Welcome back to Left of The Dial! This week, we’re kicking off a two-part review of what I’d like to call “The Ordinary Duo” (the name will make sense in a bit). This duo consists of Green Day’s record Revolution Radio and the Lee Kirk directed indie film Ordinary World. The album and film both released within a week of each other in October 2016, and they have similar storylines and themes they touch upon. The most obvious similarity, however, is with Billie Joe Armstrong, who we all know and love as the frontman of Green Day. He played the protagonist of the film and composed a few songs for the soundtrack, one of which also shows up on Revolution Radio: “Ordinary World.” Hence, I call this pair “The Ordinary Duo” (clever, is it not?). We’ll discuss the film next week, so let’s stick with the record today.
Revolution Radio is Green Day’s 12th studio album and had a tough task to fulfill as a return to form after all the drama surrounding the trilogy nearly destroyed the band. At the time of its release, it was generally well-received, though it was criticized for playing things a little too safe and standard. However, I feel this choice to “play it safe” was a good one on the band’s part, as diving deeper into experimentation after such an unstable period would have only further alienated fans. Even so, I don’t believe they “played it safe” by any means on this record; I see it as a solid and kick-ass reminder of what makes Green Day special. So let’s get spinning post haste!
Side A
Side A contains “Somewhere Now,” “Bang Bang,” “Revolution Radio,” “Say Goodbye,” “Outlaws,” and “Bouncing Off the Wall.”
“Somewhere Now” sets the scene for the record’s themes with the band’s classic energy. It starts with a slow acoustic section that’s actually mixed to be quieter than the rest of the track. This creates a great effect with the instrumentals blasting to life as Armstrong raises his voice at the section’s conclusion. It’s jarring for your first few listens, but you’ll adjust to it. Just make sure your volume’s not too high when you start playing the record. Returning to the themes, two lines are important to remember as we go on: “I’m running late to somewhere now, I don’t want to be,” and “How did life on the wild side ever get so dull?” Yep, we’re exploring the themes of middle age and the rut too many of us end up in as we grow older. The track describes how advanced, yet nihilistic, our society has become and how difficult it can be to be happy with your life in such a world. The classic Green Day style is more than present, and that slightly nostalgic sound it achieves helps us relate to the theme of wanting to return to a simpler time. I couldn’t have asked for a better opener than “Somewhere Now” on this record.
Up next is “Bang Bang,” and boy did it have an impact. The opening is again mixed quieter than the rest of the track, though this time it’s a series of news clips describing a flurry of mass shootings. Most disturbing of these clips is this soundbite from ‘Elliot Rodger’s Retribution,’ the infamous video manifesto uploaded to YouTube by Elliot Rodger before he enacted the Isla Vista Killings in 2014: “You deserve to be annihilated.” This is when the instrumentals–and by proxy, the volume–blow up in your face for easily the angriest song by the band since “American Idiot.” It’s poignant that the song samples someone like Rodger, as it’s told from the perspective of a mass shooter like him, who wants to be a god among men by killing anyone and everyone he can. I had to look up a transcript of Rodger’s video to fact-check for this review, and his “why don’t girls go for the nice guy?” attitude mixed with the God complex he expressed in the video was legitimately stomach-turning to read about.
On top of that, another important factor behind the anger in this track is how social media plays into the motivations of these sick people. “Bang bang, gimme fame,” applies to so many of the recent shootings in the United States, which seems to result in us remembering the name of the shooter, but not the names of the victims or whoever tried to help save people. I’ve gotten off-topic from the song’s composition, so I’ll quickly go over it. It’s a great return to the band’s punk roots and fits the themes like a glove, as punk has always been rooted in anger and political dissatisfaction. I implore you to give this track a listen if you haven’t yet!
Let’s move on to the title track: “Revolution Radio.” That’s a little strange, having the title track be track 3 instead of the opener, don’t you think? It was probably for the best though, because this one isn’t as strong as “Somewhere Now,” at least not to me. It isn’t bad though, not by a longshot. It’s a call-to-action for listeners to fight against the waves of “fake news” and dismantle the establishment, not at all unfamiliar territory for Green Day to cover. Upon my first listen, I wasn’t a fan of the vocal filter Armstrong used in this track, but I’ve adjusted to it over time. Something I observed listening to it for this review was that it sounds like he’s singing into a megaphone or a radio mike, which is surprisingly immersive once you pick up on it. It puts you in the crowd with your fellow protesters as the band motivates everyone through song, which reminds me of “Horseshoes and Handgrenades” from 21st Century Breakdown. While it may not reach the heights of the tracks preceding it, “Revolution Radio” is still a bop I recommend.
