American Idiot

I was never terribly interested in the idea of a punk rock concept album, but this works for what it is. 8.9/10 Best Tracks: "Holiday" "Boulevard of Broken Dreams"

One of my all time favorite albums. Green Day does an excellent job portraying the story of the Jesus of Suburbia, St. Jimmy, and Whatshername, along with all of the emotions that go with it.

This album came out when I was in Iraq. My memories of this will always be when I got back listening to it with my friends. I don't know if multi platinum records released by major companies can be political but this tries to be and it is catchy as hell.

Graduation year, who knew this would be the last album my circle of high school friends would be associated with. We hated it, we loved it, we didn’t know how to take it. Good grooves, this was their jump from the cliff. They gained a lot of new fans over this one

This album is truly great. I was a big fan of Green Day when Dookie and Insomniac were current, but I was mostly uninterested in the band by the time American Idiot had come out. This album captivated me when it first came out. It was almost like a new band at that point. The songs on this album are very catchy and satisfying, but the social commentary puts this album over the top. It is timeless at this point.

Huge nostalgia trip. It was fun to revisit an album I bought 20 years ago and gain a new appreciation for it. There were lots of great moments on it that I'd forgotten. I'm not surprised they turned it into a musical.

Formative album for me and still holds up 20 years later. This is Green Day's magnum opus in my eyes. Lots of great commentary but also amazing songwriting. I love the suites in particular.

I remember when this album came out the discourse among my peers was that Green Day "sold out." This was no longer music for losers: Green Day is popular now - time to go back to Bad Religion, The Offspring, NOFX etc. It's funny the lines you draw in your teenage years. This is the first time I've listened through the entire album. I, of course, heard all of the singles. You couldn't avoid them - always clogging up Fuse's music video lineup. The sound aged exactly how I thought it would. It's very much of it's time, and I think that's what makes it an interesting listen. I still prefer Green Day's earlier work.

Harrowing political commentary and highly polished punk feel like such a strange combination to me, which might be part of why this album made such a big splash. It honestly always felt a twinge naïve to me, but maybe I'm even more jaded than most 😅

3 sterne

This may be my favorite album of theirs.

solid. no skips

Great album, front loaded with bangers. Mid section of album a bit aversge. Jesus of suburbia best song on the album

I still remember all the words. Played this record our when it was released

Apt for our current political climate. Haven't heard this album in probably close to 20 years. Rating: 4/5

Några guldkorn

Okay

Holiday/Boulevard of Broken Dreams

This isn't my era of Green Day and I still think of this as "new Green Day" even though we are twice as far removed from this as this was from Dookie. Jesus Christ, I'm gonna die soon. Real solid pop punk record.

All killer, no filler as they say. Great start for my project

This album is an OG!

Green Day went from meandering snot-nosed punks to rock revolutionaries with American Idiot, an album that (eventually) turned suburban disillusionment into a Broadway-sized spectacle. It was loud, furious, and shamelessly ambitious—proof that pop-punk could grow up without losing its bite. Power chords met politics, anthems met angst, and somehow, a nine-minute punk-prog epic (Jesus of Suburbia) made perfect sense. Not every track hit as hard, but when Holiday, Boulevard of Broken Dreams, and Wake Me Up When September Ends were on the radio, they were undeniable. Love it or roll your eyes at it, American Idiot was one of the great comeback stories.

Meh

I'm a bit too old to love Green Day. But this album was fun enough.

Iconic. Not, however, good.

I don't like this.

Really good album. Classic Green day.

Objectively great but there's something about the 200s emo rich sound that I just find off-putting. Good to listen to though.

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

My first selection from the aughts. I think of them as on the better end of radio alternative in the 90s. They are a minor artist. I appreciate them putting in this effort, it's pretty good. (Theme: I appreciate effort.) Another where Must Hear is not quite true. Top marks for the cover art.

Great album. Minus one star because i hate them

5/5 always!

I was discussing this album with a friend, and what it's like to revisit it over 20 years later, and they said "It was very important to me as a young, newly political person" and I agree. I remember listening to some of my peers arguing over whether Green Day were truly a punk band or posers. I hadn't been exposed to any punk music at that point in my life - just conservative politics and Christian music at home. So American Idiot (the song) was truly my first exposure to this type of music, however you choose to define it. It made me start to ask questions I hadn't asked before. And today I'd be able to join the conversation with my peers and say the members of Green Day know better than anyone how the music they set out to make both takes from and breaks from the mold of punk's origins. This is a punk rock opera concept album. And also a pop album. They made something different and true to themselves. Not very poser-like behaviour if you ask me. I'm not even a massive Green Day fan, but this is my second 5 star rating for them, and not just because of the personal significance or because I love a concept album in general. Every song is good if not great, it was a big moment culturally, and the transition from Holiday into Boulevard of Broken Dreams deserves 5 stars on its own.

Feels as relevant, if not more so, now than it did in 2004. Big ups to my dad for buying this back then and being a cool rock dad.

I saw Green Day at Reading Festival about 10 years ago (it was 2013 - ed!) and they played a lot of this album. I knew the 'hits' of course but the whole set was damn good. I thought then I'd seek out some more of their stuff. Of course I didn't, but I wish I had.

Instant 5 star!! 🔥 This is one of the albums that define my teenage years, and I still listen to it. I remember watching the American Idiot music video on MTV and thinking Billie Joe was so cool. What a time to be alive This album was huge. For years I couldn't walk into a HMV without seeing this album plastered all over. Green Day still use American Idiot to make political statements. Wake Me Up When September ends is still a meme. They still play the majority of this album live. You wouldn't think it was over 20 years old This is THE Green Day album. Banger after banger! Hearing those guitar riffs just hit the right part of my brain🤘🏻 Sick album cover. They're also one of the best bands I have ever seen live. Hella Mega tour was insane. They nailed it with this one. Points all round honestly 5 ⭐️

For fucks sake - just give it a 5!

I listened to A LOT of Green Day in my highschool years, but by the time this album came out in my 2nd year of uni, Green Day's sound had become more pop/mainstream and less raw/gritty, and I had become more musically snobby - maybe like many know-it-all artschool kids, or maybe its just me?! This album fell in a gap where I was listening much less mainstream music (even mainstream alt) and thought of myself as very punk/folk so I missed the boat on this album at the time. Its a great album, one I will give a bit more time to now I'm older (but honestly probably not much wiser)! I've always had a real soft spot for protest music - I appreciate bands that can capture the feeling of a moment and tell the government or injustice to fuck right off. Recently watching Green Day play this full album (plus my fave Dookie) on their Survivors tour was a life highlight! It was an incredible concert (wild to get this album and Pearl Jam back to back - both bands I've seen in concert back to back in that order!?!). Bille Joe is an amazing front man and the crowd was heaving, the show was an absolute feast for the senses - I sang and danced my heart out. Loved that they are still political and speak their minds - even changing the words of 'Jesus of Suburbia' and asking if the crowd wanted Elon and Trump to 'shut the fuck up' - nothing quite like hearing 60,000 people roar in agreement! For me this album is about a 4, but the band has been very important to me over the years and I think this album will grown more on me as I give it some more listens, so its bumped to a 5. I ended up getting a bit distracted today with a different album - because at the time this album came out (2004ish) I was listening to another political punk album - also angry at the George W Bush government of the time but I think it holds up pretty well right now given the state of US politics! NOFX doesn't feature on the list, so I want to do a quick shout out because The War on Errorsism is an amazing album well worth a listen. It's ok, allow yourself a little hate Hatred is not so bad when directed at injustice You can turn the other cheek, just don't turn the other way Enemy of the planet we finally have a common hate A reason to forget about our differences And stand as a united front

The first time I've listened to this for many years. I distinctly remember listening to it whilst working in Bristol and having to get the commute by bus... but as everyone else caught on it was so overplayed at the time that even now I will still skip tracks from this album when they come up. It also marked my departure from Green Day really... although I saw the tour show - I've not since bought a Green Day album or seen them live. However, listening to it all the way through for the first time since it came out I thought it was great. Amazed really that the Green Day of 'Dominated Love Slave' went on to create a concept album that got turned into a stage show etc.... excellent.

4/5

Not for me. Something about the vocals.

56/1001 - Some cool melodies here and there but I wish it was played by better musicians.

4.5 I am biased because this was a big deal to 10 year old me. But I think it holds up. Probably the definitive anti-Bush era album. Jesus of Suburbia is still a top tier medly

Iconic album

Really solid album. I think it’s interesting that in the original version so many of the songs were combined with each other. I wonder what the choice was for that because in the 20th anniversary they are all separated and I think that makes more sense overall and it’s easier to digest that way. And even songs that were combined, only half of the song was a single so it’s a weird concept. Great album though.

OMG this album is knock-your-socks off good. Green Day took no prisoners with their hard-hitting lyrics and those damn good beats. The messages behind "American Idiot" or "Jesus of Suburbia" are so great that I forget it's 2025 and not 2004. And American Idiot is a great example of fusing rock and punk together. This project has shown me that it's the rare artist who can make banger political songs. The only less-than-great item I noticed was that the second part of the album drags on some. The excitement of the first half was so high, and it was noticeably absent in the second half. But to be completely fair, that first half is absolutely iconic 21 years later, and it seems cruel to compare the best fruit to the OK fruit.

