The Breakdown of 21st Century Breakdown

[Foxboron]

Yeah he mentioned in one interview that all the songs are really about him, and things he went through / emotions he felt but they gave them characters names to make it more interesting and give it a proper story. He said they could just as easily have called it "Viva la Billie Joe" therefor, not about Adrienne.

i wonder if the mods at all look over them.

and they should set a lengt on at least 200 leather

[.Militza.]

@ Ila Reto

oh, I know what you mean,every song with 'gun, weapon, fight' in the lyrics, is taken like the war song.

Stupid, stupid fact.

I mean , there is here that point of view, sometimes you can relate this song with the war in Iraq, or something.

But I think this particular song is not about that, as you can see from my first comment.

And also, I love it because of that, you can relate it how you want to, connect it with something in your own life.

Oh man, I always start writing, and say to myself, that I'll be short, but it doesn't work .

[Solo IO]

Thanks for responding thisisAB!

...I've something more to ask:

after addressing his own generation, in 5th verse BJ addresses the next:

We are the class of 13

born in the era of humility

we are the desperate in the decline

raised by the bastards of 1969!!!

1- The song is slightly different from the booklet; what does BJ sing: "We are the cries of the class of 13"?

The class of 13 are the ones who will graduate from high school in 2013, like BJ's oldest son. But what are the cries (if this is the word) of the class of 13?

2- And most important: they were born in 1995... was this a era of humility? In which sense?

Hey-ho! About "the era of humility"... Nobody answered...

I found this article of the Time about 1990s titled "Well, Hello to '90s Humility", in which they say: "The ostentation of the 1980s vanished; hello, '90s humility". (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/...,972087,00.html)

So this is the humility BJ is talking about?

I've found another thing... One more doubt! The generation X is also called the "13th Generation" and define the birth years as 1961 to 1981 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_X). In this case, BJ himself (and the rest of the band) would be "class of 13", and it also would justify why, at the end of the booklet, BJ, Mike & Tre are under the writing "the class of '13"...

[perfectpitchrob]

OK

I have not heard any of the songs on this album so recomend me one so I can listen to it, the best track in it inyour opinion.

Picking the best track from this album is like finding a needle in a haystack.

hmm...maybe "21 guns"

[otherplans]

@ Solo IO

Calling themselves the "Cries of the Class of '13" kinda detaches them from what's going on in the album. It makes them sort of objective narrators, which fits a lot better into the whole "snapshot" vibe of the album than if they tried to put themselves into the action.

As for "born in the era of humility," I don't really know. I think it's that the cries of disillusioned youth seem to come from another time, like you get the feeling that your lack of satisfaction just doesn't fit into the era.

@Celes Chere

Definitely American Eulogy

[Celes Chere]

:/

I guess I just don't like Green Day anymore, then.

Thank you anyway-nya!

[deanopeez]

Just got here and read through a ton of this thread. Great stuff everyone, particularly Kate.

I love reading it, because I've been listening to this CD almost exclusively since it's release, and I STILL don't actually think there's a story! Not saying anybody is wrong, though. In an interview, someone asked Billie Joe about the plot of this record, and he gave a kind brush-off response, like he usually does, but in essence saying that they really didn't set out to craft a plot, just that Christian and Gloria were two different expressions of experience. I tend to take that interpretation of the record.

I wish I could expand on this more, but I'm so crazy tired!

[Supermodel*Robot]

2- And most important: they were born in 1995... was this a era of humility? In which sense?

I think he just means that they're growing up in an era of humility. Not necessarily '95, but more today

[†he sain†]

billie loves to scream in the album

[The_Pianoplayer]

Hey, I registered here some time ago, but I haven't posted anything before, so here I am.

Overall I think this album really is a gem in Green Day's discography, with so many kinds of songs like punk rockers, power ballads and so on.

The title track is such a great opener, it really got me out of my chair and dancing through the room!

It's so hard to pick a most favourite song out of 18(!) songs, but today I think it's 'Restless Heart Syndrome', it's so beautiful.

My least favourite song, and that's my least favourite since I heard the entire album and it never changed, is 'The Static Age'.

To me that song really feels like a filler, although it has a nice riff in the (rather short) chorus.

I hope my English is good, as I'm from The Netherlands, and please give hints on how to improve my writing, if it's necessary of course.

Polle.

[Hermione]

^Your English is great, welcome to the forum! I have to agree about Restless Heart Syndrome. You can hear the pure emotion in his voice on that song, it really is beautiful.

Just got here and read through a ton of this thread. Great stuff everyone, particularly Kate.

