An Overstayed Welcome?

Can you spot the 147 differences in these two pictures?

Those of you who know me to any small extent know that I've been a fan of Green Day for many years. (Don't worry this is far from an entry about why I like them). Bands like the Rolling Stones and Aerosmith have been around for several decades, but their current cds aren't as appealing to teens as the merchandise thrown at teenagers in Hot Topics across the country. (Yes, they do sell Rolling Stones shirts, but that goth kid in your math class sure isn't wearing one).

The interesting thing about Green Day, and perhaps something to their advantage (but at their audience's expense) is that they've managed to keep their main fan base between the ages of 13 and 18 for approximately 15 years. The problem? People who were 14 in 1994 are now nearly 28. The Green Day that spoke to fans in 1994 was speaking from a different time period and with a different generation of people. It was a just-barely-post-grunge era where apathy wasn't regarded a character flaw. Dirt was okay; drugs were okay. 1994/1995 marked the end for some other popular bands (Nirvana, Soundgarden) while Green Day was just beginning the start of their rather astonishingly lucrative career. Rock music really had its heyday because pop from 1990-2000 was pretty atrocious. (See: Marky Mark).

Starting out in the late 80s, Green Day formed and played local shows in California, producing two CDs for Lookout! Records. The songs were mostly, if not entirely, about Billie Joe's girlfriend (and later wife). Had emo been a widespread genre in 1990, they would have been right in the middle of it. When they got signed to Reprise and released Dookie, the band skyrocketed to stardom almost overnight and since then their success hasn't really dwindled. The tough part in looking back at their career is where they stood on "the issues." In 1994, there were no issues. They sang songs about nothing and cared about nobody. Billie Joe maintained the poor punk kid image (which was fairly true before 1994).

The stark difference in what Green Day represents now was sort of obvious when American Idiot came out because there were suddenly strange political undertones (or overtones as "Zieg Heil to the president gasman") compared to the gentler times of 1991's Kerplunk (Laying in my bed I think I'm in left field. I picture someone, I think it's you.) Even more stark a contrast came from 2000's Warning because many people, such as myself, saw Green Day maturing into obscurity, where they would continue making generic adult contemporary songs or just simply quit. Yet, suddenly in 2004 they decide to revamp their entire sound and take on the music industry for a second time by releasing American Idiot. What really made me more cognizant of the fact that they had really taken a very different turn was upon seeing them perform in 2005. My three friends and I were 20 and realized we were the oldest people at the concert, save for the boatloads of mommies who begrudgingly took their 13 year old kids to the show. (I saw some children who were definitely too young to be at a blaringly loud show). Even worse was dealing with the half hour of pain that was embodied in My Chemical Romance.

In any matter, I'll have to say, I do like the majority of the songs on American Idiot (sans the title track and "We Are the Waiting"). But, it doesn't feel like I'm listening to the same band I first heard (who, surprisingly, I really disliked when I first heard them in 1994). Throughout their 2 decades of releasing music, they've come to represent four entirely different bands. (Click links for examples). Emo Green Day (1987-1992), Apathetic Green Day (1994-1997; appealing to loathsome teens), Maturity/Obscurity Green Day (2000) and Zach De La Robert Smith Green Day (2004, the political/goth adorned era, appealing to teens of the 00s). There is something to be said for ingenuity; in constantly recreating yourself or your sound to keep the audience on its toes. But at what point is it considered too much? I don't really know but while Green Day has maintained a massive fan base over the years, I don't think its members are staying the same.