Wow, it was a trip to revisit this album in full. I was a teenager when this came out, and it was definitely the sound of an era. As the era of "pop punk" was ending, but before the emo craze took off, teenagers were feeling a specific kind of angst, and this album captured that angst. Green Day comes in and does what they do best, with a more polished, more 2000s spin. And it worked. This album was an absolute craze and several songs from the album have persisted in the music space and are still commonly heard. Probably a 3.5 for me personally, but due to the nostalgia it drummed up AND the timeliness of this album as it pertains to current American idiot behavior, I'm rounding up.

I’ve recently gotten really into Green Day so a couple of months ago I listened to this in its entirety for the first time. I didn’t get the hype, the mega hits from it were good but the rest of the album felt kinda meh. I felt Dookie and (perhaps controversially, idk) 21st Century Breakdown were better. Flash forward to Saturday, March 1 2025. I saw Green Day live for the first time ever for their Saviours tour. The set list for this show had both Dookie and American Idiot being played in their entirety for the 30th and 20th anniversaries of each album respectively. I was blown away and suddenly, I got it. Hearing this album, live and in full, changed my perspective. This album fucking rocks and I suddenly found myself enjoying some of the lesser known tracks (I still think Jesus of Suburbia is a bit overrated and too long). Suddenly Whatsername was part of my regular rotation, Homecoming hit different. This album was a 3/5 when I listened to it for the first time a few months ago. Now? It’s a solid 5/5, I fucking love this album. I still think Dookie is better but I view this album much more favourably than I did before!

Incredible wall of sound. Unrelenting angst and emotion.

The lyrics and theme feel kind of detached from me. Tones are good but something is somewhat sterile production-wise.

The world would not be worse of without this record as musically there's nothing here you wouldn't have heard elsewhere beforehand, albeit probably in a less watered down way. Then again every generation shall have their copycat history-repeating acts. Hey, there was a time I believed Sha Na Na were a relevant contribution to music history. Regarding their overal global pop market conquering strategies Green Day certainly proved themselves to be winners. It just doesn't make the music any more original. Well done and of relevance for quite a few people I guess so that#s an extra star from me for that.

It's so hard for me to keep reviews of albums like these objective because they have such a strong place in time and are so nostalgic. That being said, I think it still holds up. Sure some songs are longer than they need to be and there is some meandering in the lyrics but it still hits. Jesus of Suburbia has a nice little breakdown in there, would have been stronger cut at the halfway point after the little I don't care interlude (though the little somewhere over the rainbow interlude shortly after it's nice too). Don't love how there are a lot of split songs as a lot of these are really strong with one and not as strong with the other (looking at you Give Me Novacaine/Rebel Girl) and would be nice to not have to have both.

I dont get how Green Day have held on to such a big place in American culture - Dookie was amazing, Brain Stew was pretty good, but that Good Riddance song gave them a ruinous taste of sincere balladeering and since then it's been a long steep decline. This album was their big return to the spotlight - an Anti-Bush pop punk opera that is just as embarrasing as that sounds. They still have a nice bright overdriven guitar sound and some decent riffs as well as a gift for a catchy vocal melody, but they're totally wasted on this. Turgid slow tempos turn into forced sped up breakdowns, bombastic production, bloated song writing (8 minutes! 8!), corny arena rock climaxes. The lyrics are pure dumb guys making a statement stuff. Honestly, their songs about teenage disaffection, smoking and jacking off offer a more profound insight into suburban American culture and alienation than this overblown grandiose turd. When Sept Ends is truly abysmal - I know I 've heard this before, but it is so much worse than I could possibly have imagined, how was THIS their return to the bigtime? Good lord this whole thing just sucks so bad.

it's good. too bad I'm bad at paying attention to lyrics and their meaning. I'm sick of hearing "Wake Me Up When September Ends"

someone once told me that I remind them of the song Holiday from this album and I don’t know how to feel about that honestly

Trash

Great album! Starts off with the banger American Idiot. Holiday is a ton of fun. Boulevard Of Broken Dreams is awesome. Give Me Novacaine is also nice. And then the incredible Wake Me Up When September Ends, which I've always loved. Only duds are Jesus Of Suburbia and Homecoming, both of which start off nicely, then kinda drag on. Overall, love this album, rock on! Best song: Wake Me Up When September Ends

I'm really interested in what everyone thinks of this album. I listened to it a LOT when it came out and I was interested to see how it holds up. I have to say, I think the answer is "pretty well", I genuinely like the songs and am enjoying listening to the album. Also, remember when the biggest thing we had to worry about was Bush the Younger? How quaint.

I’m not going to pretend I’m a longtime Green Day hater, Dookie was one of the first CDs I bought. That said I don’t love this album, but it’s not that bad either. Classic 3 stars, I think Green Day’s best songs are their snotty punky stuff and there just isn’t enough of that on this album for me.

My wife loves this album. I’m lukewarm on it. But I’ve always been fairly lukewarm on Green Day in general. Y’all ever heard of Rancid? If not, go give them a listen…

I mean, I kinda hate to say this -- this is a pretty good album in my eyes.

10/10 no notes perfect album

Good new punk! :)

This is a perfect album. I love that Green Day has been fighting the fight against our fascist government for as long as they have, and they haven't switched up, not even once. Every song on this album is dripping in nostalgia, amazing instrumentation, cool lyrics, and just pure talent. I absolutely love this album. 5/5, no notes.

Great Album

BJA is a douchebag USA hater. I love the band, but cannot give a great review to them.

07/03/25 I didn't ever think I would give this album 5 star, but most of the songs hit differently. I guess it helps having a bad run of albums too.

3.5 - Good

clasicazo adolescente

Great album I think this is their best!

I have a bias against this album and band. So my reviews won't be very objective. To me. This is just fraudulent punk rock. It lacks sincerity. But again I'm biased.

If this is the last punk album to break through into the cultural mainstream, at least it goes out on an unbelievable high.

Liked this a looott more than their last album I heard! A ton of iconic tracks on this album, most of which still feel very relevant today.

When Green Day (not punk rock) was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (questionable), Fall Out Boy (extremely not punk rock) listed off a list of their punk rock bona fides (a not very punk rock thing to do), including their contribution to a Green Day Broadway musical (I’m not sure there’s anything less punk rock than a Broadway musical). Like their contemporaries The Offspring and Weezer, a band with incredible promise that really plummeted. This album is about as interesting as under seasoned mashed potatoes.

"American Idiot" is a modern rock opera about the disillusionment and hopes of American youth. Although the specific subject matter is vastly different, many themes from this album remain relevant in 2025, such as the disproportionate influence of the wealthy over government and reality television creating superficial fame. Following three underwhelming albums after "Dookie" ("Insomniac," "Nimrod," and "Warning"), along with another album that was abandoned, Green Day's "American Idiot" emerged as a bolder and more lyrically confrontational experience than its recent predecessors, channeling feelings of anger and frustration all wrapped in scathing wit. The evolution of Green Day on this album is evident by their shift in perspective. Instead of focusing on the frustrations of their own personal experiences within society, they leverage those experiences to look at broader societal issues. This approach had them largely set aside their pop sensibilities in favor of embracing more of the spirit and essence of punk. The album structure is also strong, filled with catchy hooks, powerful guitars, smashing beats all enhanced by the dynamic chord progression found in various song chapters, with "Jesus of Suburbia" serving as a prime example. I loved this album when released in 2004. And I still do. Also, it just rocks! Who doesn't love an album that rocks?

listened before, some good songs but not my favorite genre

Iconic, one of the defining albums of the 00s for sure. Easy 5 for me, just a great listen, Billy and crew are in top form here. Also helps that it was produced by the great Rob Cavallo.

I remember when this album came out. It had such a massive impact being one of the first anti-war albums of the early 2000s and speaking out against George W. It’s weird to think it’s been over 20 years at this point. I remember it was also controversial because so many people in the punk world said that Green Day had sold out. But by contrast, they made punk accessible and resurrected it from a burn-hot-&-die-out genre that it had become. Was it more commercial? Yep! But in doing so Green Day allowed bands like Blink-182, Against Me, My Chemical Romance, Sparta and others to find success in the 2000s. This album is truly a classic for so many reasons I think this listen my favorite songs were the one that I didn’t hear is frequently such as Are We the Waiting and Extraordinary Girl every once in a while, it’s fun to pull this one off the shelf and give it a listen.

Random thoughts: * I saw this album performed live this past summer. It wasn't as fulfilling as hearing Dookie in its entirety live. * On this more critical listening I found several songs that were better than I ever remembered: "Are We the Waiting" "Give Me Novacaine" and "She's a Rebel". * Just like when listening to it live, Homecoming is too long. It just doesn't hold me. * This album should be a classic to me but it never really captured me the way it has others. Maybe I need to spend more time with headphones and reading lyrics. I like this album but always feel like I should LOVE it. It's still pretty good.

This came out in my freshman year of high school and greatly shaped my music taste after. Always a no-skip album for me.

