by Katherine Capulong, staff reporter
Green Day’s recently released trilogy namely ¡Uno! ¡Dos! ¡Tre!, leads the punk rock trio to the forefront of the music scene once again. Combining sounds from their Dookie days and the inherent pop choruses of American Idiot and 21st Century Breakdown, the band’s strum of guitar strings tugs on the ones of their fans hearts, and then some.
The first single from ¡Uno! ”Oh Love” dropped in July 2012. It debuted at number one in the US Rock songs, just as two other Green Day songs did. The first taste of the trilogy made the move from politically inspired albums crystal clear. Billie Joe Armstrong croons during the bridge ‘Won’t you take me close to you?”
But if a listener is in the market for a tribute, the last track from ¡Dos! was exceptionally chilling. “Amy” was without a major orchestration and was just Armstrong and the guitar. The ballad was reminiscent of a Beatles riff, and as stated in an interview was the band paying their respects to the late Amy Winehouse.
Though that track was sweet and compelling, “Wow! That’s Loud” as well as another track that spit out expletives in its title, completely lacked subtlety, not that any Green Day fans would be surprised by that. According to an article on the Guitar World site, this trilogy contained more profanities than any Green Day albums prior to it.
Some particularly obvious Kerplunk-Insomniac throwbacks off of ¡Dos! were “Let Yourself” and “Kill the DJ.” Those songs put the boys back in the garage again and one could recall the once blonde-ness and green hair that used to adorn the group.
“I’d say their newer work is similar to their old stuff. It’s all upbeat with a clear message,” junior Alec Goldenberg said.
And then on ¡Tre! which was just released in December 2012, the song “99 Revolutions” singularly enjoyed politics in its lyricism, as two of Green Day’s albums prior to this trilogy had experienced in full but no other song in the trilogy. In an interview Armstrong is asked about “99 Revolutions” and says it celebrates the Occupy Wall Street movement. “I think there’s a really broad idea of what the 99 percent is. I’m just tapping into my working-class background in that song.”
Green Day mixed in their old style with new, and reflected on their longtime run with the arts and with life in their lyricism. The countdown of ¡Uno! ¡Dos! and ¡Tre! flowed beautifully, and while the trilogy does not stand out as a gem among the rest of their discography, it still showcased Green Day’s obvious talent.
