dookie all the way

I grew up listening to this album and I still think it holds merit today. It's a 4 but extra points for nostalgia

such a fun album. That transition between Holiday and Boulevard of Broken Dreams was so cool. 10/10

The big hits bring me back to 2004. The rest of the album reminds me why I no longer listen to Green Day. This album is long and when the song isn’t one of the hits it’s just super repetitive. Cut out the extra songs and this would have been a much better album. 6/10

I have listened to Green Day a lot but never got round to listening to this album. I knew a few songs on the album already but every single track hit. I think my favorites are American Idiot and Jesus of Suburbia. I will listen again!

Un álbum divertido de escuchar y con grandes temas.

- One of the greatest albums ever made - Tells an engaging story of disillusioned dreams - Every single song is great - 6 stars

- Oh my lord yes - Jesus of Suburbia is one of the greatest songs ever written - Holiday is the perfect punk rock anthem - Novacaine continues to be criminally underrated. One of the best songs on the album

p904. 2004. 5 stars. A glorious thrash from start to finish. There is not a weak track on this.

I'm not mad about any post Insomniac Green Day.

This is the album that made Billy Joe armstrong think he is the best thing since sliced bread. Yet it has at best mediocre songwriting.

Well made for what it is. Relatively derivative and uninteresting for anyone with even a passing familiarity with the punk genre or of social criticism in music.

I preferred this to Dookie, maybe because it’s a bit more pop and sounds less… bratty, I guess? I’m still giving it 3 stars because I’m just not a fan of Green Day’s style.

I felt 15 again but not in a comfortable way

Mostly noise and instrument banging, but good if you like that

Bit meh Fave track: novocaine

Cmon I never have to hear this again. This list is basic mid shit so far like you’re gonna tell me I just goooottta hear this album by (looks around and leans in) “green day”. Have you heard of them? I’m pretty sure I can buy the vinyl to this at Homesense

3.8

This is an absolute classic for me. Just filled with great songs and it is a must for everyone to listen to it.

*Questa recensione potrebbe essere inficiata da una spiegazione di American Psycho che ho appena letto, in quanto mi ricordo American Idiot come molto ficcante, ma poco ironico* Spe, però inficiano anche il periodo in cui lo ascoltavo e le bombe che sono "American Idiot", "Jesus of Suburbia", "Holiday", "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" e la un po' troppo inflazionata "Wake me up when September ends"

Unique sound being a punky rock opera, loved it

CLASSIC CLASSIC CLASSIC

Ja toch een 4 puur voor nostalgie. Vind ik het nog goede muziek? Nee

Ja wel pure nostalgie maar echt me ding niet meer

Im 14 and this is deep Wat een week qua albums wel Zelf nooit heel veel met Green Day gehad buiten hun hits om, natuurlijk wel een klassiek album

For what it is, it excels. However, that doesn't mean I'd re-listen to it again. The singles have been played into the ground and I'd rather listen to whatever new T. Swizzy drivel is playing 100 times than one of these songs once. Overall, it was a big risk that paid off big for the band. Good on them. Musically it's pretty simplistic like most punk, but it's refined and polished for mass consumption. I can see why this caught people's attention. It was fun and shiny and catchy when it came out. Looking back 20 years, I can't really stand to listen to it. Still deserves the rating in context. Standout Tracks: Jesus of Suburbia, Holiday / Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Wake Me Up when September Ends

American Idiot is without a doubt the last piece of substantially good music that Green Day ever made. I don’t think it’s really debatable. This record, and most of the albums that came before it, actually had something going for them. Green Day, at least music wise, is now a shadow of their former self. And this album sits in a really weird place. Because it has most of the same sound as other big records they made like Dookie. But it’s also trying to be this rock opera concept album thing. Even with the cover, where it’s labeled “Green Day Presents American Idiot” instead of just the band name and album title. It’s like a pop punk opera. But that concept part doesn’t come through as well as I think they wanted it to. Aside from the two songs that are over nine minutes long, which are probably the best thing this album has going for it, these feels mostly like just another Green Day album. But that isn’t a bad thing. I think this sound has definitely grown on me since I first heard Dookie. Because I found myself actually really enjoying this. Maybe not something I would go out of my way to put on, but if someone else was playing it, I wouldn’t be mad at all. This just feels like a better written album than Dookie. It’s paced better, and actually balances a unique variety of sounds. Plus they use build-up much better here. Everything leading into the explosive drop on the closing track makes that song hit super hard. This also has some of their biggest and best hit songs. From a performance standpoint, I think Tre Cool, who is often the best part of a Green Day song, is held back a little bit. His parts aren’t as wild as their previous albums. But overall this album shocked me. I never thought I would sit down with an album from this band and come out of it so pleasantly surprised. Rating: 8/10

