785. Green Day - Dookie (1994)

Track Listing

1. Burnout
2. Having A Blast
3. Chump
4. Longview
5. Welcome To Paradise
6. Pulling Teeth
7. Basket Case
8. She
9. Sassafras Roots
10. When I Come Around
11. Coming Clean
12. Emenius Sleepus
13. In The End
14. FOD

Review

Well, this is another enjoyable new-punk album. Just like Offspring's Smash! it is a bit of fun more than anything, what punk has lost in terms of meaningful message it has won in sheer attractiveness to a mainstream audience.

You could of course say that this is a betrayal of punk principles, and you might be right, although if you identify punk with the Sex Pistols you should also be aware that they were no more than a glorified boy band.

So I enjoy this, I enjoy it because it brings back memories, because it is unpretentious, even if there is a bit of a put on British accent to it, and I enjoy it because it shows that this new-punk didn't start off as completely shit, which it then became. They are clearly being influenced by the Buzzcocks here, but hey the Buzzcocks were the punk band with the catchiest songs, so it is only natural that in this punk-pop it would be a major influence.

Track Highlights

1. When I Come Around
2. Basket Case
3. Long View
4. Burnout

Final Grade

9/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

The album was well received by some critics, with Allmusic describing Dookie as "a stellar piece of modern punk that many tried to emulate but nobody bettered". In 1994, Time claimed Dookie as the third best album of the year, but the best rock album of 1994. The New York Times, in early 1995, described the sound of Dookie as, "Punk turns into pop in fast, funny, catchy, high-powered songs about whining and channel-surfing; apathy has rarely sounded so passionate."

However, many other music critics, and even some other mainstream bands, claimed the band had sold out for signing to a major label, and called them "watered down punk imposters". The New York Times, while complementary on the album's overall quality, noted that Dookie's pop sound only remotely resembled punk music. The band did not respond initially to these comments, but later claimed that they were "just trying to be themselves" and that "it's our band, we can do whatever we want". Dirnt claimed that the follow up album, Insomniac, one of the band's hardest albums lyrically and musically, was the band releasing their anger at all the criticism from critics and former fans.

When I Come around: