What do you think of the American Idiot era?

[Opezi]

well i was still sort of young at the time but had been listening to them since warning. all i remember from the AI era was that i saw them pretty much everywhere. there was a lot of merchandise. yep. and i was the only 9 or ten year old in my class into them um i dont know. all i remember is hearing them on the radio nonstop and that they were always top news

[1039slappygirl]

I wish I had enjoyed this era more than I really did. When MTV started streaming the AI video I was just 11 years old and liked crappy artists. I hadn't found my music taste yet. Then, one year later, I watched the WMUWSE video. I was constantly depressed at that time, so that song really make me feel understood, even if the song isn't about anything that's happened to me. The music sounded beautiful in my ears, that was enough. I had bought the album last December, just because I thought the AI video was very cool, but never had listened the whole CD, so after falling in love with WMUWSE I listened to it and found out they were awesome. Letterbomb became my new favorite and I started googleing them, downloading pictures of the band and songs from other albums. That's when I discovered that Brain Stew, my favorite song when I was at kindergarden's last year, was a Green Day song. So I became, "oficially", a fan, and saved money to buy the rest of the albums.

I'm happy I can say I found Green Day during this era, though.

[amy_runs]

I discovered them in 05, and they. were. everywhere.

It definitely helped my obsession blossom

[Martyn]

I also only got into them during the AI era....

[LouLou]

I was actually thinking about this the other day. I had a lot of fun during that era, not that I'm not having fun now, I love it! It was an exciting time cause it was so in your face. I enjoyed it and am happy I was part of it

[justcause]

It was such an amazing, earthquaking, glorious time. I don't even remember the first song I heard, the one that did it for me - just that this music came at exactly the right time, that it shifted my whole consciousness - and fuck, there was the internet happening, so I could find a place to talk about it, else I would've fucking exploded. I trawled the so-many sites there were, looking for the right place - and in the course of that, I saw how deep AI was permeating, right down to the little kids who were finding something that spoke to them. I hear the voices of these kids - in between the Billie Joe worship comes the back-story of broken homes, of being alone and confused - and they're confused by their response to Green Day, too, because this is potent stuff.

I choose GDC, and there's this mix of people that AI pulls together for a time - AI is overwhelming, and some of them seem to not even know why they're here, talking about this stuff, but AI will not be denied, it blasts thru their barriers, even though some of them seem to almost resent that. We talk about the songs, because the songs are forefront - the emotion, the ideas, the sound, the political element. There's this sense of revolution in the air, because these songs are provocative - it's like people are going 'here we are, now what do we do next?' JOS is the song of songs - JOS is where so many people go 'this song is me'. 'I'm the son of rage and love' - remember the first time you heard those words, and how it felt?

At first, I just don't get it with the image-thing - the first I saw of Green Day was AI, and it was just, yeah, this is how this band looks. It was nothing dramatic to me, no big deal - later, I could see how it might've been a little bit sad for old school fans who felt like they had these reliable, no-frills guys who just looked regular, and suddenly, they looked different. They'd had albums that were named for shit and had this take-it-or-leave-it thing going on, and now, they wanted to be taken seriously.

Every time I hear the eyeliner thing, I just don't get why it's even a thing. It reminds me of when a guy would go 'why do you need to wear make-up, you look much prettier without it' - and I'm just 'I'm not doing it for you - I do it because I like it'.

[Zero.]

It was the American Idiot era when I first listened to Green Day and When I was really getting into music.... I think the album American Idiot help them get more publicity good or bad but it helped them increase their fan base with a new generation of listeners... well thats what I think anyways lol

[Bastard of 1967]

It was awesome to see them win awards and be on shows, but, my freaking god, I hated the bandwagon.

The poser fans ticked me off so much. The songs were massacred with overplaying, and some songs(AI and BOBD) I can't even listen to.

Gotta see 'em live....that will make you fall in love with them all over again, especially now that they're not being overplayed on the radio anymore.

[Bastard of 1967]

.... easily my longest post. :-)

Good one nonetheless. I'm one of the more recent but (ahem) "older" generation fans who discovered Green Day at the tail end of the AI era. More details are on my "about me" page so I won't bore y'all with them by reposting them here...but let's suffice to say that I first became aware of them when Good Riddance hit the charts in the late 90's. I bought Nimrod thinking that they'd have more stuff like GR on there, said "what the f*ck is this!?!?" and (gulp) shelved the CD. AI (specifically, BOBD) reintroduced me to them and I just ate it up for so many different reasons. I think it must have been getting used to the pace of songs like St. Jimmy and Letterbomb that prepped me to give Nimrod another listen (and now appreciate NGFL and Platypus, and at least stomach Take Back), and from there I dug into their back catalog and found out just how damn good they were, not just still are.