I love reading it, because I've been listening to this CD almost exclusively since it's release, and I STILL don't actually think there's a story! Not saying anybody is wrong, though. In an interview, someone asked Billie Joe about the plot of this record, and he gave a kind brush-off response, like he usually does, but in essence saying that they really didn't set out to craft a plot, just that Christian and Gloria were two different expressions of experience. I tend to take that interpretation of the record.

I wish I could expand on this more, but I'm so crazy tired!

I don't know, I think Billie is always vague about these things in interviews. He's never really gone into detail about American Idiot either. I think it would be pretty difficult to get into explaining song meanings etc to some random interviewer, especially for someone who chooses his words as carefully as Billie Joe and for an album as complex as this.

Not to say there is or isn't a story, I just reckon you can't judge it by that man in interviews . I think it could be a bit of both, there seems to be endless double and triple meanings going on.

[gloria.]

Mmm, I've been trying to interpret this album for so long.

It's a bit harder than American Idiot where actions and events were more direct.

As well, I'm kind of writing a song fiction to map out the essence of the story in a way,

but I'm totally getting confused with the my writing and the song meanings.

Anyways, I kind of think Christian Inferno documents how Christian did something really ruthless and possibly something against Gloria's beliefs.

Though in Last Night on Earth, it's an immediate apology/explanation. Christian may be a total crazy bad ass, he still loves Gloria, none the less.

It also explains though he can explode and somehow "burn the place down", he loves her no matter what.

Can anyone explain why Christian's crying in Murder City?

Cause from a very angry boy, he suddenly breaks ?

[The_Pianoplayer]

^Your English is great, welcome to the forum! I have to agree about Restless Heart Syndrome. You can hear the pure emotion in his voice on that song, it really is beautiful.

Thanks a lot!

[Soroush]

Billie has always said that the song in this album speak to each other and it is exactly true.the most obvious ones are little girl and restless heart because those are exactly a conversation between christian and gloria or if you pay attention last of the american girl ends with exactly the same melody that murder city starts. I love this way of BJ's writting songs

Hey, I registered here some time ago, but I haven't posted anything before, so here I am.

Overall I think this album really is a gem in Green Day's discography, with so many kinds of songs like punk rockers, power ballads and so on.

The title track is such a great opener, it really got me out of my chair and dancing through the room!

It's so hard to pick a most favourite song out of 18(!) songs, but today I think it's 'Restless Heart Syndrome', it's so beautiful.

My least favourite song, and that's my least favourite since I heard the entire album and it never changed, is 'The Static Age'.

To me that song really feels like a filler, although it has a nice riff in the (rather short) chorus.

I hope my English is good, as I'm from The Netherlands, and please give hints on how to improve my writing, if it's necessary of course.

Polle.

restelss heart is a so beautiful song but come on be alittle fair static age is beautiful as well.ithe part that he plays guitar reminds me american Idiot it. is so much better than christian's inferno. isn't it?

[The_Pianoplayer]

but come on be alittle fair static age is beautiful as well.ithe part that he plays guitar reminds me american Idiot it. is so much better than christian's inferno. isn't it?

Yeah, you're right.

[jokeli]

thanks for the nice article, great job!

....................................................................................................

[Boston]

Can anyone explain why Christian's crying in Murder City?

Cause from a very angry boy, he suddenly breaks ?

Murder City is the point where they start to break down. They're in the middle of an inner-city riot (presumably) where their beliefs and ideals are being challenged. At the same time, Christian is beginning to see that Gloria may not be the pure being he once thought she was (and in ¿Viva La Gloria?, he is grappling with that truth). Although Christian is a riotous leader, he relies on Gloria to anchor him to who he really is and she is his source of pure light. He's crying because he has lost that sense of light and all he has left is anger while in the middle of an enormous riot.

[St.jimmys_son@hotmail.com]

Oh, great thread!

I think that the storyline is something that this girl Katy(?) said.

I think like that too.

And now, I've been thinking about all this lyrics, and I was wondering

In 21guns, in this line

Did you try to live on your own

When you burned down the house and home?

Did you stand too close to the fire?

Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone

This line is like their dialog, because there is mixed feeling, and and like they're still accusing each other, but in the end make up.

I disagree with that being their feelings, they're not just accusing. This is Gloria being quite literal.

Did you try to live on your own

When you burned down the house and home?

Did you stand too close to the fire?

Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone

Is about Christian burning down a house.

The entire song is about her telling him to surrender to the '21' police officers.

'

I'm not sure if last night on earth makes me want to be happy or cry. each way i still feel like a giant blob of jello

To be 100% honest i thought that was the weakest song on the album.

Although it was up against tough competitors it was pretty bad.

Almost a polar opposite to Green Day's old style.

I think, (and there will be alot of you who disagree) that it was a filler to make the story flow.

But even so, it wasn't really necessary to point out that Christian likes Gloria, it's pretty obvious.