I wasn’t sure how I would feel about this album because I’ve always found Punk stuff to be edgy just to be edgy but apparently I was just looking at the wrong people because this was really good, my only critique was for some reason the vocals erked me occasionally, but apart from that I was still impressed by this everything else on this project. Favorite Tracks: Bouevard of Broken Dreams, Extraordinary Girl, Wake Me Up When September Ends, and Homecoming. P.S: The Apple Music Animated Art is awesome and probably one of the best ones I’ve seen lol

This album is a punk/rock/pop tour de force. Bristling with killer punk rock licks and insightful social commentary, yet still somehow manages to be a mostly upbeat, foot-tapping sing along. Something about pop punk scratches an itch for my OCD tendencies where everything in the songs just fits together perfectly. I often rail on albums in this project for unneeded instrumental noodling, and well-written pop punk like this is the absolute antithesis of that type of music. The title track is somehow more relevant today than it was in 2004 and is a straight up banger. The thing that gives the songwriting such depth is that Billy Dee and the boys are writing about the hole that had formed at the center of American life. The party of the late 1980s and 1990s was over, and it was pretty clear even in 2004 that the American Dream had morphed into a race to the bottom to see who could accumulate the most money before the music stopped. And all of this was BEFORE the social media era. American Idiot is a kick ass album from a band at the absolute top of its game. 5 stars.

Mwa, niet denderend

Amazing rock masterpiece. One of the greatest records ever made.

Not my cuppa tea but I can definitely see the appeal

Don't love punk, but wake me up when september ends - amazing. As a whole I just feel like this album was made for weird teenagers in the 2000s.

Somehow this is another one of those albums I have never listened to in full. I was in a different place in terms of what I was listening to and personal ongoings. So it was cool to remedy this and finally give it a listen. The album is great start to finish, but I think I’ll keep Dookie at the top of my personal Green Day faves.

Great album, lots of great songs.

Naim seems to like it

Liked mostly because of nostalgia but Dookie is better

not a bad album by any means but it's just not for me - it feels very repetitive and I understand the rebellion aspect but it doesn't really dive into what they're rebelling against... I don't know it just feels a but surface level when other artists really dive in and make you think about things instead of just 'north american society = bad'

nope

Awesome!!

The songs here just don’t do as much for me as the ones on Dookie. Certainly more conceptual and daring, but not particularly better.

Pretty good

Took me back to year 7!

12 year old me thought Dookie was the shit (pun intended) for its anger and punk sensibilities, by the time American Idiot appeared, 22 year old me thought this was pop punk at its most anodyne, bland and mainstream and i had nothing but youthful distain for it. Coming back now was a really interesting experience. It still is pop punk with every edge rounded off, its music a left wing politician claims to like when they dont like music and your mum would gladly sing along on Radio 2. However, i cant deny that they can write a jaunty pop tune with a decent hook. Most impressively, this album is littered with lyrics that resonate now (start of Trump 2) more than ever. For that reason im giving it a binus star and hope it gets more play.

Worst album, i`ve ever heard. Loved it - 10/10

Overrated

Simple, great songwriting. The last real concept album?

I don’t love the genre, but band is good, and this is a great album

Boulevard of broken dreams and wake me up when September ends are the only two I like, and probably wouldn’t revisit too much in general - good effort lads!

Not bad but a lot of corny pop-punk. Many, much better political pop-punk records that actually have something to say other than Bush bad.

Capitalism, according to various thinkers concerned with the cultural mode of postmodernism, is fantastic at absorbing its critique. So good that it often goes one better – commodifying the terms of its deconstruction, always-already negating its critics … to the extent that if they’re especially charismatic and/or unlucky, they’re turned into t-shirt designs. In the early 00s, Greenday was smarting. “Warning” had represented a doomy portent only to the band themselves: they were in danger of becoming obsolete. Greenday huddled, began tracking a new record … and then the tapes were stolen. It’s a sliding doors moment, as had they released “Cigarettes…” they might have disappeared forever. Instead they scrapped the project and began working on what would become “American Idiot”. And the rest is history; or, as the angel of history might put it (and in more ways than one), “a bad record.” As the angel sees history piling up before her, destructive winds driving her forever backward, this album can boast a mounting body count of better artists and their ideas. Here there’s melodies lifted from Bryan Adams, Joann Jet; riffs and ornamentation seemingly lifted completely (surely Dillinger Four got an out of court settlement?); and then – not content with having “musically quoted” from The Kinks on the abortively boring “Warning” – there’s the one where our Anglophile magpies return to Blighty to the answer the question of “what would happen if ‘How soon is now’ was also ‘Wonderwall’?” I wouldn’t mind it – in fact I might even enjoy it – if it weren’t for the fact that it feels so nakedly cynical. Everything about this album feels like the result of focus group testing: the “emo” uniform, the accusatory anti-government stuff (“this trended great with the NOFX kids, Bill, just consider it”), the “concept” of a “Jesus of Suburbia” – a figure who might be the target persona of this elaborate marketing action brought to musical life. And then there’s the “punk rock opera” element: songs that blend into one another, a creative choice that feels grafted onto the whole thing late in the piece after someone noticed that everything’s in pretty much the same key. It’s enough to have one wondering whether the “American Idiot” being narrated isn’t actually you, the listener, for ever letting yourself think that this meant anything more to Greenday than revivified album sales numbers. So, while I’ve been trying to keep my cool through this review, I also need to be fair to myself: this felt fucking lame in 2004 and it feels fucking lame now. This is not an album of rebellion, these are not songs of resistance or hope. This is a pastiche of punk, the sound of the end of history. There is no alternative. Suburbia’s soundtrack is the only game in town. For 15-year old Matthew’s sake, here are three albums released in or before 2004 that I loved back then, succeed where American Idiot fails, and actually should be on this list: “Sticks and Stones” by New Found Glory (pop-punk that looks for you, finds you, and stays with you; actual magic); “Casually dressed and deep in conversation” by Funeral for a Friend (the ultimate melding of post-hardcore and emo, unapologetically hi-fi and edifyingly anthemic); “Tell all your friends” by Taking Back Sunday (atmospheric, antagonistic, bratty, brash, brilliant – gigged into shape, never knowingly focus-grouped).

I’ve dropped this ‘dote many a time, but my after school routine for a full year was to get home & sit my ass down infront of the TV to play dynasty warriors and listen to this full album on a loop. For real though this is like time travel to me, instantly I’m at the back of the class with my head in my hands stressed about why Lauren won’t talk to me. It’s the high school waster album. It’s not exactly musically complex, but I do love that since it was written as a rock opera experiment before actually becoming one so much of it is musical theatre coded. songs like extraordinary girl and letterbomb as well as the more long form songs feel like there should be a company with them.

One of the first albums I loved. In spite of corny Bush-era lyrics - which I can quote like a priest from a bible - it still sounds great now. Everything from American Idiot to halfway through Homecoming could be a lead single (and most of them *were* singles). The final 1.5 songs are good, but lack the singable choruses and catchy riffs. American Idiot was my introduction to Green Day, and while I love some of the earlier stuff, every subsequent album never struck a chord with me (¡Tré! anyone?) It's fine though, I found my religion: I'll forever be kneeling at the altar of St Jimmy in the Church of the Jesus of Suburbia. Final note: noticed the songs are doubled up in Spotify, Holiday/Boulevard of Broken Dreams for example. I hope Green Day are getting all the pennies that should be coming their way.

I wish I could come into this with fresh eyes but twenty years on I think that's impossible for anyone my age. I've heard this countless times in cars, TV, radios. It's simply impossible for me to not have some strong opinions on at least a third of this album. I can't believe how much I went into this with a dislike for many songs for how much they rip. It's hardly surprising but I cannot believe Boulevard won me over. Are We Waiting is a bit of a weak followup though. I do not remember Extrordinary Girl at all. Contrasting to this I have had the start of Letterbomb stuck in my head for 2 decades and only now have I learned where it has been from. I could do without Wake Me Up When September Ends but I cannot truly hold that against this album. I don't hate it in the context of this album but I'd be okay if I never heard the song again, which isn't even a slight against the song itself! All in all this has been a surprising enjoyable jaunt down memory lane. It has been at least a decade since I've listened to this album and it's been a delight.

Really enjoyed listening to an album for my childhood. Brought a lot of memories back. Was great actually focusing on it and listening to all of it.

Green Day - American Idiot This type of music reminds me of early 2000's The Mars Volta. This is soo good. And from what I heard, Green Day has made better albums than even this. This album is packed with fun moments, great riffs and catchy hooks, overall this is really great! 1.- American Idiot = 7/10 2.- Jesus of Suburbia = 10/10 3.- Holiday = 8/10 4.- Boulevard of Broken Dreams = 9/10 5.- Are We the Waiting = 9/10 6.- St. Jimmy = 8/10 7.- Give Me Novacaine = 9/10 8.- She's a Rebel = 7/10 9.- Extraordinary Girl = 8/10 10.- Letterbomb = 8/10 11.- Wake Me up When September Ends = 10/10 12.- Homecoming = 8/10 13.- Whatsername = 7/10 FINAL SCORE: 8.3/10

This is one of those records that I come back to occasionally, knowing full well that it never fails to bring a smile to my face. I’m not a huge fan of the radio singles off this one, however there are some very bright deep cuts, songs like “whatsername” and “St Jimmy” are some of the best music Green Day ever released. What I really want to talk about is the rock opera contained within this album, “Jesus of Suburbia”. At over nine minutes, it’s a far cry from the minute and a half punk rock songs of yore. It is however, as I believe, the single best work that Billie Joe Armstrong has ever created. I can understand criticisms of this track that I’ve seen, people saying the metaphors are weak, and it’s not real punk rock, but I just don’t care. It’s a product of its time, and it’s really an accurate reflection of how young folk were feeling about the world at the time. The section of this song beginning at “Dearly Beloved are you listening?” Is my personal favourite, the simplicity of it musically combined with the brevity of the lyrics really tickles a specific part of my brain. I really like this whole song and I think it alone is worth five stars. Unfortunately I have to take a star off this album due to the incessant and never ending airplay that “Wake Me Up When September Ends” got when it came out.

