New Single "Fire, Ready, Aim" Will Debut October 9th

[MillenniumFan]

42 minutes ago, Hermione said:

I don't see how this is a particularly commercial sound compared to anything else they've released? Almost all their music is very catchy and appeals to a mainstream audience. But what currently massive commercial music acts particularly sound like this?? Didn't know garage rock was big right now.

Also is freedom to simply like or dislike the song without drama and accusations too much to ask? Come on people.

I think the person commenting meant it sounded like the sort of music to be found in an advertisement and that isn't always "what's in". To this day, I often hear cheaply produced garage rock songs in various commercials, ranging from cooking equipment to DIY/hardware stores. Now, I'm no fan of most main-stream music, but I constantly get ads from my local supermarket urging me to buy chicken fillets or oven-gloves or whatever and in the background the most annoying music ever that makes even me wish Ed Sheeran or Lil Nas X would come to save the day. Not saying Green Day's song is that bad, it isn't by a long long mile, but it has some of the same repetitive "cheap and quickly made" sounding characteristics of those "ad songs". I think that's what was being alluded to. 

I wholeheartedly agree with your second point though. 

[Guest]

On 10/1/2019 at 5:40 PM, Nightlife said:

The song is catchy as hell but I suspect it'll only be just that; a fun catchy song, nothing special. I have this feeling it'll be a bit too repetitive but get away with it because of its short length. Those are my professional very much reliable guesses after hearing a good 18 seconds of it 

My predictions came true! I don't mind the song but I didn't have high hopes for it so I guess that helps. I'm still excited for this era and loving it so far. 

The mixing is shit and the lyrics feel pretty meh, but those are things I've come to expect from Green Day so I've grown pretty numb to it lol. Billies voice sounds strained but I like that. I'm convinced he could have sounded 'better' but I think it being a bit unpolished is right for this song. People saying they don't recognize his voice in FRA or FOA make me laugh. He has such a distinct voice to me no matter how he sings. Anyway.. It'll probably be a blast live and it'll be interesting to see how well they'll be able to perform it. I much prefer FOA, fucking love that song, but I ain't mad about this one especially when I listen to it right after FOA. The more I listen to it the more I enjoy it. Just like FOA it's a grower I guess, which to me is a lot of fun. Sure, I love being instantly blown away by epic songs like JOS or Forever Now but I'm all for these experimental, fun, short songs too.

[DookieLukie]

You guys wanting the same sounding songs over and over is exactly why you aren't successful musicians.

[inthehallwaynow]

3 hours ago, DookieLukie said:

You guys wanting the same sounding songs over and over is exactly why you aren't successful musicians.

I can't sing. 

Also I don't want the same I want more punk sounding tracks. I don't even think (in my opinion) this is even garage rock it's not dirty sounding enough (again that's Subjective what someone considers garage or any type of genre for that matter and to me this isn't punk(ish) or garage rock.) Like some said before it sounds like a song from a commercial. To me its like an iTunes commerical in 2003 or something (to me) but they are evolving so I probably just need to be patient and they'll hit a sweet spot for me. I really want that like I need more gd I really do but not these songs so far. I'm definitely jumping the gun so I'll wait for the album to make any mo critiques.

[Red Lights Flash]

I like it.

[HAPPY ZOMBIE UNICORN]

2 hours ago, inthehallwaynow said:

Also I don't want the same I want more punk sounding tracks. I don't even think (in my opinion) this is even garage rock it's not dirty sounding enough (again that's Subjective what someone considers garage or any type of genre for that matter and to me this isn't punk(ish) or garage rock.) Like some said before it sounds like a song from a commercial. To me its like an iTunes commerical in 2003 or something (to me) but they are evolving so I probably just need to be patient and they'll hit a sweet spot for me. I really want that like I need more gd I really do but not these songs so far. I'm definitely jumping the gun so I'll wait for the album to make any mo critiques.

I totally understand the first part about wanting a “rawer” or harder punk sound, even tho I really enjoy this new stuff I would love that as well  I dream of an Oi! EP getting released in their upcoming independent phase that will never happen  

But can you explain better what you mean with the “iTunes commercial” critique? No sarcasm here, I sincerely would like to understand this cause I hear this argument being repeated over and over and can’t really get it. Given that GD actually recorded a song for an iTunes commercial in the past, I don’t understand what makes these songs particularly “commercial friendly”. 

