Green Day is an American rock band formed in 1987.[1] The band consists of three core members: Billie Joe Armstrong (guitar, lead vocals), Mike Dirnt (bass) and Tré Cool (drums).
Green Day was originally part of the punk rock scene at 924 Gilman Street in Berkeley, California. Its early releases for independent label Lookout! Records earned them a grassroots fanbase, some of whom felt alienated when the band signed to a major label. Nevertheless, its major label debut Dookie became a breakout success in 1994 and eventually sold over 10 million copies in the U.S. alone. As a result, Green Day was widely credited, along with fellow California punk bands The Offspring and Rancid, with reviving mainstream interest in and popularizing punk rock in the United States.Green Day's three follow-up albums, Insomniac, Nimrod and Warning did not achieve the massive success of Dookie, but they were still successful, reaching double platinum, double platinum and gold status respectively. Its 2004 rock opera American Idiot reignited the band's popularity with a younger generation, selling 5 million copies in the U.S.
The band has sold over 60 million records worldwide, including 22 million in the United States alone. They also have three Grammy Awards, Best Alternative Album for Dookie, Best Rock Album for American Idiot, and Record of the Year for "Boulevard of Broken Dreams."
They are currently working on their new studio album estimated to be released in 2008.
Music style and influences
Green Day's sound is often compared to first wave punk bands such as the Ramones, The Clash, The Sex Pistols, and the Buzzcocks. The majority of their song catalog is composed of distorted guitar, fast, manic drums, and low, heavy bass. Most of their songs are fast-paced and under the average song length of four minutes (4:00). Billie Joe Armstrong has mentioned that some of his biggest influences are seminal alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü and The Replacements, and that their influence is particularly noted in the band's chord changes in songs. In fact, Green Day has covered Hüsker Dü's "Don't Want to Know If You Are Lonely" as a b-side for the "Warning" single, and the character "Mr. Whirly" in their song "Misery" is a reference to the Replacements song of the same name. Armstrong's lyrics commonly describe alienation, ("Jesus of Suburbia", "Boulevard of Broken Dreams"), hysteria ("Basket Case", "Panic Song"), girls ("She", "80"), and the effects of doing drugs ("Geek Stink Breath", "Green Day"). The Ramones had similar lyrical themes, like hysteria ("Anxiety", "Psycho Therapy"), alienation ("Outsider", "Something To Believe In"), girls ("I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend", "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker"), and drugs ("Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue", "Chinese Rocks"). Green Day has covered Ramones songs several times, including recording "Outsider" for the tribute album We're a Happy Family, and performing "Blitzkrieg Bop" and "Teenage Lobotomy" when the Ramones were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.
On their myspace page, the band cites the Sex Pistols, Ramones, The Clash, Van Halen, The Replacements, Husker Du, NOFX, Operation Ivy, and Rancid in their influences section.
Criticism and controversy
Beginning with the release of Dookie, and the subsequent explosion of MTV Airplay it received, Green Day has received considerable criticism from those who see the punk genre as a social movement independent of corporate sponsorship. With the release of American Idiot and the subsequent draw of many new fans, much of this criticism has been revived.
One of the more contentious issues is genre labeling. In reaction to both the style of music and the background of the band, many fans and musicians have taken heavy objection to the usage of the term "punk" when applied to Green Day. This is evidenced by the following comments issued by John Lydon (Johnny Rotten), former front man of both the 1970s punk band the Sex Pistols and the 1980s post-punk, Public Image Ltd.:
“ So there we are fending off all that and it pisses me off that years later a wank outfit like Green Day hop in and nick all that and attach it to themselves. They didn't earn their wings to do that and if they were true punk they wouldn't look anything like they do. ”
Steve Diggle of the Buzzcocks commented on the band after meeting them: "I didn't have a clue who they were. And they're not punks."
Brandon Flowers of The Killers has recently gone on record claiming that Green Day's politically driven concept album American Idiot displays "calculated Anti-Americanism." He explained that he has problems with the album content itself and also the fact that the band's recent live DVD, Bullet in a Bible, was filmed in England. The taping of the concert, featured on Bullet in a Bible, shows thousands of Europeans singing along to "American Idiot." Stating that he felt Green Day's DVD is a bit of a stunt, he said, "I just thought it was really cheap. To go to a place like England or Germany and sing that song - those kids aren't taking it the same way that he meant it. And he (Billie Joe Armstrong) knew it."
More recently, Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher has accused the band of ripping off his song "Wonderwall" for "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" .
Related projects
Main article: Green Day related projects
Ever since 1991, some members of the band have branched out past Green Day and have started other projects with other musicians. Notable related projects of Green Day include Billie Joe Armstrong's Pinhead Gunpowder (which also features Green Day's live backup guitarist Jason White), The Frustators in which Mike Dirnt plays bass, and The Network which has been speculated as having has all three members of Green Day under stage names. Recently a new Green Day side project has been discovered, named Foxboro Hot Tubs. They have an album called titled Stop, Drop and Roll. All 6 songs can be downloaded at the Foxboro Hot Tubs website.
Charity projects that the band have been involved with include the collaboration with U2 ("The Saints Are Coming") to help raise money for musical instruments lost in Hurricane Katrina, and teaming with the Natural Resources Defense Council for the "Move America Beyond Oil" campaign and other environmental concerns.
Green Day has also foamed a partnership with the NRDC, an American environmental organization that is heavily promoted on the band's website.[citation needed] They have made YouTube videos voicing support for protection of the environment and 'ending America's addiction to oil'.
Background information
Origin East Bay, California, USA
Genre(s) Punk rock
Pop punk
Alternative rock
Years active 1987- Present
Label(s) Lookout! (1988-1993)
Reprise (1993-present)
Associated
acts Pinhead Gunpowder
The Frustrators
The Network
Foxboro Hot Tubs
Website greenday.com
Members
Billie Joe Armstrong
Mike Dirnt
Tré Cool
Former members
John Kiffmeyer
No comments:
Post a Comment