What Green Day's All About
Bab's Uvula Who? | 04/04/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"OK, I'm going to start off by saying that this CD took about 9 months to get ahold of... And I'm pretty impatient so it felt like ages. I tried ordering online and it was out of stock EVERYWHERE. I looked in every store within a 50 mile radius of my town. I ordered it from a music store nearby and they said they'd have it within a week and they said they'd have it within a week and I waited and waited for 2 months and it never came. There was only one thing left to try... EBAY! And behold, they had a copy in England, and after what seemed like the longest week of my life, my copy of 1039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours came in the mail.
I know that that was a really pointless, unimportant piece of information. But I put that in to prove a point: it was definitely worth the wait.
1. At The Library: This song rocks. There's a 20-second or so instrumental introduction with lots of catchy guitar + bass, and then Billie and Mike come in with the vocals. I love how Billie screams and such a couple times in the song, which he does in Private Ale, She, and Letterbomb as well, I wish he'd do it more often because it makes the song a lot more catchy and upbeat... I dunno, that's just my opinion, people probably think it's weird. 9/10
2. Don't Leave Me: I wasn't a big fan of this song at first, but I love the chorus of "don't leave me" with the harmonies. Billie and Mike's voices sound great together. 7/10
3. I Was There: This song was written by John Kiffermeyer (also known as Al Sobrante), who was the drummer at the time. He's good, but I think Tre is a lot better. Anyway, the song... This is one of my favorites. It's not really fast or anything, but it isn't slow... In a way it's sort of reflective. I love how the chorus sounds, how Billie Joe goes "I was there" and then in the end when Mike and Billie come in with the different vocals... It sounds great. 10/10
4. Disappearing Boy: A song about how Billie felt like an outcast to everyone. I like it. 8/10
5. Green Day: It's hard to understand what Billie Joe is saying in this song but it sounds absolutely amazing, and besides the cd comes with lyrics. The verses are sort of similar to Welcome To Paradise in the sense that Mike goes "ohhhhh" in the background and Billie sings, but don't get me wrong the songs are completely different. I also love the lyric "Why does 1+1 make 2?" Sheer genius. 10/10
6. Going To Pasalacqua: I'm not really sure what this song's about, but I love it, especially when it goes "What the hey" and "far away." It's one of those songs you never get tired of. 9.5/10
7. 16: A song about wanting to grow up yet wanting to stay a kid. I mostly like this song because I can relate to it, but I also love the singing and the guitar intro. 9/10
8. Road To Acceptance: Don't be fooled by the second-rate intro, this song is pretty good. I wish there were more instrumentals, especially in the beginning, but the lyrics are pretty good. 7/10
9. Rest: At first I didn't like this song because it was slow and sort of simple, but I've grown to love it and now I think it's AMAZING. It stands out in an album full of fast, catchy punk songs, and the singing is incredible. The part where Billie sings "Angel... ANGEL!!! Dancing away!" blew me away. Personally, I think it's the best song on the CD. 196481723458126.28365/10
10. The Judge's Daughter: Really, really, really REALLY catchy. 8.5/10
11. Paper Lanterns: I like this song, mostly for the lyrics. Something everyone can relate to. (I'm understanding now that we are only friends/to this day I'm asking why I still think about you".) 8.5/10
12. Why Do You Want Him: I didn't expect that this song would be that great, seeing as Billie wrote it when he was only 12. But age is only a number, this song is amazing. He's just a natural songwriter, I guess. The vocals sound great, and the lyrics are impressive, especially for someone his age. 10/10
13. 409 In Your Coffeemaker: This song is sort of similar to Paper Lanterns, but better. The chorus is great, and after a couple verses there's a really good bass part and then a wild guitar solo. Oh yes, and the title kicks major butt. 9/10
14. Knowledge: From what I had heard, Knowledge was nothing but a second-rate cover of the Operation Ivy song, but I have to say that Green Day's version is even better than the original! Yeah, this is the only song on the CD with actual swearing in it and this song, like others on 1039, is irresistably catchy. I wish they'd put it on Bullet In A Bible, because, for those of you who don't know, Green Day call up 3 members of the audience to play this song at every concert, and then give them their instruments. 9.5/10
15. 1,000 Hours: Sappy love song, but it still sounds punk. That's one of the things I love about Green Day, they can take pretty much ANYTHING and turn it into an awesome song. (Come on, how many other bands' first single was about masturbation?) Billie Joe even said it himself that this is the Green Day song he's most embarrassed by, but I like it. 8.5/10
16. Dry Ice: OK, this song isn't really about dry ice, it's about Billie thinking about a girl he liked. I love when Mike and BJ go "Please ease the pain that's in my heart". 9/10
17. Only Of You: At first I didn't like this song, but now it's another one of my favorites. I love how the guitar intro matches the "ahhh, ahhhhh, ahhhh ahhhhhhh"s in the chorus. 10/10
18. The One That I Want: Not my favorite song, the chorus sounds a little weird, but I still like it. In the end, after the guitar fades out, you can hear someone (probably Billie or Mike) say "Now, there was one part there..." 7/10
19. I Want To Be Alone: I LOVE THIS SONG! A perfect way to end the CD. The chorus, the instrumentals, the singing... It's all good.
All in all, this is an amazing album with some of the catchiest, kickass songs I've ever heard, and the lyrics are amazing. Plus there are tons of guitar solos, which are always fun. Buy it or I will hunt you down... And no one wants to be hunted down. ;)
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