Someone got a new kick drum for christmas and wrote a whole album to show it off!!! :) The political/social "commentary" on this album feels really juvenile and there is a lot of it. There's also a couple tracks that just feel like the band decided "hey, it would be fun to have some really long songs" and just slapped together various snippets into 8-9 minutes of half-baked musical ideas. Billy Joe Armstrong's vocal affectations are weird. I don't think this album merits much more serious consideration. I will say that it reminds me that in the early 2000s, we really did feel like our political landscape was as clownish as it could possibly be, which in retrospect is hilarious and sad.

Good

Good album full of energy listened twice

That's just not possible. What kind of albums are they suggesting to me? 'Pippi Pop Punk' by Vorstadt Kids. I hate it. There would probably be more of a punk attitude if they had peed the songs on garbage cans. No, I really can't do anything with that. Apart from that, I can't do anything with any "Green Day" release that I know of. That's something for the garbage can of music history.

i’m not the biggest fan of pop punk, but this certainly has its fair share of nostalgic 2000s tunes and fun deep cuts. solid 3.5

This whole album is a huge nostalgia hit for me. This is truly the first album I ever remember being introduced to and certainly the first time I heard the f-word in a song

This is pretty good, not really for me but there are a few really solid songs on here.

Iconic, I’m biased but really great full album and even more relevant than when it was released

Great album that I haven't listened to all the way through before, will listen again

I’m more of a dookie fan but fun album.

Wasn’t hugely impressed by this, largely blended into one. However, Holiday / BoBD is still stunning, what a transition. For that reason it’s a 3/5

I remember in 2003 listening to this on a Normandy history trip, I stared out the window at war graves with boulevard playing thinking it was the deepest point of my life. Was a sad act but what a way to reminisce. Mostly belters, easy 5/5

Expected to give this a 2 or lower, but it’s a 3. Had only heard the singles back in the day - didn’t even realise Holiday was from American Idiot. Managed to miss Greenday completely in my punk phase, I guess because the narrative was they’d already gone commercial? It’s an ok album, never really boring.

да, такой панк конечно это не совсем моё :) бодрая музыка и можно даже сказать весёленькая песенка holiday прикольная :) бульвар разбитых мечтаний мне нравится, за неё одну уже этот альбом можно оценить хотя бы на 4

First time I’ve actually listened through this album. Was pleasantly surprised how good it was aside from the hits everyone knows. What a delight!

Good pop punk record

Only really enjoyed 2 of the 4 songs I knew. But can’t really deny the success of those 4 smash hits. Curious how I would’ve felt about them if I hadn’t heard them so many times on the radio before today. Dookie was the first album I ever bought with my own money, and will at least get 4 if not 5 stars if it comes up. This just seems way more commercially produced and frankly not as good. Still I can’t say it wasn’t listenable.

Dookie is one of the most influential albums of my life. This is not Dookie. Ambitious, maybe, but that didn't make for good listening for me. Each song I was hoping to be the last and there'd be another. And another.

OK, I'll admit I don't know much of anything from Green Day since they left Lookout records and were a cheap rip off of Ramones and Cheap Trick. This... is... rough. It's wildly overproduced milksop powerpop. While it has its moments, it's for the most part forgettable. I don't feel enough to say I hate it, but I would NEVER think to ever put this on to listen to.

One of my FAVORITE albums as a teenager, and revisiting it today was a blast.

I will die on the hill that this is a near perfect album

american idiots

Great back to basic punk.

Whatever I say, is not enough. Teenage years banger. - 10/10 music - 53098347190/10 feels

The energy is amazing, already liked boulevard of broken dreams, when September ends. Homecoming is my pick of the album, great song!

Before I discovered music of my own, my conduit to music was, like many, my parents. I learned, mostly through my musician of a father, to love The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Deep Purple, and Led Zeppelin. Especially Led Zeppelin. I grew such a fondness for the certain songs that I knew of those bands, and would later grow to love their greater discographies. But that only came after I found music of my own. Music my dad didn't know and didn't introduce me to. Music that I made my own and that I learned everything there was to know about. In 2004, that happened. But even still I needed some help. I was 11 in September that year, having just started sixth grade. My older sister, who was 14 at the time, was much more hip to modern music than I was (in that she was at all) and one day brought home this album from a band I'd only vaguely heard of - Green Day. She told me it was big, and that it was causing some kind of controversy. I think I saw the music video for the title track soon after. I had no idea that there were still rock bands out there, doing rock band things. Everything I'd heard to that point was old stuff. But here was something new. Something that felt like it was for me. I took off from there. Green Day was, as they were for many, my gateway band. My musical taste quickly expanded beyond the bounds of my parents' generation, and became this sprawling landscape of various genres and artists. It's still expanding today (helped in the last year or so by this project, thank you very much). I give you my life story because I feel it important to give you context. I hold this album in such high regard that it's impossible for me to be objective. I have heard this album hundreds of times. I have seen Green Day in concert five times (most recently on the anniversary tour of this album, where they played it in full). This album is as familiar to me as an old leather jacket is. It fits like a glove. It is so familiar that I can start it, zone out, and then zone back in and I haven't really missed anything because I know it front to back. I can't hear anything new in it anymore. I love the band and this album with all my musical heart and this was never going to be anything but a five star review. I tried to write one, but I don't think I can really, properly do it. That requires some objectivity, Which, like I said, I don't and simply could never have. And I'm ok with that. This being the first album I truly loved that was my own, it has always been the way it is. To analyze it or criticize it is so difficult for me, and honestly doing so would probably dampen my feelings toward it. So I'll stop trying and just tell you that I fucking love this album. I tried to write one before giving up, and that's below if you have any interest. Standout Tracks: American Idiot, Jesus of Suburbia, Holiday, Are We the Waiting, St. Jimmy, Give Me Novacaine, Letterbomb, Wake Me Up When September Ends, Homecoming Green Day has never done anything better than this, before or since. They've produced great music, don't get me wrong. But this is the pinnacle for them. And what a high it is. Let's start with what is, for me, the two highlights of the album "Jesus of Suburbia" and "Homecoming." The two 9+ minute songs. I have criticized bands like Yes and Emerson, Lake, and Palmer for having these crazy long songs that feel like the stringing together of ideas for the sake of salvaging a few half-baked concepts. The 9+ minute tracks on this album do not strike me that. Each tells different parts of a story (pretty key parts, honestly), and the different sections help to differentiate those parts. I love them and think they're the band's best work, period. The rest is just such a diverse set of tracks that tell a story. What that story is up to interpretation and honestly, I'm not sure the band quite knew what it was when they finished it. But it's secondary to the music, in my opinion. The music takes precedence here. Except of course for the anti-war, anti-government messages of the title track and "Holiday."

4.5

the music is very entertaining. Head banging punk rage, with a unifying operatic theme. Plenty of creative innovations.

I’m just glad Billie Joe and Dick Cheney made up and are now on the same team! Music - 3.75 How punk are they - 0.00

I think this album is just ok but wouldn’t list as a top album to hear before I die

Newer Green Day sucks nuts

One of the few examples of a "concept album" in my lifetime that doesn't come off as forced. Green Say reinvented themselves with social commentary that is still relevant today. The way the songs tie together was really well done, and I respect that even on the streaming version, they lumped songs together to avoid the interruption of a track change.

An extraordinarily solid album and also my introduction to Green Day. I saw "American Idiot" when it was premiering at Berkeley Rep and LOVED it, so this album has a fond place in my heart. That being said, I still think that "Dookie" is their best album.

One of the more formative albums of my lifetime. A perfect blend of punk with a more mature sound that makes for an incredibly satisfying listen. Lyrically somehow even more relevant than when it was released 20 years ago. Quality songs throughout, and a pretty decent story as well; the songs work perfectly together and as standalone tracks. Such a joy to kick back and listen to, and no real low points or skippable songs.

A classic. Glad to finally listen to more than just the singles. The rest of the album is just as good or better. Love the final track

I don’t care about the concept or any of that nonsense, this is just a decent listen. Slightly uneven quality but there are some classics in there. Not punk though but whatever

4.5

I’m not the biggest Green Day fan but this album was a favourite when it originally came out. Been forever since I’ve listened to it in full but it still holds up to this day.

Masterpiece. Nothing more to be said.