 

[UNICORN VOMIT]

Ok here is a question for ya: if Matt said a song was added to the album does anyone think this jingle was the song added after being approached with the hockey deal?

[penbreaker]

When we got Revolution Radio people said it's to safe. When We got something that boys never done before You said it's not Green Day anymore. Where is logic?

Looks like people want American Idiot 2.0.

 

[Jirachi]

5 hours ago, DookieLukie said:

You guys wanting the same sounding songs over and over is exactly why you aren't successful musicians.

I dont think thats why people are complaining mostly? Most people seem to want experimentation. Hell, personally Nimrod is one of my favorites, same with Warning, and both are very different from normal GD sound, with Nimrod being super experimental. I'd love more experimentation, but i think both songs are still garbage. When people hate the songs, very rarely is one of their complaints that it's "Too different" or "not the same style as before", its usually that the lyrics, production, mixing, and so on are bad.

[HAPPY ZOMBIE UNICORN]

9 hours ago, MillenniumFan said:

I think the person commenting meant it sounded like the sort of music to be found in an advertisement and that isn't always "what's in". To this day, I often hear cheaply produced garage rock songs in various commercials, ranging from cooking equipment to DIY/hardware stores. Now, I'm no fan of most main-stream music, but I constantly get ads from my local supermarket urging me to buy chicken fillets or oven-gloves or whatever and in the background the most annoying music ever that makes even me wish Ed Sheeran or Lil Nas X would come to save the day. Not saying Green Day's song is that bad, it isn't by a long long mile, but it has some of the same repetitive "cheap and quickly made" sounding characteristics of those "ad songs". I think that's what was being alluded to. 

I wholeheartedly agree with your second point though. 

I wish I was from where you are from, cause everywhere in Europe I travel I can only hear mainstream pop and rap being used for commercials nowadays 😄

That said, what you mean with cheap and quickly made repetitive sounding characteristics? Is this the falsetto in FOAMF or the clapping in fire ready aim? What are these “cheap” elements that you hear in this song and not in any other Green Day record? 

[HAPPY ZOMBIE UNICORN]

12 hours ago, MillenniumFan said:

I think the person commenting meant it sounded like the sort of music to be found in an advertisement and that isn't always "what's in". To this day, I often hear cheaply produced garage rock songs in various commercials, ranging from cooking equipment to DIY/hardware stores. Now, I'm no fan of most main-stream music, but I constantly get ads from my local supermarket urging me to buy chicken fillets or oven-gloves or whatever and in the background the most annoying music ever that makes even me wish Ed Sheeran or Lil Nas X would come to save the day. Not saying Green Day's song is that bad, it isn't by a long long mile, but it has some of the same repetitive "cheap and quickly made" sounding characteristics of those "ad songs". I think that's what was being alluded to. 

I wholeheartedly agree with your second point though. 

I wish here commercials were the same as where you are from, cause everywhere in Europe I travel I can only hear mainstream pop and rap being used for commercials 😄

That said, what you mean with cheap and quickly made repetitive sounding characteristics? Is this the falsetto in FOAMF or the clapping in fire ready aim?  Again no irony here, I actually want to understand what are these cheap elements you can hear in these songs and not in the rest of GD records. 

[MillenniumFan]

57 minutes ago, HAPPY ROOTING UNICORN said:

I wish here commercial were the same as where you are from, cause everywhere in Europe I travel I can only hear mainstream pop and rap being used for commercials 😄

That said, what you mean with cheap and quickly made repetitive sounding characteristics? Is this the falsetto in FOAMF or the clapping in fire ready aim?  Again no irony here, I actually want to understand what are these cheap elements you can hear in these songs and not in the rest of GD records. 

Well, interestingly enough FOAM has been growing on me, especially after all those live performances, while Fire Ready Aim annoys me more and more with each listen. 

To your question: For me it’s mostly the repetitiveness, coupled with this peculiar style of backing vocals (I can’t put my finger on it exactly, but it reminds me so much of ad music), the clapping (which again takes two seconds to add and is also one of the elements of a lot of these “ad-songs”), as well as the subpar lyrics. 

