Track Listing

1. Song Of The Century
2. 21st Century Breakdown
3. Know Your Enemy
4. Viva La Gloria
5. Before The Lobotomy
6. Christian's Inferno
7. Last Night On Earth
8. East Jesus Nowhere
9. Peacemaker
10. Last Of The American Girls
11. Murder City
12. Viva La Gloria (Little Girl)
13. Restless Heart Syndrome
14. Horseshoes And Handgrenades
15. Static Age, The
16. 21 Guns
17. American Eulogy
18. See The Light

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #75 in Music
• Released on: 2009-05-15
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Explicit Lyrics
• Dimensions: .24 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Over three years in the making, 21st Century Breakdown is the answer to the question Green Day are stuck with--exactly how do you follow up a twelve million selling rock opera? With more of the same, of course, just like the Who used to do. To be honest, the narrative line is largely incoherent, following the story of starstruck young lovers Christian and Gloria (as in G-L-O-R-I-A) as they confront The Man in a predictably dystopian world. But though plenty of bands have recently resuscitated this long discredited form--The Mars Volta and the excellent, not dissimilar Thermals, to name but two--none can pack in so many decent tunes as Billie Jo Armstrong, Tre Cool and Mike Dirnt. Even as they approach middle age, they still sound trapped by their youth, whether it’s Armsrong describing himself (or maybe his character) as a child of the Nixon era or simply reviving the power-pop sound of Cheap Trick. Yet if the plot is murky, songs like single "Know Your Enemy", as reductive as AC/DC and as gleefully catchy as the latest Disney teen rock sensation, the shameless and resigned power ballad "21 Guns", "Before the Lobotomy", one part punk rock, one part melodramatic ballad, and the classic rock of the title track sound like radio staples on the very first hearing. Older listeners may be reminded of Husker Du’s equally impenetrable and ambitious song cycle Warehouse. But that was the work of a band actively seeking fans. 21st Century Breakdown is a wildly unfocussed collection seemingly set on confusing them. But it certainly features some great tunes.--Steve Jelbert

CD Description
This eighth album from probably the most successful and popular punk rock band of all time is the follow-up to their multi-platinum 2004 rock opera 'American Idiot'. This new album continues in a similar vein, with an overarching concept about the disintegration of American culture. Musically it takes in a broad spectrum of influences, from Springsteen-style blue-collar rock to the 70s pomp of Queen, which has also influenced other punk acts like My Chemical Romance.