I like the record and obviously have added one song to my repeat list. But it doesn't register as a fantastic record to me.

The timing of this could not be a coincidence (Trump - Week 1)

Ahahahaha I don’t need to listen to this again. This album altered my brain chemistry when I was 13 years old. It can have the 5 stars. 😂

Never really my thing, but I think Green Day might be a great band.

Surprisingly good

American Idiot, a quasi topical political issue in the year 2025! In other words, at least for some typical American ideas.

Free skip.

I like this album. I’ve never listened to the whole thing before but am familiar with almost all the songs. Less energy than their first album but right up there with that one because of the more complex transitions and concepts. Didn’t realize that it was a concept album

Oh hey it's Green Day. Wow they are very popular. For me, this album is ok, I do enjoy a concept American Idiot is a great opener and I did enjoy Holiday / Boulevard of Broken Dreams. Wake Me up When September Ends has a nice vide but the rest of it is pretty mediocre.

I have no strong relationship with this album - I think my media bubble had started to crystallize around this time so I didn't find the singles too omnipresent. Yeah, it's alright I suppose. Nothing too horrible, but not a lot of it really sparks my interest either. Probably rates a 3, but I'm gonna bump it up to 4 as the title track is pretty zeitgeisty now that Trump's second term is underway... 🤦 Fave track - "American Idiot" by a mile...

Solid. Dependable, consistent enough.

Just raw fucking awesome album. I forgot how much I love this album. The stuff I didn't recall is how they just break from the hard shit into piano and shit and slow it down and mix it up. Jesus of Suburbia is just awesome. I forgot all about that song. I know a lot of this album but was psyched to listen to the shit i've never heard a lot like Jesus of Suburbia, Are We the Waiting (awesome song). Jimmy. Jimmy - jesus my hand got tired listening to it with all those downstrokes lmao - reminded me of some older Ramones stuff - awesome. Incredible chord changes - just awesome. Enjoyed almost every song on this album. I think Novacaine was probably the only one that was a bit meh - but even that was fine. Letterbomb is awesome, never heard that. Favorites are probably Jesus and September but honestly, this is another one of the very few albums I can listen to start to finish without any issues. Awesome album!

I loved this album so much! I’ve listened to Green Day a lot growing up, but for some reason never listened to this entire album. So many new songs have been added to my liked songs. This was an easy listen through and through and honestly just a classic.

Incredible album with a somewhat relevant theme again. Love the pissed off undertones towards a government controlled by propaganda (regardless of what side you align with). The music is incredible, the lyrics are incredible, just a perfect punk rock album. I saw that this was their sixth album which was a big surprise to me and I’m not sure much of their earlier stuff was popular but this broke through and is rightfully regarded as one of the best rock albums from the 2000s. Favorite songs were AI, Jesus of Suburbia, and When September Ends, but there is no skips on this album.

imagine being 17 in 2004 and hearing holiday into boulevard for the first time, calling your parents American Idiots, deciding to be a rebel and be dangerous, and rocking out. What an album.

Fun to listen to

First? 4/5 Again?4/5

One of the first albums I ever loved, and I therefore must give it a 5

Classe one at this point. Not as good as Dookie, but it’s still a good album 3 stars

7/10. Some classics.

I did not use a private session in Spotify for this one. Good solid rock album, couple of classics.

This album came out when I was eight years old. I wasn't really paying much attention to...what was going on in the world at the time. Sure, I had a basic idea, but my main focus (as a child) was, you know, on making it through elementary school! Now, though? I'm nearing 30. I'm in the US. This album is so damn relevant it's ridiculous. On a musical note, I prefer this over Dookie - I'm a big fan of long-ass rock songs, so I get the complaints from some people, but for me, this is a solid record and still one of my favorites in Green Day's discography.

Literally magnum opus

Fast, loud and boring. Did nothing for me.

Erstes Album dass ich jemals ganz gehört und gehabt habe

Nostalgic. Bangers. I liked the songs that weren’t hits too.

This was a pretty album for me in 2005. I still enjoy it to this day. 4.5

Clasic, iconic. Nothing can be said that has not been said before.

Nostalgia! I was way too young to see the musical on Broadway for my birthday in 2010

Would listen again; have always loved Green Day’s sound and this album came out right as i started college so the nostalgia is high; plus i just like it anyway! Favorites: Holiday, boulevard of broken dreams, st. Jimmy, American idiot.

A few slurs in this eh? I appreciate that I got this right before Trump’s 2nd inauguration and the launch of his shitty meme coin. Fuck Trump and the Oligarchy including his billionaire puppet masters. 3.23

Is now a good time to mention how Johnny Test stole American Idiot for its theme song?

For my money, American Idiot stands as one of the major rock-as-art achievements of all time. https://open.substack.com/pub/richcain/p/project-1001-american-idiot-by-green?r=4ztyq&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Great album. I remember when it came out. Still holds up

Very good

This was an album that i knew about. Truly awesome

This is one of those albums where I've heard most of the songs, but never listened to it as a cohesive album. I can relate pretty well to the disillusionment of growing up in suburbia around the time this came out and after. It captured the way the world was headed.

Fantastic

This is like meeting a friend you haven't seen since kindergarden in the first week in college where everyone is super pretentious and you finally see a familiar face. Even though I haven't listened to this Album for a long time, I had a good time with it then and now.

While being very of the time, it still feels fresh. A nostalgic and solid concept album

Perfect encapsulation of early aughts atomization & disillusionment. Somewhat translatable to the current political environment. Ended Neoconservatism. Stand Out attacks are “Holiday” and “Give Me Novacaine”.

Absolutely killer punk rock/alt rock blended album. I couldn't even come up with what my favorite song. Killer album.

I always thought it was too cheesy, and I still do, but just on great singles it deserves stars

Mainstream Punk at its best.

This album singlehandedly changed my music taste thank you for your service

green day... altijd een twijfelgeval... vond ze altijd een bende posers met hier en daar een goeie song... dit album verandert mijn mening niet... rock operas zijn zo al een genre dat rap kan veranderen in een brij van middelmatige songs met te hoog gegrepen verbanden, laat staan lyrics... dit is zeker geen uitzondering op die regel

I'm really not a fan of the era and genre of popular music that this album belongs to - it's the most manufactured and commercial that a countercultural movement has ever been. All of the kinks that would be on an album like this have been completely smoothed out, and everything else is shined to the point of having nothing to latch onto. It's admittedly pleasing, though only superficially. On a positive, this album definitely belongs on the list. I can't think of a more popular album that I've skimped out on listening to.

Fun, hot and reminds me of teenage times

Such a good album. Was good in 2004 and is still good in 2025.

Somehow, I never understood the hype about Green Day or the specific sub genre. Not bad though, this one. Easy listening Punk Pop if you ask me. Catchy with some pretty good lyrics, but nothing for my island

Catchy! Many bangers 💥

As good as you can expect from a middle aged punk band.

Not really my choice.

Brilliant

im the son of rage and love!!!

I remember when this came out. Dookie was definitely in my top 5 albums at the time, and I very much remember being disappointed in this album. Green Day had grown up, but I hadn't. I have heard some of the singles a number of times as they had significant radio play, and maybe listened to the entire album once when it came out. It wasn't ever something I purposely went back to, let alone listened to with intention. Listening today, in the first days of 2025, I regret all the time that went by that I wasn't listening to this album. I am glad I have been able to mature enough to appreciate this album for what it is: a fucking masterpiece of pop punk, and opera, perfect commentary on the time it was released, and an unfortunately accurate prediction on the time I'm listening in 2025. I listen to music a lot, and have always had a feeling that I couldn't name about certain songs or bands. Sometimes, a song just feels...BIG. An epic. Led Zeppelin and My Chemical Romance are two bands that stick out to me as making songs like this that I couldn't describe well. Reading the Wikipedia article, Green Day said they wanted to abandon the verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge structure and go big. That's it. That's the thing I haven't ever been able to put my finger. Also, Tré's toms sound so big on this album. The bass and guitars sound huge and so good together. This was masterfully produced and recorded. 5 stars

the album starting off with two hits is crazy. i kinda checked out towards the end but this is still a good album!

Classic turn of the century punk rock.

Classic album that helped push punk rock into the mainstream, green day is not perfect, but they are a fantastic band with so much influence. 8/10

Great album

an emo essential

Δυνατό

Gott popp rokk. Solid lagasmíði og var miklu betra en annað sem var í gangi 2004. Flest lögin þarna eru auðvitað ofspiluð í drasl en kemur svosem ekki að sök við yfirferðina.

I love the angst and the story Billy Joe is a great songwriter and tre cool carries with his drumming

I can’t say there is anything wrong with this, but by this point Greenday had a “formula”. Listening now after getting back into all the 50s rock, that’s what I hear. I hear the same sensibility that the Ramones were drawing from. I want to hate this but I can’t. I love the melodies and song structure. It has punk energy and elements of gentle 50s pop. I’m over the “hits”. I will probably skip those. Although, again I like the approach to the sounds. It’s very produced. And that’s not bad. It’s just from a time where there formed a sound template and everything after sounded the same. I really hate that I like this album. 🤣 “we are the waiting” is an amazing anthem and I would love to experience this live. “Homecoming” is a great song. I hate that I really like this album. 🤣

As one of the few fans of Warning I had dropped off the Green Day train in the interim and never really listened to this one. I need to spend some time with the lyric sheet, I’m not sure what makes it an “opera” just yet. But I dug it.

not my fav green day album

More complex than albums like Dookie or Insomniac, but still catchy and fun with no bad songs.