Several bangers, overall not bad

I think "commercial" Green Day gets overlooked by the Green Day stans that have been into them since Dookie. I for one appreciate making punk ideas accessible to more people, and that's what American Idiot did. That's why anyone putting the whole album on for the first time knows half the songs already; it's probably the most accessible punk album of all time. 5/5 messaging, 3/5 musically, 4/5 overall.

aldrig hørt den før! Synes faktisk den er ældet meget godt, særligt nu hvor rock aldrig rigtigt er kommet tilbage i popmusikken... jeg synes den taber lidt pusten i anden halvdel når man sammenligner med Dookie, der var virkelig tight

Får mig til at føle mig ung. (Sådan, lidt for ung)

Den her rammer lige i ned i gymnasie-mig. Der er virkelig mange gode sange og jeg kan stort set synge med på det hele. Når det er sagt, så synes jeg at der er direkte irriterende numre på pladen. Er klar over at det er meningen at det skal være en punk rock opera, men jeg kunne godt være foruden et par sange.. Stur stur 4-tal!

Saw Green Day 3 times while they were supporting this album. Great shows. Good album. So good nothing they’ve done since has come close…or they just made enough $ from this and everything it spawned not to have to… they’re no Idiots.

Such a fun album. I remember seeing them during the tour of this album. This got many plays when I was a kid. I never got into much past this album but I loved all their others records

Missed out on this when it just released and I was the prime target audience. It's ok I guess

Not a target audience and no nostalgia, so that's a pass

Quite good. An album that is evocative of a certain period in time and of a certain generation.

Nothing deep, but I am a sucker for a fun pop-punk sound. Oh, and "Shoplifter" is a silly parody of a crime ballad.

Great album really enjoyed it

Perfect

Maduran, siguen teniendo temas memorables y tienen más profundidad.

The best album yet. I LOVE IT! 5 Stars.

Hace mucho tiempo que no escuchaba Green Day. Me encanta, es muy buen rock, aunque hay algunas canciones flojas, en general me gusta.

I believe this was either the first or second CD I ever bought for myself (Stadium Arcadium by Red Hot Chili Peppers was the other). This came out when I was in middle school, and I enjoyed the music and the general anti-establishment vibes without really resonating with or understanding the political implications. A few years later, I kept an early music diary in high school and I re-listened to this album and wrote a fairly extensive entry. I think this was maybe the first time I really attempted to understand the plot of the punk-rock-opera and wrote it down as I understood it (I believe I was remarkably close, except I think Green Day intended only St. Jimmy to be a figment of Jesus of Suburbia’s psyche, whereas I thought Whatsername was as well). I think more so than albums like Tommy or The Wall (which may be technically better albums), I prefer this as a rock opera, because the story is not just more straightforward and easier to understand, but also a more encompassing and important story. But in 2008-09, I wasn’t exactly a politically savvy highschooler. I was fortunate enough that my family was relatively unscathed by the financial crisis, and I didn’t quite grasp how 9/11 and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan really affected me and my fellow citizens of the US and the world. Listening again nearly 20 years after release, I think I resonate with this album even more than I did as an angsty teenager. There’s a general sense of ennui present throughout the album that seems to put a finger on the pulse of the millennial generation. There’s a consensus that something and maybe everything is wrong, but no one’s able or willing to make things right. But ultimately despite how fucked up everything is, “There’s nothing wrong with me. This is how I’m supposed to be in a land of make-believe that don’t believe in me”.

American Idiot Jesus of Suburbia Holiday / Boulevard of Broken Dreams WAke Me up When September Ends

Das beste Album von Green Day. Die Wichtigsten Hits und Begleiter im Studium. Am Ende gleich.

Kind of boring. Jesus of Suburbia is the lone standout.

A classic!

as subtle as a (ha!) hand grenade, but that's what we needed at the time, okay? is every song on this a perfect 5/5? no, and the non-singles definitely don't have the same punch, but it's not about that. it's about the spectacle, the ridiculousness, the scope - i mean, this album is iconic for a reason. if i see any of you dadrock motherfuckers badmouthing this one, fight me in the parking lot. WHILE american idiot plays.

