Nimrod

After an *Insomniac* that was basically *Dookie No2* with a better sound, but with far lower peaks -- read *without any song up to the level of "Basket Case', 'Longview', and "Welcome To Paradise"'* -- Green Day found themselves burnt out, cancelling a European tour, and so holed up at the Sunset Marquis Hotel in L.A., where they drank way too much, trashed their rooms, dropped a TV set from there, played pool, and knocked at the door of other hotel guests naked. Rock star routine, I guess. Oh, and they also spent four months recording 30 songs in nearby Conway Recording Studios, more than half of whom would fuel the tracklist of *Nimrod*. On paper, this is a recipe for absolute disaster -- and some of the very disillusioned lyrics indeed suggest Billy Joe Armstrong wasn't exactly in a happy place back then, in spite of some of his usual hilarious one-liners. So the whole endeavor could have easily turned into a bitter experience, where too much money thrown towards a former hype only yields underwhelming results. But, as was often the case with Green Day during their early career, the whole setup ended up offering an unexpected rebirth for the band after they had lost their way to an extent -- the talented Californian act act here revitalizing their punk-pop / punk rock roots into something more varied and yet also -- paradoxically -- more solid and more cohesive overall. There again, no individual song is really up to the level of "Basket Case', 'Longview', and "Welcome To Paradise"' in Green Day's fifth album. But *Nimrod" is one of those LPs where the whole is more than the sum of its individual parts, and there lies its charm. The album opens with two singles, "Nice Guys Finish Last" and "Hitchin' A Ride". Yet it's only a little later that it really hits its stride, with the Byrds-adjacent 'jangle-punk rock' of "Redundant", followed by a terrific and actually very pretty pop-punk song named "Scattered", where Billie Joe pulls off the trick of singing the start of one of the choruses mezzo-voce before giving his all-in right in the middle of it (such a sweet effect!). "Uptight" beats Blink-182 at their own game (Armstrong knows his way around a good earworm that doesn't harbor the smeared make-up of a prostitute, contrary to the overrated Blink). "Haushinka" is graced by a wonderful bridge and an infectious vocal hook ("Now that she's gone...). Adding to this list of assets, *Nimrod* is also the better-sounding record in the whole band's discography, especially for the vocal harmonies and the guitars -- massive and yet always coming off as natural and "organic", instead of artificially inflated. Which, of course, can't hurt. The album is admittedly a patchy affair to an extent. Yey next to the peaks, you don't exactly have valleys. You rather have sandboxes where the band constantly goofs around -- and being stellar musicians, they can goof around in all sorts of styles to boot -- jangle rock as said earlier, but also all-out punk hardcore ("Platypus", "Take Back"), smooth and moody surf-rock instrumental ("Last Ride In"), or harmonica-laden retro rock ("Walking Alone"). The brass-laced, 100% ridiculous ska-punk of "King For A Day" was probably far from necessary, but at this point, towards the very end of the tracklist, the thing is part of the "anything goes" nature of the album. And "King For A Day"'s lyrics about a cross-dressing guy still make it a fun ride, I guess. Speaking of "anything goes", the acoustic-guitar and string-section number of "Good Riddance (The Time Of Your Life)" does maybe not provide that much of a good tune, objectively speaking, but I get that hearing the moving lyrics of this song at the encore of a live setlist must hit all the right buttons for an enthralled audience. So I understand the endearing nature of that one at least. Green Day would then lose their way again, get reborn ONCE MORE as an *American Idiot* that's as culturally iconic as it is essentially an overkill job -- sort of aping The Who's rock operas through a now diluted punk lens -- and then they would get lost *for good" in a sea of artistic irrelevance that's as vast as their commercial success. But I guess that's a story for another time, kiddies... What our *current* story tells us is that *Nimrod* is Green Day's last good *real* punk rock album, even if the band was starting to test different waters from that point on. After all, punk's a spirit first and foremost, right? 3.5/5 for the purposes of this list dedicated to essential albums, rounded up to 4 8.5/10 for more general purposes (5/5 for the musicianship and production values + 3.5/5 for the artistry) ---- Number of albums from the original list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 465 Albums from the original list I *might* include in mine later on: 288 Albums from the original list I won't include in mine: 336 ---- Number of albums from the users list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 103 Albums from the users list I *might* select for mine later on: 115 (including this one) Albums from the users list I won't select for mine: 242 ---- Hey Émile, j'ai répondu sous Demon Days ET ta sélection pour la users list ! 🙂

An overlooked entry in Green Day’s discography, most of the tracks overshadowed by the dominating success of ‘Good Riddance.’ I enjoyed how melodic the band gets on this LP, the feel less punky/in your face and more focused on some straightforward, impactful jams. Did feel a little homogeneous and uninspired at points, so I’m not sure it’s all-time great material – still, I enjoyed this listen a good deal and wouldn’t have given this album a fair shake otherwise.

Of this album I only knew "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" and I was not wrong. Apart from this song it contains not many highlights. I will not call Nimrod a bad album, but Green Day has many better songs and these are all on other albums. This is uninspired songwriting and a meager 6/10 effort.

There's no Green Day album from the 90s that's NOT an instant 5/5 from me. Soundtrack to my youth. There was no cooler band in the mid/late 90s than Green Day to me. While it's not my favorite Green Day album (and Good Riddance has been worn down to the ground, genius that it is notwithstanding), it's so so good. And you didn't ask, but I'll tell you anyway, my favorite Green Day album is Insomniac, with American Idiot a close second.

Punk rock, pop-punk, alternative rock. Vinilo.

Wow, it's been a fair chunk of time since I've heard this. As far as Green Day go, it's early in their oeuvre, and therefore actually pretty good. I'm surprised at the variety on show. I know that every man and his dog will chunter on about Good Riddance, but for me the stand-out track is Hitchin' A Ride.

I got this album when it came out. Love Green Day!

As it turns out Green Day rules

Classic old school Green Day! Perfect.

Pretty close to a 5/5. I have listened to this a LOT over the years

I don't know if the list really needed a third Green Day album, but I sure did. I say this because I used to really dismiss them as just another pop punk band. I knew a handful of singles and never really got interested in them. But I've been a fan of every album I've listened to now. "Nimrod" feels like a more varied and mature outing that sits well between "Dookie" and "American Idiot" in terms of their musical progression and lyrical content. I only knew "Good Ridence" before which I liked ok, but felt it was overplayed. Listening in the context of the album though, I feel renewed appreciation for it. I definitely need more frequent reminders to listen to Green Day and revisit these albums sometime.

Good oldie, without too many hit singles.

Rating: 8/10 Best songs: Hitchin’ a ride, Scattered, Platypus, Uptight, King for a day

Favorite Track: Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)

Ehh I thought it was fine. My personal rating: 3.5/5 My rating relative to the list: 3.5/5 Should this have been included on the original list? No

This isn't my favorite Green Day album but it is their most diverse, which is something that is rare with this band. Always enjoyed it, and it has a few of my favorite songs within, including the Stray Cat Strut riff in Hitchin a Ride. The video for Redundant rules, too.

I feel like, based on my musical tastes, I should like Green Day but I don't really. I find them kind of annoying. I think it's more of a me problem than a Green Day problem. This was alright though. 3 stars.

Good Riddence will always be amazing. The rest of the album may need some more listens to really worm themselves in.

Olisin varmaan nuorempana pitänyt tästä enemmän. Nyt valuu vähän toisesta korvasta sisään ja toisesta ulos. 3/5

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