Super nostalgic. I remember hearing Holiday on a Tony Hawk game and falling completely in love. The album holds up pretty well and Billy Armstong’s voice remains one of the more distinct voices in music. 4/5

Fitting that I’m listening to this on Trumps Inauguration Day. We really are a bunch of idiots putting that clown back in office. Great album!

Focused and meaningful. Successfully conveys its story and message.

I remember this album's release quite well, despite being young at the time. Green Day hadn't done anything super noteworthy in the few years leading up to this album's release (for what it's worth, I think their prior album "Warning" is pretty underrated). Then boom, the singles were all over the radio during the mid-2000's. Listening to this album all the way through as an adult gives me a better appreciation for it for sure. Being a kid and not fully understanding the socio-political goings-on at the time, the punk rock/pop-punk rage and disillusionment from this era seeps through now. Interesting that the group went the "punk rock opera" route too. As a result, some tracks are very involved and even contain their own "chapters" ("Jesus of Suburbia", which introduces our "main character", and "Homecoming"). It all feels very grand compared to their previous releases, thanks to the overarching narrative. While I still prefer "Dookie", that was much more playful and almost elementary compared to "American Idiot". Both are pop-punk at their respective cores, yet on differing sides of that spectrum. Best tracks: American Idiot, Jesus of Suburbia, Holiday/Boulevard of Broken Dreams (gotta love that transition)

I am a different human without this album. Good songs on it too

This is a classic punk album that really captured a generation.

I have never been too fussed by green Day but I was wrong. My son loves a couple of their songs. This is a brilliant album, all of it.

No album better embodies post-9/11 American in the mid-00s. At a time when public enemy number one was our own President and the constant fear of terrorism still burned in our skulls, Green Day put pen to paper and wrote our collective American experience. 3.9/5

Masterpiece

I enjoyed much more while I was younger, still worth a listen, it's aged better than I have.

Very nostalgic, Bonnie danced to American idiot lol

Good!!!

Super Album!

Solid song craft and power pop. They are no longer punk as far at this point. Sellouts.

Had I been 12 when this came out I might have considered this "deep" and "edgy" and then I might have something positive to say in this review. However even in 2004 I was a lot older then 12 and also I don't think I ever heard it before now since I don't recognize any of it. From my review for Dookie "Loud but only slightly obnoxious". This album however is more than slightly obnoxious as reflected in the 1 star rating.

American Idiot is the seventh studio album by Green Day, originally released in 2004. Like another user commented, it's important to place this album in its context. Green Day were pretty irrelevant prior to this album's release. Their previous record came out 4 years prior to a disappointing reception. This album blew up and I mean BLEW UP. These singles are still getting heavy airplay to this day. And every song on here is so damn catchy. The lyrics haven't aged as well, and I was originally going to give this a 3, but I found myself vibing with every song. It's really the perfect pop punk album. The production is polished but it really fits the music oddly enough. Many people consider Green Day to be sellouts but I think they were just doing what they did best.

Grøn dag får en instant fucking 10/5

I really liked whatshername

First listen. Not bad, just not my cup of tea.

The difficult 7th album. I would have preferred a decent punk rock album to this ‘punk rock opera’

I had no idea that Green Day had sold so many of this album, nor that they'd sold nearly twice as many of Dookie. They are both way up there in the best selling albums of all time. In some ways it's not surprising with this one: it's such middle of the road inoffensive pop rock. Personally, I struggled to get through it. There was a bit of Homecoming that I enjoyed, but that was about it. I struggle to understand how I can find this so uninspiring, but Dookie can be one of my favourite albums of all time. It's either (1) I heard Dookie at a formative time and listened to it so much that it became a part of me, and every subsequent listen reminds me of how i felt and who i was when i first discovered it but actually if I heard it for the first time now I wouldn't think it had value; or (2) Dookie and American Idiot are on two sides of a change in the band that involved them adapting their sound to fill stadiums with modern audiences, rather like what happened to Kings of Leon after Aha Shake Heartbreak, and I don't like music produced after a band makes that change. If it is (1) then I feel the difference would be so intrinsically a part of my personality that objectively assessing it would be like trying to look at the back of my own head. However, I'm pretty sure it's (2), that Dookie is actually great and this is actually shit. I mean: at times it actually sounds like someone is taking the piss out of bad quality W-era protest songs. It belongs in the same bin as NOFX's War on Errorism, when just saying President=Moron was something insightful, amusing, rebellious. But then again, I think Dookie is firmly "pop punk", and is there any pop punk album I would listen to for the first time now and enjoy? Perhaps not. But I listened to Warning around the same time as Dookie and I'm pretty sure I would consider that shit even though I liked it at the time. Maybe I should just stop trying to look for any objectivity in valuing these albums and embrace that two albums that probably have similar musical value can be at opposite ends of the scale for me. Dookie IS a 5 star album, this definitely a 1.

Some nice melodies, but also some very cheesy lyrics. It's hard to take seriously at times.

Pretty fun and not at all annoying which is a massive plus

Crappy pop

One of my favorite albums to listen to from start to finish. The broadway musical is great as well!

hate

246/1001

Absolutely incredible. One of my favorite albums of all time. St. Jimmy!!!!

Loved this album - had just moved to Guernsey and listened to it on my 30 min walk in/ back from work. Still rocks.

Was Green Day a bonafide rock band and I didn't really notice it?! "American Idiot" still holds and is relevant as ever. I didn't remember that "Holiday" and "Boulevard of broken dreams" flowed right into each other. Cool.

I wanted to hate it - because Alternative Rock sucks usually, and these guys are from Berkley which I instinctively dislike; but truth is I couldn’t help but like it. I laughed at American Idiot, aimed at GW Bush but in truth so much more applicable to more recent administrations and current culture in America, and I found I really liked Boulevard and Wake Me Up. All in all a solid album.

This one's definitely influenced by nostalgia but I don't even care. Soundtrack to my high school years! I've always really liked Green Day, so even without the nostalgia factor this probably would have gotten a high rating. Solid sound and instrumentals throughout, and the songs are thoroughly entertaining. There isn't really a dud in the bunch.

Just there really, out there, doesn't care whether you like it or not. I can make it all the way through, but it's not pressing any pleasure buttons.

I'll parrot Mic the Snare by saying that this album has lost a bit of its lustre with overplay, and personally it gets a bit sonically repetitive, but its lyrical ambitions are evident and still hit hard nowadays. I really need to listen to it more than once to fully get into it, but for now, it's a very well put-together pop punk album.

Powerful ambitious. Love me a rock opera, and this delivers more so than tommy with discrete, yet part of the whole songs. If dirnt had done more harmonies rather than multitracking BJ (at least on my ear read) and there had been a bit more variety would have been a 5, but its close regardless.

Don’t really like Green Day but this is a good album

I love the transitions. It sounds like they're having so much fun

Absolute banger, no weak songs. There's probably some component of bias due to nostalgia, but I think if I hadn't heard this and listened for the first time I would still think it rocks. Favorite songs were: 2. Jesus of Suburbia 3. Holiday 13. Whatsername 10/10

The song American Idiot was one of the first songs I bought on iTunes (I think the very first was Goodies by Ciara). I listened to it non-stop but never bought the album, so I actually don't know any of the other songs besides Boulevard/Holiday and Wake Me Up When September Ends. I had the compilation CD International Superhits, so all the Green Day nostalgia I have is wrapped up in those songs, not American Idiot. In middle school I went on a very purist/pretentious streak and got deeply into 70s/80s punk (Clash, Ramones, Dead Kennedys etc...). At that time Green Day were huge, and the face of punk/alternative being big in the mainstream. I viewed them as sellout and I wrongly shunned them (sorry Billy Joe). Later in life I realized that they do in fact rule, and started appreciating them as an adult. The end result however, is that I didn't listen to them in those formative years that everyone else did. They were there at the beginning of those times but were absent for the bulk of them, so I have definite nostalgia for them, but it’s not the deepest. From that perspective, American Idiot is quite good but not an all timer for me. The song American Idiot doesn’t do it for me anymore. Boulevard/Holiday are all time greats and will 100% be on my next trip to a Karaoke bar. The rest I alternated between enjoying or thinking “Hey that’s pretty good”. Without the nostalgia bias, this definitely rocks, but it’s not 5 stars. Album cover: (C+) Not trying to be mean here, but it’s not a great graphic. Also a little on the nose.