full disclosure: i am a millennial who loves green day and grew up with this album in middle school. this review may be a little biased. this album is amazing. it was my first introduction to a concept album/rock opera and the songs work amazingly together. billie joe, mike, and tre are all at the top of their game here. the new looks, the anti-bush sentiment, the huge singles, it all came together to create a fresh green day for a new generation. in the TWENTY years since this album came out, I've found myself gravitating away from the simpler and/or more ballad-y songs to the ones that still have new and exciting bits to discover. jesus of suburbia and homecoming are huge bangers, with the latter maybe being the track i disliked the most initially that I've done a complete 180 on. honestly my biggest gripe with the album is them joining two largely unrelated tracks together into super long songs for no reason, like holiday / boulevard. those are separate singles! was that just so iTunes could get my $0.99 twice? jesus and homecoming work since the movement structures are intentional and flow well, but for the rest of them, why do i have to listen to three slower songs first before i can get to the exciting ones afterward? also green day rock band was so important for a weird music nerd like me so thanks harmonix. favorites: everything, but especially jesus of suburbia, holiday, st. jimmy, letterbomb, and homecoming

The amazing thing about this album is its propulsion. At 12 songs clocking in at an hour and 5 minutes, it feels extremely tight. There aren't any wasted notes or words. Each drumbeat and chord, every lyric, is pulling you forward. And yet, this is an epic album. So much ground is covered from the opening riff of "American Idiot" through "Governator." There are some three-hour movies that don't feel long and there are 90-minute ones that are a slog. I love "Dookie" and other Green Day tracks, but this is their seminal accomplishment — a transcendent album that deftly summarized America under Bush for those of us who were't part of a redneck agenda.

Just an awesome album.

Excellent punk sensibilities with an ear for a melody - powerful combination, especially in the context of a strong set of songs. Good stuff.

Pop punk? IDK it rocks, it is topical and still relevant. 4*

Dookie was one of the soundtracks of my 90s. I've always loved how Green Day finish their tracks, a kerplunk or melodic tinkle beats a slow repetitive fade hands down. American Idiot takes the clever lyrics, rock guitar, and thumping almost tribal drums they're known for, and takes it up a notch – the title track is standout, with Wake me up when September ends adding some mellow fabulousness. Green Day will always make me smile too for their huge influence on so many early 00s bands, including and especially my beloved Busted :) Favourite track: Boulevard of broken dreams

The structure of this album is unique. There are only a handful of songs, but most are multiple parts, à la Billy Joel's "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" or the second half of Abbey Road. If the album were nonstop punk rock, I'd struggle to enjoy it, but it was well-paced, with the best song for me being the slower "Wake Me Up When September Ends." A lot of the tracks are still well-known today, perhaps because the themes are still highly relevant.

Geendays "American Idiot" kennt irgendwie jeder. Ein moderner Klassiker.

Yummy

Nostalgie maar wel goed

I used to hate on this album, but I think it’s a 5 lowkey

It's hard because I love Green Day and I'm happy for them but man this really marked the beginning of their mediocrity. Its almost good but you can just feel the 'sell out' dripping from it. annoying.

Loved this album as a teenager, still listen to a bunch of these songs now. Excited for a renewed album listen

There are easily 1,000 musical acts worth hearing before one dies. So I would prefer that this list stuck to one album per band. If there are two by Green Day, then there needs to be at least a dozen from Miles Davis, 7 from Frank Sinatra, 5 each from the Beatles, Zeppelin and the Stones. Pretty soon you run out of slots for great never-heard-of-em's like Teenage Fanclub, Slint, Love as Laughter, etc. That said, like Dookie, this album is an amazing collection of songs. I couldn't give them an honest listen when they were on top of the world. Listening back though, Holy Macaroni.

I liked Green Day back in the day. I remember listening to Dookie at university. I was a bit suspicious of them because they *weren't* Nirvana, but I grew to accept them as a less intense pop-punk band. I even had a few of the following CDs. By the time American Idiot came out, I'd lost interest, but this album made a bit of a splash and I got it. It's okay. I think the marriage of pop-punk and concept album is a bit weird and I came to realise they have this "image" of rebellion, but without really saying anything specific about politics which seems a bit of a cop out. It was fun to revisit, but I generally go back to a few specific songs by Green Day now rather than albums. Dookie is a classic though. I want to give this 3 1/2 stars as I have a history with it and it's better than average, but 4 seems to much so I'll settle on three.

Enjoyed this….

Just as good as I remember it being.

everytime i listen to green day i think of that phineas and ferb youtube animatic 4/5

Now I had heard of Green Day and a few songs but I had never heard a record front to back . Title track was good but lemme say this , the run from track 2 "Jesus of surbubia " to the awesome double songs up to "Give me Novacaine/She's A Rebel" and the last two tracks , were some of the best pieces of music I've heard in my life. Only concern was the length of some tracks, but very good record.

American Idiot // Holiday / Boulevard of Broken Dreams // Wake Me Up When September Ends //

Literally 0 skips. Fantastic songwriting and heart through the whole thing and easily one of the most recognizable albums of the 2000s

I really wanted to find something here to keep this from being a 5, but I just couldn’t.

