21st Century Breakdown

Californian punk-rock band Green Day’s latest outing, 21st Century Breakdown, is a further move into more conventional and yet grandiose “classic”-style rock, which will, I feel, sound great on the radio. Laid out with the feel of a concept album, it has three five-track long “acts”, in which the themes of Heroes and Cons, Charlatans and Saints, and Horseshoes and Handgrenades and explored in the band’s well-known, balls-out style.

Although fans of the band from the days of Kerplunk and Dookie may indeed be put off by its commercial writing and production style, it’ll keep the fans of Grammy-award winning American Idiot. It is, however, not quite as good and a little more overblown than its predecessor from five years ago, and listeners excited by the prospect of a more modern take on the rock concept album may be disappointed. The quality and memorability of each song tapers off as you approach the middle of the album, but the inclusion of these less radio-friendly songs may have been a smart move to please the old-school fans. Songs towards the end of the album, like 21 Guns, do stand out however, and this, whether or not you feel like a fan of the band but are an interested rock fan, is a worthy buy.