The day has finally come! When Stijn and I started this project I said that if this album wasn't on here then the entire list was junk. I am happy to report that the list has now been validated! The first concert I ever went to was Green Day on the American Idiot tour in Mullins Arena at UMass. Thinking back, it was cool as hell that Green Day went out to Western Mass to play a show because almost nobody does that. I think I was in the 4th grade. I remember that I had to actually save up to pay for the ticket myself. My friend's dad got us the tickets and when I went to pay him back with literal rolls of quarters I had saved, he told me he didn't want to carry those around and therefore I got the ticket for free, which was super rad. My pants were falling down all night with the rolls of quarters in my pockets and I was on cloud 9. That was a peak childhood experience and everything about that and this album made me the person I am today. Needless to say I fucking LOVE this album. I have listened to it actual hundreds of times. I can still picture my friend's mom's handwriting on the burned CD she gave me of it. I stream it now, but the feeling never changes. It is quite literally perfect. The songs are all amazing and flow together perfectly. If I was being sent to a desert island for the rest of my life and could only take one album, it would be this. No hesitation. I might even take just half of this album over any other album. I still listen to it all the way through probably once a month, minimum. I hope that never changes. Green Day, thank you for existing and creating this masterful work of art.

This is an instant 10/10 for me. "American Idiot" and "The Black Parade" are the two defining albums of my childhood. It was the first CD I ever owned and I listened to it constantly. I could go ten years without listening to it and still know every word. This album was an on-ramp not only to Green Day's older and punkier albums, but the entire world of punk music in general. My parent's friend, Kevin Meeten, heard that I was obsessed with Green Day and showed up at my house with their entire discography burned onto CDs, album covers printed out in low resolution and put inside cheap plastic CD cases. I'm not sure I even knew they had other albums prior to that moment, but they quickly became valuable currency among my friends. I would bring them around to the many houses and we'd listen to them, our minds being blown by "Dookie" and "Nimrod". This was my first introduction to music snobbery, and I was the culprit. Oh, you've only listened to American Idiot? I love basically every song on this album. I went through phases with it, each section of the album becoming my favorite for a few months at a time. I'd listen to just the first four songs on repeat, then get bored of them and realize the next four were just as good. At this point in time, I think "Homecoming" and "Whatshername" are my favorite songs. The live album of the American Idiot Tour, "Bullet In A Bible", came with a concert DVD that shared equal time inside my DVD Player with "Return of the King". I watched it on repeat and put so much pressure on my parents that I went to Green Day as my first concert a year later. It rocked. This isn't Green Day's best album, but it is definitely their most important album for me. The political angles of the album may have influenced me a lot, and unfortunately ring just as true twenty years later. I have no complaints about this album whatsoever. It fucking rocks, it changed music for me. 10/10

A scathing indictment of suburban America and its culture/belief system under the Bush administration. Also at times a beautiful display of the different ways those suburban kids/families struggle to reckon with personal tragedy. A great juxtaposition of power chords and sad but catchy melodies. It’s undeniably a 5, a good snapshot in time for a subset of Americans

Not bad, some classics

Green Day again. Kings of pop punk, I guess. If Green Day is good at anything it’s bringing people with bad music taste together. Is this really what the people want? A pop punk band full of mediocre musicians making political statements? One bright spot is “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” with the cool guitar.

For some reason I've always felt like Green Day was over-hyped. Perhaps it was influence from friends in the 90s who thought that they were "fake punk" or "sold out" or whatever. I've enjoyed their songs throughout the years. The mainstream success of American Idiot made it something that I avoided checking out. Listening to it today, I was struck by how many of these songs I've heard before. They go well together. I'm not really sure about the story of this concept album, but I enjoy the theme and feeling. This really is a great album.

It's a little bit cheesy at times, and I totally don't understand why there are so many double songs that are quite clearly distinct entities. But this hit all the right nostalgia buttons for me, and it still holds up well for the most part. Shockingly good for me. Came very, very close to five stars.

Love this album It’s almost a five It’s really a 9/10 but in this case I’m rounding UP TO 5.

This was THE album that got me into rock music about 20 years ago now (Christ that makes me feel old) so I’m hardly going to be objective here, but I’ll try There are a few songs in the middle that drag slightly - Are We The Waiting, She’s a Rebel and Extraordinary Girl are all a bit bland, and Homecoming towards the end is very unfocused and feels like a load of unfinished songs slapped together rather than a larger conceptual piece. American Idiot is a concept album and is kind of political but the lyrics are often very vague and it’s difficult to tell exactly what the political stance is, especially when it gets watered down by the central doomed lovers storyline Criticism out of the way - I absolutely love it. The title track is a pure injection of energy and fire with one of the most iconic and pounding drum parts of all time. Jesus of Suburbia is even greater than the sum of its parts, a rock opera epic with so many memorable motifs. Holiday and St Jimmy are both incredibly fun, Boulevard of Broken Dreams and Give Me Novocaine are massive and gorgeous ballads, and Letterbomb is a blast of pop punk greatness with one of Green Day’s most underrated choruses. Wake Me Up is probably their most personal song and (while a bit overplayed) is so emotional and powerful when it hits, and Whatsername is a beautifully nostalgic closer with a heartstopping bridge. It’s a stunning project that blends stadium rock songwriting with pop-punk spirit and musical theatre ambition, and a complete reinvention of Green Day’s sound that led to them one of the biggest bands in the world, and my favourite band for a very very long time. I loved music for as long as I can remember but this in particular captured my heart when I was about 9 years old and opened my eyes as to what music could achieve, sonically and narratively, and what an album could be rather than just a collection of songs, and I immediately began devouring album after album until my brain melted and I signed up to listen to 1001 of the stupid things. No word of a lie, I don’t think I would have studied music at university without American Idiot, I don’t think I would have been friends with a lot of my closest pals growing up without American Idiot, and I would absolutely not be the person I am today without American Idiot. 3 stars.

Simply a really good emo band. Sure, Green Day's overplayed, but "Wake Me Up When September Ends" is loads better than whatever-the-hell My Chemical Romance came up with around that time. The tone shift b/w "Holiday" and "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" is f**king epic. I need to listen to the band more.

I do enjoy some Green Day and this is no exception. Credit for having a punk rock album where 4 songs are 7:30+ minutes long. Huge hits in American Idiot, Holiday, Wake Me up When September Ends. 6.5/10 (3.25/5)

I've always given Green Day a hard time. I love punk, but compared to the likes of the Dead Kennedy's and Fugazi, GD we're always too bubblegum instead of broken glass. That said, this is a dead good record. Saying that punk is bad because it's accessible is obviously misguided - especially when the message is still pretty consistent. I liked this a lot, and will definitely give it another spin.

Still holds true today

- Ich finde (wenn vielleicht auch an der ein oder anderen Stelle etwas überhört) ehrlich gesagt ein perfektes Album - Konzeptalbum, das von vorne bis Hinten eine coole Geschichte erzählt - Fast jeder Song ein Hit, mehrere Welthits - Tolle Lyrics - Super Songwriting - Ich liebe nahezu jeden Track und mein Lieblingstrack auf dem Album "Holiday" war der erste Song, den ich je auf E-Gitarre gelernt habe - "Jesus Of Suburbia" ist einfach Green Days "Bohemian Rhapsody". Eine fucking Rock-Oper im besten Sinne mit großen epischen Parts, mit kleinen ruhigen Momenten, mit Leitmotiv und allem Drum und Dran. Ich sehe es immer wieder als Musical vor meinen Augen. Einfach großartig. - Dazu mit "Boulevard Of Broken Dreams" und "Wake Me Up When September Ends" zwei der schönsten Rockballaden, die je geschrieben wurden. - Allein einfach mit einem Track wie „American Idiot" zu eröffnen, ist auch schon ein Statement. - Auch abseits der großen Hits einfach soo gute Songs - Live einer der geilsten Auftritte, die ich je auf einem Festival erlebt habe, weil die einfach fast 2,5 Std. so krank Gas gegeben haben - Diese Band hat in meinen Augen mit diesem Album Legendenstatus erreicht und von immer schon auch politischem aber auch teils quatschigem Poppunk ein ernstzunehmendes Alternative Rock / Mainstream Punk Album für die Ewigkeit geschaffen. - Artwork eine 10/10 und eines der ikonischsten ever - Ich könnte wohl zu jedem Song irgendwas schreiben aber ich belasse es jetzt bei einer für mich klaren 5/5 und das obwohl ich nie so drüber nachgedacht habe Rating: 5/5

- Mein erstes, selbstgekauftes Rock-Album, Muddi wollte damals erstmal die Texte lesen, um sicherzugehen, dass das für mich hörbar ist (als ob ich damals irgendein Wort davon verstanden hätte, ich war glaube ich 9) - Was ein Banger von einem Album! Hat mich einfach in Richtung Rock, später Metal und schließlich zum Metalcore geführt. War schon derbe prägend - Neben den ganzen Hits auf der Platte, feiere ich auch viele von den nicht ganz so abgegangen Tracks extrem -> "Give Me Novacaine", "She's a Rebel", "Extraordinary Girl", "Letterbomb" und "Jesus of Suburbia" sind für mich auch so krasse Banger - Kehre immer mal wieder zu Green Day zurück und die Jungs stehen auch immer noch auf meiner Live-Bucketlist

I tried. 2

One of the better 21st century albums

Super nostalgic for me and I think that's why I'm rating it higher. This was a really important album in my adolescence and listening to it today transported me right back.

Some commentary here is still relevant. It’s still iconic. One of the classics when it comes to pop-punk. The album feels rather 1 dimensional at times, however.

