Welcome back to Left of The Dial! Since the summer sessions are coming to a close and the fall semester is upon us soon, I’d like to commemorate the transition to a new academic year with a 3-part review, starting today. I will be reviewing the ¡UNO!…¡DOS!…¡TRÉ! trilogy by Green Day, known more commonly by fans as simply “the trilogy,” one album at a time in order of release. If you’re unfamiliar with this band, then I recommend you check out my review of 21st Century Breakdown for a summary of their background.
The trilogy was an ambitious attempt by the band to create a series of “back to basics” records to break away from their rock opera phase, having previously released American Idiot and 21st Century Breakdown in 2004 and 2009 respectively. The trilogy initially began life as one record, but enough song ideas were coming to Billie Joe Armstrong that he expanded it to two, then three records. Their ambition was strong enough that the band was also expanded from a three-piece to a four-piece, bringing touring guitarist Jason White on as an official fourth member on the project.
Unfortunately, the trilogy was poorly received upon each album’s release, because they didn’t live up to the high expectations the band promised. Instead of blowing people’s minds, it left them unsatisfied. As I revisit these albums after a several-year-long absence, I’d like to see if this reaction was justified, or if there’s something special being hidden away.
We’ll start with ¡UNO!, the first album to be released, debuting in September 2012. When describing the feel the band was trying to achieve for each album, Armstrong described ¡UNO! as the pre-party, ¡DOS! as the party itself with all its chaos, and ¡TRÉ! as the afterparty. Keep those in the back of your mind as we proceed.
Side 1
Side 1 contains “Nuclear Family,” “Stay The Night,” “Carpe Diem,” “Let Yourself Go,” “Kill The DJ,” and “Fell For You.”
“Nuclear Family” is something of a double-edged sword; it gives an accurate summary of what’s to come, as a good album opener should, however, it also predicts many of the faults that could make or break the album for listeners. From the first note, the gritty and unpolished sound is made apparent. This is actually a plus, because the garage-rock sound gives these albums personality, and it makes for a nice throwback to the band’s garage days. Where the song falters is in the composition. There’s nothing wrong with simple and stripped-down composition, after all, it was that approach that got Green Day their success early on. However, the issue with “Nuclear Family” is how generic it sounds. It’s hard to pick out anything particularly special about the composition that helps it stand apart from the rest of the album. The only thing separating it from the others is the vocals and lyrics, which is a pretty low bar to clear. At least those are fun and energetic, even if they have absolutely no meaning to them.
“Stay The Night” is the next track, and I wish this was the album opener as opposed to “Nuclear Family.” An aspect to a good opener I forgot to mention is that it should stand out and set a standard of quality for the rest of the album. Had the first two tracks been swapped, then I believe “Stay The Night” would have helped the album start with a real bang! It begins with a solo guitar part to ease you in, then the other instruments kick in around the 24 second mark. It’s a nice way to grab the listener’s attention. On the subject of the instrumentals, they work well to convey the feeling of longing expressed in the lyrics. Speaking of lyrics, I love the story they tell, illustrating the delirious thought process of someone aching to bring someone else home with them, even though they know it’s not meant to be. Overall, I just love this song, and I wish the rest of the album followed in its footsteps.
Moving on to “Carpe Diem,” it’s another decently executed song. I like the brisk tempo and vocal harmonies at play. The title describes the lyrical content pretty accurately, don’t expect much more substance than “seize the day” and all that. This song didn’t do much for me, so I don’t have much more to say about it. I still recommend you give this one a try though–maybe it’ll do more for you.
“Let Yourself Go” is a refreshing change of pace. It’s a speedy, angry punk song with no filter, and man is it a blast! That’s one thing I can say is a positive with some of these songs: they may not be up to the usual standards of quality, but you can at least tell that there was heart put into them. What “Let Yourself Go” lacks in technical sheen and lyrical substance, it more than makes up for in energy and relatability to the subject matter, in this case, an absolute hatred for someone. It’s an underrated gem on the album that I highly recommend.
On to “Kill The DJ,” and geez, I wasn’t exactly hopping in my seat to revisit this one. I’ll start with what’s good on this track. The composition is probably the most creative so far, and it takes advantage of having two guitarists as opposed to the usual one. This has also been a problem with the trilogy, with bringing in another guitarist only to falter in taking advantage of the opportunity. I’d say a shining example of multiple guitarists done right is on “The Sound of My Ceiling Fan” by Diarrhea Planet. Listen to that track and take note of the dueling guitar lines and how it enriches the instrumentals. Returning to “Kill The DJ,” the guitar work isn’t anything special, but it’s evident that it tried harder than the other tracks to give Jason White something to do. Moving on to negatives, the lyrical content is pretty subpar, which isn’t a new complaint. I know that not every song has to be deep and profound with their lyrics, but there’s an art to writing about nonsense and making something good out of it, and this song misses the mark. I get the impression that Armstrong was rushed through writing this, or perhaps he didn’t go back and revise it, because even in delivery, they sound like the ramblings of someone who hit the sauce way too early in the day. I’d say skip this one, and please don’t go and kill any DJs.