“Say Goodbye” is up next, and I dare you to take a guess what this track is about, just based on the themes we’ve explored so far. Submitted your guess? The answer is: worrying about your loved ones being killed at any time without warning. Geez, this record is way darker than I thought. This song does an excellent job of establishing a darker tone with its instrumentals and effects. The drums and guitar are way heavier, and Mike Dirnt gets to pitch in some background vocals that give off a spectral vibe. If you’re into the band’s darker and heavier material, then this track’s for you.
“Outlaws” has a soft spot in my heart, more so for its themes than its sound. In a surprising yet heartwarming twist, this is a love song not for a girl, but for Mike Dirnt. “Love song” sounds a little weird in this context, but it’s hard to find a more fitting term. Billie Joe and Mike practically grew up together and stuck with each other through their best and worst moments, not to mention that they’ve played together in Green Day since the very beginning. While they certainly aren’t involved romantically, their relationship far surpasses a casual friendship, so I think “love song” can be used appropriately here. Onto the song itself, it’s a nostalgic look back at the pair’s delinquent shenanigans from when they were younger. It’s driven by the bass, which is pretty clever, and utilizes some piano to instill some subtle twinges of melancholy. It’s emotional to look back on your younger days knowing you can’t return to them, so “Outlaws” can certainly dig deep.
“Bouncing Off the Wall” is the closer for Side A, which I wouldn’t have expected to hear in that position. That being said, we’ve been delving into some dark and melancholic territory, so we need a bit of a palate cleanser. This feels like it applies more to my generation than the band’s because it holds this youthful energy that mixes with an all-too-relatable gleeful sense of nihilism. You could also see it as someone trying to channel their youth and not quite getting there, like someone going through a mid-life crisis. However you see it, it does its job to pull listeners out of the doldrums, and you’ll need to hold onto that while you can. As the song comes to a close, the guitar continues to distort until it cuts off suddenly. As someone who listened to this on digital when it first released, I didn’t really get why it was mixed like that. It seems to me like the record was meant to be listened to on vinyl because the cut comes right at the end of Side A, so it instills a sense of suspense and urgency to turn the record over and see what’s on the other side. So why don’t we do that ourselves?
Side B
Side B contains “Still Breathing,” “Youngblood,” “Too Dumb to Die,” “Troubled Times,” “Forever Now,” and “Ordinary World.”
Like “Bang Bang” from earlier, “Still Breathing” has a lot of potent emotion to it, which only becomes more apparent when you’re familiar with its context. I avoided bringing it up when I discussed the trilogy, but a large part of that project’s commercial failure was blamed on Armstrong and some serious substance abuse issues he was dealing with at the time. This had come to a head right around the release of ¡UNO! during the 2012 iHeart Radio Music Festival, being the wake-up call Armstrong needed to admit himself into rehab until January 2013. It’s definitely possible that he would have died from his addiction if he hadn’t admitted himself when he did, which is an absolutely horrifying thought for the people that care about him.
“Still Breathing” is basically Armstrong’s reflection on that period of his life and reassurance to himself and his fans that he’s still alive and isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. The composition relays a sense of urgency and panic, but also victory in the face of impending doom. Anyone who’s fought off their inner demons would relate to how scary the battle is as well as how victorious it feels to overcome such darkness. This is one of those times where I recommend you go watch the music video for this song. Sure, it’s laughably melodramatic at times, but it captures the strain Armstrong’s addiction put on his relationship with the band in a way I’ve never seen another music video do. Ever since I first watched it, I can’t get the image out of my head of Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool playing in that empty warehouse as the camera stays on the microphone where Billie Joe should be, but isn’t. Just listen to the song already, and watch the video too!
