Released last month, !Uno! is the latest from punk-rock band Green Day, following on from 2009's 21st Century Breakdown and 2004's American Idiot. A solid album, !Uno! opens with the single "Nuclear Family", and is a complete but uninspiring effort, with 12 tracks of solid punk rock. I won't/can't give a track-by-track review yet, as I haven't heard the album enough times, but at this stage I'd have to comment that it does not sound as spectacular as the bands' previous two studio albums, both of which rank up there with the better rock albums of all-time. Nevertheless, it's an admirable effort from Green Day, and the music is sharp and focused, with a high-quality sound and feel to it. The consistency of songwriting, and yes, the experiemental keyboards from 21st Century Breakdown are gone, both to the detriment of this work I think. The four singles are, as I mentioned, solid but unspectacular, while the album tracks are indistinguishable from these releases, with the exception of "Kill the DJ", which holds its own as a single, with some catchy pop hooks. Overall the track-by-track hit parade that was Green Day's last two studio efforts is lacking from !Uno!, but one can hardly blame the band for that, especially as this album is the first of a three-album set to be released over the next few months. Overall, I give this 3 out of 5, a good effort, hopfeully to be followed by two further solid albums in the series. ~Sentience
Yeah I have to agree. It's a good album but nothing special. In fact, it isn't quite punk enough for its own right. A bit overproduced - a thing they borrowed from American Idiot and 21st Century. But the overproduction in those albums is forgivable in light of the concept albums' accomplishments. I would like to hear how this album melds together with Dos and Tre when they come out. Is there a purpose to dividing the music up like this? Three distinct sounds or themes? Or is it just a way to release a lot of music they have rattling around in their heads in a short period of time? RHCP had that dilemma with Stadium Arcadium in 2006. They wanted to release three single albums six months apart but decided by the time they released their third album they'd have moved on musically. So they cut tracks (the Venus B-Sides) and dropped the double album instead...which I have to say worked very well as it required them to tighten up the sound and feel of the album.
I suspect the three will have the same sound. I don't know for sure, but it just sounds logical. Also, I wonder if we'll get a smattering of quality singles on the next two records? "Kill the DJ" is the standout single from Uno, IMO. Yes - Stadium Arcadium is possibly their best record, and certainly their most accomplished. Even so, it does drag a little bit and is a bit overlong - so yeah I'm glad they tightened up and did the double album instead. It's more for the mp3 generation from what I hear - they wanted to produce lots of songs for playlists rather than a traditional album; so maybe this is what Green Day are going for with Uno Dos Tre.
Yeah, Billy Corgan opined on the end of the album prior to starting his Teargarden by Kaleidoscope experiment. And you know what? It's not super good. I like a good album still. Oceania is actually a pretty coherent album. Teargarden's track by track release not so much. I would hope an established rock band like Green Day would not fall into this trap of just making a song and hoping it sticks. That's almost amateurish.
Their last album, "21st Century Breakdown" (2009) sold more than a million copies in the U.S. alone, and more than 4 million worldwide. Their previous album "American Idiot" (2004) sold more than 6 million copies in the U.S. alone, and 15,000,000 globally. Green Day Discography and Album Sales They're recognized worldwide, they're still selling albums into the millions, and they're still producing. I'd say by any standard, that they're doing pretty well for themselves.
You should check out their 2009 album 21st Century Breakdown. It's probably their best work, even better than 2004's American Idiot.
