Okay, so, I'm a Green Day fan. Not everyone is. Some are just a fan of Green Day to a certain point. Recently they released the first in a trilogy of albums. So here is my review of ¡Uno! by Green Day.
Track 1 is called Nuclear Family, and they immediately let you know, this is a Green Day album, with the kick-ass, in your face punk rock we've come to love and expect from Green Day. The music is great, the lyrics are great, an awesome way to start the album. What? You didn't think I was gonna say great again did you?
Track 2 is called Stay The Night and while the lyrics are nothing like Nuclear Family, the music is the same in your face punk rock we see throughout the album. However, as I said, this is a more personal song, whereas I have no idea what Nuclear Family was supposed to be about. This song is good, however if it weren't a Green Day song I'd say the rock sound doesn't fit with the lyrics.
Track 3 is called Carpe Diem, and if you don't know what that means, the other lyrics in the chorus may not make sense. It is popularly translated as seize the day. With that in mind, the rest of the chorus makes perfect sense. This song reminds me of something on Joey Ramone's new solo album, which is good, because that album is great. I wish I knew what the name meant from the beginning though.
Track 4 is called Let Yourself Go, and if you want in your face, kick ass punk rock, and the other songs didn't satisfy you, this song is for you. The lyrics would be stupid were this not a punk song, and the music fits so well with the tone of this album, being the kind of song that would give your grandmother a heart attack. I love this song, but only found out it was new weeks before the release, so I wish I had gotten more time to listen to it before the album released.
Track 5 is called Kill The DJ. Now, when Green Day first announced this song, they described it as a dance song. "Holy crap," said the pissed of little Green Day fan in my head, "this song is going to suck, big time!". However I was shocked when I actually enjoyed it. I learned two things upon listening to it for the first time. One, Green Day is incapable of making a "dance song" and two, Green Day rocks, even when they're trying not to rock. One thing I liked about it though was it was a break from songs like Let Yourself Go, or Nuclear Family.
Track 6 is called Fell For You, and Tre Cool and Billie Joe start us off with a drum beat, and rocking guitar. This however is a very personal song, and whereas with Stay The Night, I said if it weren't Green Day the personal lyrics wouldn't fit the music, these lyrics do not fit the music, period. Judging by these lyrics, this song would make more sense with music like we heard on Wake Me Up When September Ends, or The Last Night On Earth. However I'm not complaining and I'll tell you why at the end of the review. I just hope we'll get some slower songs on the follow ups.
Track 7 is called Loss Of Control, and while that name sounds like No Self Control, this is different. However for a song called Loss Of Control, this song is pretty tame. The music rocks, but judging by the lyrics, this song should be a lot faster and crazier. There's even a few seconds where there's no music at all. What the hell? This is called Loss Of Control, couldn't they at least speed it up at the end? I liked it, but I think it should've been a lot faster.
Track 8 is called Troublemaker, and this almost sounds like a song the Sex Pistols would make, until the chorus, where it sounds like something I've heard before but can't picture. I do think the verses are a lot more wild than the chorus, which is weird because all the chorus is, is Billie Joe saying "Wanna be a troublemaker". This was a great song though, and I think it would be really cool if the Sex Pistols covered this.
Track 9 is called Angel Blue, and while I don't really get the lyrics, I love the song, music, and lyrics, because it sounds like a mix of Green Day that everyone likes. I really don't have much to say about this song, but I like it. That sounds lazy, but this is a hard song to evaluate.
Track 10 (and my personal favorite) is called Sweet 16. I love this song, because it's personal, emotional, and a break from the 10 other tracks of in your face punk rock. This song is also very catchy. It sticks in your head like a Beatles song. I love this song, because it sticks out in a crowd.
Track 11 is called Rusty James, and while I don't get the lyrics, the song rocks, and I like it. I will have to try to find what this song is about though, maybe I'll have more of an opinion about it.
Track 12, the final track and the first single on the album, is called Oh Love, and while this is a great personal song, and rocks, it does not feel like 5 minutes. I almost wish they had made it like Jesus of Suburbia, or 21st Century Breakdown, where it was multiple short songs in one huge song. You do get a kick ass guitar solo from Billie Joe in the middle, which is awesome. However, again, this does not feel like five minutes. It barely feels like four minutes. Some would say that's a good thing, but I love long songs, and this did not feel like one. It's very good though.
Final evaluation: 8/10; While this is a very good album, so much of it was in your face punk rock, that sometimes it would've felt unnecessary coming from anyone else, but that in your face punk is what I love about Green Day, they make it work, even when they're not trying to, like on Kill The DJ. However it is nice to have a break once in a while, and we didn't really get that on this album, so I'm still hoping for that on ¡Dos! or in the very least ¡Tre!; That is why I'm not complaining about the lack of slow songs on this album. One, because in your face punk is what Green Day is known for and two, because we still have two albums and 25 songs on the way. So I'm very pleased with ¡Uno! to say the least.
Next time : Dot Dot Curve - Deaf, Dumb and Blind EP review
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