When it comes to pop punk-operas, you could do worse. You could certainly do a lot better too.

amazing album

I'm honestly empathetic to people who can't stand the idea of pop-punk. "pop" and "punk" seem like antonyms in many ways. But I don't think it's inherently bad when ideas of social awareness, consciousness, and empathy are spread to the masses through catchy tunes and polished production - especially during a time as uncertain as the post-9/11, Iraq Operation dominated, and Bush-administration run 2000s. Was Green Day the most effective in doing this? No, not at all. I can name dozens of hip-hop, punk, and even electronic artists who did a much better job of capturing the horrors of this time. But I don't think any were as commercially successful as Green Day with 'American Idiot', I mean just look at those streaming numbers. While I prefer my punk unpolished, dirty, and relentlessly noisy, even I can admit that there's a lot to love here. The opening title track may be one of the best pop-punk songs of all time, topping anything on Green Day's 'Dookie' even. But what follows is a pretty hit-or-miss concept-driven prog pop-punk album following the "Jesus of Suburbia", a man infected with those post-9/11 blues, as he falls into a deep depression and even dabbles with drug usage by the time the songs 'St. Jimmy' and 'Give Me Novacaine' come along. And I guess that's what initially rubbed me the wrong way about this thing, it's an album that focuses on the struggles of the average, seemingly well-off, American as opposed to the struggles of the ones in the direct line of fire of the American military for example. I don't see it that way now though, or maybe I do, but it doesn't bother me as much, at least not during the first half. But by the time JOS meets that rebel girl, and the cheesy-as-all-hell 'Extraordinary Girl' comes along, I roll my eyes. Maybe I don't get the whole thing, maybe it's all meant to be subtly ironic - the name "Jesus of Suburbia" and even "American Idiot" certainly hint at some level of irony. But if that's the case, why waste so much time building the protagonist up to be this tragic figure? Maybe I'm looking into it too deeply and trying to turn this album's concept into something it's not. Green Day's audience is predominantly young white Americans I'd assume, so targeting this concept toward their struggles and feelings of emptiness in an oppressive world only makes sense. And it's always a good sign when you can feel sadness at the ideas of oppression, even when they don't affect you directly, and Green Day captures those feelings quite well here, so for that, I'll still praise the concept of this thing, at least a tiny bit. So yeah, I'm a bit iffy on the concept. And even the playing here I'm very indifferent towards - it's standard. I do like the song 'Letterbomb' from an instrumental standpoint, with all its Husker Du'isms (20 years after the fact...god that band is good...). I'm maybe less partial towards the slower-ballad type tracks, or momentum-killers as I like to call them, especially the overplayed 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams'. I used to feel this way about the song 'Wake Me Up When September Ends' as well, but after learning about the pretty sad backstory of this song, I've started to appreciate its softer approach. The thing I love the most about this album though, by far, is Billy Joe Armstrong's vocals. I mean I love this vocal style in general but, on this album specifically, every damn song is unbelievably catchy, to the point where it's not even fair. It's fun, and the album's near-hour run time flies by - and a ton of these songs have been in my rotation for as long as I can remember. SO, for as cynical as I am towards the social commentary turned teenage drama concept of a record like this, I still ended up forming an almost guilty pleasure relationship with it. Or maybe "guilty" is not the right word, I do still wholeheartedly believe that the title track, 'American Idiot', is incredibly iconic and even "important(???)". Also, the pop-punk music here, in general, is very influential in this genre. Perhaps the best way to describe this album is 'interesting.' It's certainly a period piece, but how well it has aged is entirely up to the listener to decide.

Better than the sum of it's parts. I could go my life without hearing "Wake Me Up When September Ends" or "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" again, but the rest of the album fits together well.

Safe, commercial teenage angst

Good album

Dated, boring, pop punk from Target

18 months ago I gave Dookie a semi-reluctant 5 stars (well, 4.5 stars rounded up) partially because of those classic early singles but partially because I felt it was the Green Day album I *should* rate the highest. Yes, I’d rather listen to American Idiot front-to-back, but that’s just nostalgia for an album than came out when I was 14, right? Surely the debut album, before they starting ‘selling out’, had to be objectively more authentic and better…? Since then I’ve done some reflecting, and also had the pleasure of seeing the band perform both albums live in full, and I can confidently say that American Idiot is, in fact, their masterpiece. For starters, it’s a concept album in a strong sense - it’s musically and thematically linked, with some excellent transitions between tracks, which I always appreciate. Ok, I’ve never been sure *exactly* what the narrative is supposed to be, but that doesn’t matter - the music tells a story on its own. It’s ambitious and cinematic but it never comes across as pretentious to me, as at its core it’s still using the same basic ingredients of punk-rock chords and pop melodies, just served in a different way. 20 years on it still sounds great to me.

Not what I usually listen to, so missed a lot of the lyrics. Recognized a couple of songs.

Green Day really proved they hadn't lost a step when this came out. Sometimes anger and depression can make great art.

I bought this album on CD from a CeX while on a Scout camp years ago. It was a similar time to when I first got The Black Parade, but while I only found out The Black Parade is a concept album in the last half decade this was my first experience with an album which obviously used music as a way to tell a serialised story. The anti-establishment message defiantly effected my teenage mind for the better. The sound keeps changing and everything is iconic. I dream of seeing the musical on stage. Great album. Favourite track: Wake Me Up When September Ends.

I knew right away that I was not going to be a huge fan of green day so I was kind of annoyed. This shockingly wasn’t AS horrible as I had thought it would be, and I recognized a lot more songs than I thought I would. Don’t get me wrong I still hated the voice and everything but it wasn’t as bad as I had expected.

Redundant title, cynically infinitely more-appropriate for 2024. But a pop-punk concept album and from a band I never liked sounds awful...? I absolutely didn't give time to this back in 2004 - let's see how I feel 20 (!) years later... --- yeah every Green Day song sounds so ... Green Day. Every time. Billie Joe's voice is so utterly featureless as to almost seem fake - this was always one big aspect that prevented me from liking Green Day. That and the standard plowing ahead with nothing-beyond-power-chords aspect of the songs .... nitpicking I guess since that IS their thing? But I really don't like it - just not hitting with me at all. There may be some things more complex/interesting than Dookie (the only other album I know from them) and at the risk of sounding like a pompous douche ... it seems like they really tried pushing the limits of their limited songwriting abilities here, so ... good on them! <while patting them gently on the head as they head back to their seats> I shouldn't have read that they listened to "Quadrophenia" a lot to get some concept album ideas because ... this ain't that (nothing is). TL;DR: ... good effort, I guess? This music simply isn't for me: power pop punk with ironically no emotion at all and just one volume (thanks, 2000-era compression?). 5/10 2 stars.

Say what you will about Green Day, the song transitions on the album at perfect.

This album has a lot of things I like: easy to sing along with. Variety of volume and tempo. Multiple voices in chorus or other parts.

Entirely predictable. There were even a few songs where I thought the album had started itself over for some reason because so many of them sound the same. I skipped over Boulevard of Broken Dreams because I don't ever need to hear that again. On the one hand, there is such little evolution in their sound from their Dookie days that this sounds so sophomoric. On the other hand, they tried so hard to create meaning here that just falls flat for me. Maybe if I were at a more impressionable age when this came out...

Good god this brings back memories. I was in high school when this dropped and I remember hearing it everywhere. At the time I wasn't into the pop-punk stuff (wasn't really into music) and never really gave it the proper listen. Amazing how many songs I was familiar with despite never owning the album.

It was amazing

Album is not very musically interesting. I was growing sleepy by the end of it. The political commentary is milquetoast at best. I will grant it a 3 because it has some banger tracks: "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", "Letterbomb", "American Idiot".

No aportan nada nuevo.

Yeah we get you're angsty youths and we live in a sucky country, that doesn't make it a good album. The music is pretty uninspired and the only real selling point is the angst. You know, I'm glad my mom didn't let me listen to this one growing up.

I think this album is great because I grew up in the early 2000s, and this album is just so iconic from that time. Listening to it now, I wouldn't really call this a punk album. It has some of the lyrical qualities of punk, but not a ton, and it's definitely not punk stylistically (more like pop punk if anything). The hits on this album hold up so hard. They're still so good, even if they've been meme-ified a little. The rest of the songs hold their own weight, but the hits are definitely the highlight of any listen through. Favorite Song(s): Holiday / Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Wake Me Up When September Ends

I mean, what's to say, one of my favourite albums growing up, and every bit of this holds up.

An album with an overarching storyline? What a concept.

This showed up as my album today, and I immediately went back to my teenage years - so of course I was worried I'd be biased, that nostalgia would play its part in my review. Therefore I tried my best to go into this critically, listening as though for the first time. And you know what? It still rules. When it first came out, I didn't bother listening to it because I though "oh, this is the Wake Me Up When September Ends album, I don't wanna listen to those emos", but I think Green Day have always released maudlin singles off of bangers of albums, which really don't give you an impression of what the rest of the album is like. It's a worrying state of affairs that so much of the societal points that Green Day rally against are no better - or possibly even worse - today, and their lyrics still hit hard now. Also, how is this twenty years old?? Faves: Homecoming, Letterbomb, American Idiot