I don’t think it’s terrible, nor their worst song, but as the commenter on YT said, I think they can do a lot better...

[Joe.]

11 hours ago, MillenniumFan said:

I think the person commenting meant it sounded like the sort of music to be found in an advertisement and that isn't always "what's in". To this day, I often hear cheaply produced garage rock songs in various commercials, ranging from cooking equipment to DIY/hardware stores. Now, I'm no fan of most main-stream music, but I constantly get ads from my local supermarket urging me to buy chicken fillets or oven-gloves or whatever and in the background the most annoying music ever that makes even me wish Ed Sheeran or Lil Nas X would come to save the day. Not saying Green Day's song is that bad, it isn't by a long long mile, but it has some of the same repetitive "cheap and quickly made" sounding characteristics of those "ad songs". I think that's what was being alluded to. 

I wholeheartedly agree with your second point though. 

With respect, you're a fan of Green Day who sell out stadiums, yes you are. (as am I).

1 hour ago, penbreaker said:

When we got Revolution Radio people said it's to safe. When We got something that boys never done before You said it's not Green Day anymore. Where is logic?

Looks like people want American Idiot 2.0.

 

My issue isn't that it doesn't sound like Green Day, because I think it does. Its just bland, like RevRad was to me. They're capable of more and it just feels like they're resting on their laurels now.

[HAPPY ZOMBIE UNICORN]

1 hour ago, MillenniumFan said:

To your question: For me it’s mostly the repetitiveness, coupled with this peculiar style of backing vocals (I can’t put my finger on it exactly, but it reminds me so much of ad music), the clapping (which again takes two seconds to add and is also one of the elements of a lot of these “ad-songs”), as well as the subpar lyrics. 

I don’t think it’s terrible, nor their worst song, but as the commenter on YT said, I think they can do a lot better...

Gotcha, but in my view the repetitiveness of this song is on the line of many other GD songs, which have an identical song structure, even more repetitive lyrics, and more basic instrumental tracks. A few examples that come to my mind from recent eras: Revolution radio, 99 revolutions, Know your enemy, Troubled times, Christian’s inferno. 

Anyway, contrary to these songs, Fire, ready, aim adds some “unusual” elements for Green Day, taken from 60-70’s garage rock and previous experimentations of the band with this sound, like the clapping, different singing techniques, or the keyboard tracks. I don’t see these as a “cheap” additions to the song, but as musical elements that place the song in a different “genre” compared to the many KYE in GD’s discography. 

I totally get how this different approach to the rock genre can be disliked by many fans that are closer to a traditional punk rock sound, but musically I don’t really see the use of “cheaper” techniques or songwriting. It’s just different.

To put it in a different way, I feel like in a situation where this song had the identical lyrics and song structure, but instrumental tracks and vocals on the line of KYE, no piano and no clapping and maybe a guitar solo instead of that, I would be here complaining for another safe and typical GD song, while many of the people criticizing this era would be happy for a song that fulfills their standards. Which is absolutely normal by the way. 

[MillenniumFan]

38 minutes ago, Joe. said:

With respect, you're a fan of Green Day who sell out stadiums, yes you are. (as am I).

Well alright, I guess I should have specified “current main-stream”, because if Green Day was ever an integral part of the mainstream (and you make a reasonable argument to that effect) then that would have been roughly from 1994-1995 and 2004-2010.

[Ross_19]

Come on guys, its easy to accuse this song of sounding too much like something from a commercial, when its just been released in a commercial... thats like finding out your friend is a murder and then being like "Well yeah I always thought you were one"

 

Also I'm English, why am I using the word commercial? Its a fucking ad! 

[localinsomniac]

On 10/13/2019 at 12:49 AM, Greenday_Aussie said:

These songs literally sound like FBHT in 2019. The problem is if this WAS a FBHT everyone would LOVE it. It’s not, it’s Green Day, and with that come bigger expectations. That’s what’s causing the meltdown around here. Mid 2000s GD is gone, they had another swing at it with RevRad, but I fully expect them to walk away from ever putting out another album like AI/21stCB/RevRad. The Trilogy sound is back for good. Take that how you will...