To conclude Side 1, we’ve got “Fell For You.” This was one I always wrote off in my first few spins of this record, and I kinda regret it. I tend to gravitate towards Green Day songs with more profound lyrical content to pore over, and this is one that’s caught my attention in recent years. “Fell For You” illustrates the struggles of being in love with someone, yet your lack of guts to tell that person leads to you fantasizing about it in your dreams. It’s painfully relatable to anxiety-ridden folks like myself, which probably explains my love for this song to some extent. I also love the composition on this track, as well as its use of vocal harmony on the bridge into the chorus. It’s another hidden gem, and a satisfying way to end Side 1.
Side 2
Side 2 contains “Loss Of Control,” “Troublemaker,” “Angel Blue,” “Sweet 16,” “Rusty James,” and “Oh Love.”
“Loss Of Control” surprised me a bit coming back to it, in the way that it’s not quite as bad as I remember. It’s still not that good, but it’s worth a listen at least. It tackles the trials of having a high school reunion you didn’t want to attend in the first place. I think many of us had some tough times in high school, and Armstrong certainly did according to the lyrics, so the struggle is relatable. The composition is solid along with the vocals, which puts it above the generically dull tracks like “Carpe Diem.” Overall, it’s worth a listen.
Next up is “Troublemaker,” which might surprise you when I say it’s among my favorite tracks from the album, just not for the reason you might expect. For me, this song falls under the ‘so bad it’s good’ umbrella for one obvious reason: the lyrics. They’re ridiculous, and I love them! The delivery is what makes it delightfully awful, as Armstrong relays a lot of energy and passion into it with a hint of exaggeration. It’s like he knew full well that the lyrics were bad and just wanted to have fun and embrace the awfulness. Breaking away from any irony, the composition and especially the guitar work are genuinely great on this song. There’s an infectious energy to it all, which is part of why I enjoy it. It makes for a good song to sing along to while I’m driving. Definitely give this track a chance if it sounds enticing to you!
The next track is “Angel Blue,” which doesn’t exactly inspire the same excitement from me as “Troublemaker” did. The song’s issue is that it’s stale. I get reminded of “Loss Of Control” with the guitar line, and it doesn’t have much substance to give it any standout qualities. The lyrics are a tad questionable if you read into them literally, which describes a love interest as having “teenage traces” and later being “just a f***ing kid.” I don’t think they were intended to be taken literally, and I believe Armstrong was writing from the perspective of a younger character, which he’s been known to do throughout his career. But that’s about all “Angel Blue” has to stand out from the rest of the record. I’d say this one should be skipped.
“Sweet 16” is up next, and it’s another personal favorite of mine. I described in my 21st Century Breakdown review how I have a special fondness for songs Armstrong writes about his wife Adrienne. Well, this is one of those songs! The composition feels full and lively, and you can just hear the romance in Armstrong’s vocal delivery. It’s clear as day that there was a lot of love and care put into this track, which earns it my seal of approval.
Next is “Rusty James,” which was another surprise for me in just how well it’s held up since the last time I listened to it. Since we’re approaching the end of the record, it slows down the pace a bit and takes an introspective approach with the lyrics. It deals with the issues of abandonment by a community and the resulting emptiness that would be understandably felt. The composition works to convey a feeling of conclusion, however unwelcome it may be, and the song left me quietly contemplating the subject by the time it ended. Communal abandonment is a bit of new lyrical territory in my time as a music fan, and it’s given me something new to appreciate about this track.
Onto the final song of the album, we have “Oh Love.” It’s strange to realize that this, the album closer, was the first single released to promote the trilogy, especially since it’s so different from the rest of its parent album. It’s a slow ballad that clocks in at a little over 5 minutes, far surpassing the other tracks in run time. However, it doesn’t feel like it’s overstaying its welcome, thanks to its slower pace and clever lyrics. It makes for a great closer and makes sure to end things on a memorably good note.
¡UNO! is a surprisingly solid record with a lot of hidden gems, despite several sub-par tracks. My top three would easily be “Stay The Night,” “Let Yourself Go,” and “Sweet 16,” with an honorable mention going to “Troublemaker.” The bottom three would be “Nuclear Family,” “Kill The DJ,” and “Angel Blue.”
Rating: 6.5/10
Feature Photo by Becca Fauteux