I mean, it’s Greenday so it’s my jam but it’s one of the worst Greenday albums so I guess that makes it average maybe? It’s a bit elevator music-ish in places but also each song has a little bop in it that means I can’t pick any stand out bad songs. It’s a confusing album cos I want to hate it and I can’t, and it’s boring except when it’s not.

This was in heavy rotation at my house for a long time when it came out. Probably #2 in Green Day's catalog (Dookie) for me, but still tremendous. This band is the apex of pop-punk. If you're into that genre, there's virtually no better album than this.

Banging album. Jesus of Suburbia is a modern classic.

Oy. Ok, first off, this is not punk. Not by any stretch of the imagination. Anyone who thinks this is punk, doesn’t know what they’re talking about. Stop calling anything after 1993 punk. This is frat rock. Loud annoying pop, would be more accurate. Look, this band sucks. Their sound is ordinary and contrived. Jesus of Suburbia is a rip off of David Bowie’s Life on Mars. And they still managed to gunk it up with what sounds like fake cheese in a can. The only thing this band can take credit for was the balls it took to release American Idiot during the height of the Iraq and Afghanistan invasions, by the Bush administration. At the time, Dubbya Bush was the worst, most atrociously offensive, idiotic mess of a piece of shit president, that anyone could possibly imagine. But he created the “you’re either with us or you’re against us”, motto right after 9/11. So, anyone who disagreed with the invasion, was publicly shamed and ostracized. This record was the first piece of music that successfully captured the protest movement and general dis-ease, that had been overshadowed by the racist pro-war political climate. It benefited from the fact that it was released years after other artists had already taken the heat. But still, it was well-received by the general American audience, and that in itself was the achievement of the time. That said, this band sucks and their music is terrible.

Actually, a far better album than I remembered

OK you snooty bastards, it's "pop-punk", it was insanely popular, but that's for a reason. And sure, it's not "Dookie" either, but this was a definite return to form and absolutely "fit" the era. It's not big or clever, but it's a hella lotta fun.

This album is so good. So, so, good.

Oar? More like B-oar.

Easily one of the most iconic punk albums ever released and for good reason. It's very good.

At first I thought this was one of those iconic albums with massive singles but lesser deep cuts, but then I fell in love with some of those deep cuts (the singles are already part of the soundtrack of my generation). I did not want to acknowledge it, but this is a perfect album, everything is to tight and consistent, it is impressive.

Very good album, loved it

Pure nostalgia

Just the right stuff to wash off the British from my palate

Muy buen proyecto, tremendo concepto e increíble historia 9/10. El segundo mejor album de green day.

Surprised how much I liked this one

Even though the edginess can come off kind of cheesy, this album has some undeniable bangers and is really well produced. I'm sure nostalgia/familiarity played a factor but I had a great time relistening.

Couple of good songs

About as good as rock concept albums get and undoubtedly one of the high points of Green Day's career. Not just huge hits but a real palpable sense of depth and foresight.

Naja - abgesehen von den Hits eher lala

Surprisingly good when listened to straight

Certainly a classic of the pop-punk golden age and Green Day's most ambitious and accomplished album. Definitely gets preachy from time to time but the music consistently delivers. Cements Billie Joe's legacy as a great songwriter. 4.5 stars

Banger of an album. I completely forgot about Jesus of Suburbia somehow, and that it's 9 mins long.

Ein energiegeladenes Punk-Rock-Album, das mit scharfer Kritik an der US-Politik und Gesellschaft nicht spart. Hits wie der Titelsong und “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” sind zeitlos.

this is prob another of these things where i can understand the context and why it was a touchstone but i am not personally big on it, rock opera always hard for me to stomach idk why, i am now praying this list will not make me listen to tommy or sth idc about ur pinball wizards bro!! anyway. this started out ok but overstayed its welcome for me. :( faves: holiday / blvd

Green Day’s magnum opus. An absolute timeless, classic album reaching its 20th anniversary this year . Still as good now as it was then.

Kinda slaps ngl

Ok album singer is a dogshit person -5/5 hope he gets shot :) imagine this 1 star is -5

first two songs are bangers, then it just sounded like i was listening to the same thing over and over again

i dont like this album never had liked it having to listen to it again made me depressed 2/5

pretty vibey & important message... i think? 4/5

It is mid but some of the songs are songs that are good and it is still a good album.

I had forgotten how much I loved Green Day when I was in high school. A win for nostalgia.

Un disco terriblemente malo. Pop disfrazado de punk.

Let’s get angry at GWB

Dookie was better

puf, muy largo ... pero bueno, le daré un 4.

Great album, however every duel song on the album was one of my least favorites first with a banger follow up.

Compared to Dookie this is dookie. Taken on its own though it's alright.