To dig us out of the doldrums once again, we’ve got “Youngblood.” Oh boy, do we have another love song for Mrs. Adrienne Armstrong? Yes, we do! Admittedly, this is one of the weakest tracks on the record up to this point, which I blame on the composition. It’s repetitive, especially in the chorus, so it could easily get grating if you listen to it a few too many times. I also have to mention the lyrics, which we’ve all figured out by now either hit or miss with no in-between. This is, unfortunately, a miss as the lyrics are cheesy and gushy to the point that it comes off as super silly. But that’s sort of the charm of this track: it’s unabashedly romantic and fluffy to the point that it’s embarrassing, but it’s super enjoyable if you can let it dig its talons into you. This is one of those songs I love to blast in the car and sing along to when I’m alone just because it’s a lot of fun. Even though it probably doesn’t stack up with the other tracks on the record, I still recommend you give “Youngblood” at least one listen.
Now we come to “Too Dumb to Die,” easily my favorite song off the record. The subject is less clear here than on the other tracks, but I see it as a call for people to find something, anything, to fight for in life. That’s also how I interpret the title: even if your dream/passion is kinda dumb to everyone else, more power to you if that’s what gives you the motivation to keep going with your life. Clearly, the subject wasn’t the reason I fell for this song since I didn’t really think too hard about it until this point. What I fell for was the composition. It’s some more classic Green Day, tight and full of energy. I suppose I don’t have to have a deep reason for liking this track more than the others on this record; you could say it’s too dumb to die!
Okay, that pun was awful, but it’s probably more enjoyable than “Troubled Times.” Even when I heard it for the first time, I didn’t like this one. Green Day tends to be seen as preachy sometimes with their politically-driven material, and this is probably the only one of their songs where I can agree with the criticism. Instead of looking at things from a unique perspective or channeling their anger into a punk masterpiece, it’s a defeated statement that “we live in troubled times.” That’s literally the chorus. I get the impression that this one was filler and probably didn’t get the same amount of love as other tracks while it was in the oven. You’re better off skipping this one.
“Forever Now,” lucky for us, is way better! We’ve seen callbacks to the band’s early 90’s punk material and early 2000’s pop-punk, so now it’s time to revive their rock opera phase. This is divided into 3 movements: “I’m Freaking Out,” “A Better Way to Die,” and a reprise of “Somewhere Now.” The themes of growing older and dissatisfaction return with a vengeance on this track. “I’m Freaking Out” serves as a realization that there’s so much more to the world than what’s in your own personal bubble. “A Better Way to Die” is the acceptance that one’s old way of life just isn’t worth living anymore. Living in the past and stifling your own personal growth isn’t a healthy or satisfying way to live. Finally, the reprisal of “Somewhere Now” slightly modifies the opening of the opening track, changing the line “How did life on the wild side ever get so dull?” to “How did life on the wild side ever get so full?” It’s an awakening to the further possibilities of life that we weren’t seeing at the beginning of the record; like we’ve been growing with the omnipresent subject of these songs. “Forever Now” is simply an amazing way to close out the record, except that we still have one more track to talk about.
“Ordinary World” is the true closer of Revolution Radio. I’ve heard complaints that this track doesn’t fit with the rest of the record, or that it shouldn’t have taken the closer role from “Forever Now.” I say screw those complaints! After such a grandiose display from the previous track, it’s good to settle down and relax with a simple, gentle acoustic track like this. As for the subject, it’s an assurance that there are good things to be found in the here and now, and you don’t need to have everything in the world to be satisfied with where you’re heading in life. I can also see it as an alternative to the ideas presented in “Forever Now.” While that track suggests massive upheaval and revolution, “Ordinary World” says that smaller changes are okay too. Together, these two tracks make a memorable impact and close the record with a great lesson.
Revolution Radio truly deserves more praise! It has a few weak spots, but it more than makes up for those with its stronger tracks. My top three are “Bang Bang,” “Still Breathing,” and “Forever Now,” with shoutouts to “Outlaws,” “Too Dumb to Die,” and “Ordinary World.” Clearly, there are too many good tracks to easily nail down a top three. On the other hand, the bottom three are “Revolution Radio,” “Youngblood (man I hate to put it here!),” and “Troubled Times.”
Rating: 8.5/10
Feature Photo by Becca Fauteux