Agree with your point about FBHT. And while they did take a few listens to really start growing on me, I've loved these first two singles. The point of contention I'd like to make though is that, they've never stuck to one sound or style for too long. With Green Day, change is really the one constant sonically throughout their career.

So I have a hard time believing what we are hearing from FOAMF thus far, is going to be the GD we know going forward. The next album, whenever that comes, could sound a lot like this one has. Or it could be something completely different. I appreciate them keeping us on our toes the way they do.

[solongfromthestars]

Can anyone provide an example of someone on GDC saying they want Green Day to release the same songs over and over, or that the band "owe" them something? If that's been said, let's have a reasonable debate with said people. Pretty sure it hasn't though and the constant complaints about things that haven't actually happened are getting a bit tiring.

Also, "true fans love everything" and "you do it better then" aren't valid arguments.

I still like this song. Hoping we'll hear it live at MTV World Stage

[DookieLukie]

18 minutes ago, solongfromthestars said:

Can anyone provide an example of someone on GDC saying they want Green Day to release the same songs over and over, or that the band "owe" them something? If that's been said, let's have a reasonable debate with said people. Pretty sure it hasn't though and the constant complaints about things that haven't actually happened are getting a bit tiring.

Also, "true fans love everything" and "you do it better then" aren't valid arguments.

It's less about it being directly said and more of the theme of what people are saying. They say they want experimentation but then prefer RevRad, which is safe and what we've already heard before. They don't directly say they are owed anyway, but they describe in detail exactly how THEY want the new songs to sound and are disappointed when it doesn't fit whatever they drew up in their imagination. It's like people want Green Day to be some contract artist writing music and styles they want to hear. Write your own songs or go listen to the thousands of bands out there that write the type of music you want Green Day to.

[Chin for a Day]

I honestly do not understand how anyone can say that what we have heard from FOAMF is different than what GD has done before. Both songs are just fast power chords, just like 90% of what they have done in the past. The only difference is Billie singing in a falsetto. This has nothing to do with whether you like the songs or not. I just don't get how people think they are different, other than the vocals.   

[Too domb to die]

3 hours ago, MillenniumFan said:

Well, interestingly enough FOAM has been growing on me, especially after all those live performances, while Fire Ready Aim annoys me more and more with each listen. 

This is how I feel too. I think a lot of people are feeling this way.

[Chin for a Day]

5 hours ago, HAPPY ROOTING UNICORN said:

 

That said, what you mean with cheap and quickly made repetitive sounding characteristics? Is this the falsetto in FOAMF or the clapping in fire ready aim? What are these “cheap” elements that you hear in this song and not in any other Green Day record? 

There are certain components that apply to a good "jingle". It needs to be short, catchy, some sort of emotional appeal, a slogan line. Fire Ready Aim meets all these criteria for the NHL. I know it has been said that it was not written for the NHL deal, but it really doesn't sound like it. 

[Too domb to die]

4 minutes ago, Adorkable said:

The only difference is Billie singing in a falsetto

He is also pushing to the top of the limits of his mid range. He has rarely sung a high A sharp and remained singing around that area. You can definitely hear him straining on 'Fire, Ready, Aim'. I think this is probably another reason people are saying, "Billie doesn't sound like Billie".

[Sanity Loan]

5 hours ago, UNICORN VOMIT said:

Ok here is a question for ya: if Matt said a song was added to the album does anyone think this jingle was the song added after being approached with the hockey deal?

I did not say “a song was added to the album.”

[Beerjeezus]

12 minutes ago, Too domb to die said:

He is also pushing to the top of the limits of his mid range. He has rarely sung a high A sharp and remained singing around that area. You can definitely hear him straining on 'Fire, Ready, Aim'. I think this is probably another reason people are saying, "Billie doesn't sound like Billie".

Yeah, not only the falsetto parts in FOAM, but also FRA is sung in an upper register and I guess it's subjective, but in my opinion his voice doesn't sound great when he does this. He sounds weaker and withought depth especially with the filters and sometimes it's quite strained. It's hard to describe, but it's just not as nice as his voice is in a deeper range.