(4 Out of 5)

Green Day, the three Chord Mafia, is back with a new rock opera as a follow up to their last attempt at an album that tells a story while also having the ability to turn the album into a stage musical. As they succeeded with American Idiot, Green Day has once again redefined themselves from the rest of the punk rockers and created an album that questions faith, becomes frustrated by the 21^st Century, but ultimately finds itself by the end.

Typically, albums may have a theme but they always don’t tell a story. Billie Joe Armstrong still has some angst in his mid 30s and expresses it here in quite poetic terms. Musically, the album has your typical three chord stuff you are used to getting from Green Day like their first single, “Know Your Enemy,” but they score when it comes to their thoughtful ballads like “21 Guns.” Their bombastic sound comes back in angry tirades like “East Jesus Nowhere” while “Static Age” gives you that fun side of the band.

This truly is a varied album that would be highly amusing as a stage musical.  Some songs are complex while others are very straightforward.  This is an album where its title is truly the theme, and each song is independent but also part of the story able to give a complete look at what the guys think of the present today.

Suggested Listening: “Before the Lobotomy,” “Static Age” & “21 Guns”

By: Josh Wheeler - Contributing Writer