I have two regrets: One, that I missed seeing them at the peak of their AI tour -- a mistake I have vowed never to make again. The second: not having been aware of them during the 1039/Kerplunk/Dookie days. In the early 90's I can swear I must have heard "She" a zillion times on the radio or in clubs -- I definitely recall hearing it and liking it, but never going one step further to find out who the artist was or what the song was called...so yeah I was a doofus. A lot of their music during that era was relevant to things I experienced then and would have helped me sort things out, so I feel sorry that I hadn't gotten aboard the band's bandwagon back then.

Bullet in a Bible showed me raw power and amplification

BIAB was what showed me conclusively that I could never allow myself to miss seeing Green Day on tour ever again.

[JadedHaushinka]

I got into them during the American Idiot era. I was only 11 years old then and right after I heard of Green Day, I stopped listening to that crappy mainstream pop, hip-hop music. Thank god they came into my life back then not recently. I think the attention they got was good and I didn't hate it and don't hate it right now, too, though I don't like ''fans'' who say that Green Day is their favorite band because they only like American Idiot, BoBD, WMUWSE or any other Green Day single or only know that 21st CB and AI albums exist. I wish I could have attended one of the concerts or more than one but yeah, I was way too young to go and my parents would have not allowed me to go.

[Malleus]

I don't remember that much as it was the first time I listened to Green Day. So yeah, I remember them being huge. It was kinda annoying to hear Boulevard of Broken Dreams 10 times a day, but other than that it was pretty cool seeing as how Green Day was super cool.

[st.idiot]

for me this was five years ago so i was 11. everyone was into green day when it came out. EVERYONE. the whole album was over played, everyone jumped on the band waggon because they had 5 #1 singles and so preppies and jocks and regular green day fans listened to it. unfortunately i wasn't super duper into green day but i listened to the album and liked it but not as much as everyone else did just for that reason-because everyone else liked it. it was until four years later that i actually started to really like green day and truth be told it was american idiot that got me really super duper super duper really really into green day. but kids over 20 usually tend to like green days earlier stuff like my brother and sister but that's because american idiot was just such a big step for them that because dookie was what they grew up with-thats what they prefer.

[RobyRoom]

I was 20 and I'm a fan since '95/'96. I personally think it was a great era. I didn't dislike the attention of the media at all, maybe because the band came from a 5 years hiatus when they lost a lot of consideration from the music industry and Warning was getting a lot of hate from the old fans because it was too pop.

Seeing the guys all pumped up again and seeing that they were getting the attention of new fans was like fresh air to me; the sign that the band I liked so much was again succeeding in bringing their emotional baggage and their ethic to everyone.

I was pretty comfortable with the AI songs being played everywhere and at every hour as well, because those were the song people wanted to hear. I've never had the feeling they were overplayed, great songs don't get old

[Metanoia]

I barely even realized Green Day at that time. I mean i knew there was this band and they had this famous album but i totally was more into all the Christina Aguilera stuff ect. so i'd say with the tour ect. and all that early/late 2006 the AI era stopped. and i became a fan late 06 so i'm so so so so so so pissed at myself i didnt realize earlier. and everytime i hear al the stories from people who actually were already fans at that time i get extremly sad and jelaous at the same time. it just sucks. i mean ive been 11 dumb years old at that time. and i just wish so so so so bad i could have lived with all that BIG and Enormous things that happened back then it just sucks. now i looked so forward to 21st cb and it wasn't big at all. not only because of the sells or whatever but because AI is my favorite album for ever. EVERY SINGLE SONG ON IT IS PERFECT TO ME: and i just wish i could have "been" with it earlier. i,personally, was dissapointed by 21st cb. and thats why i love AI and from what i've heard of the era so much.

[Guest]

I was only eight, but I remember them being on TV.

Back in the day when I thought they were "goth".

[Pedestrian9394]

I like it. I think it's controversial, not only in terms of the general public and how they view it, but also for the fans. Some people love it, some hate it. And I actually find that to be one of the most appealing aspects of that era. I think it was good for them to try something new, and it showed that they're passionate about more than what people originally thought. It's respectable for any band to take that much of a risk and still remain as down to earth and in touch with their roots as Green Day.

[fadi_7]

when American idiot was released i wasn't so much into music cause i was only 9 years old but i remember that there was a lot of wars and bullshit

[CoreyGregory]

Sucked.

[Pedestrian9394]

Sucked.

That's a little harsh. How so?

[TheSaltOfTheEarth]

I was eight too, so I didn't really know about them.

I remember my cousin made me listen to Wake Me Up When September Ends and American Idiot. But I really didn't have an opinion on them, or any sort of music at the time . I remember thinking they were very strange looking.

But now, looking back, I think that the American Idiot era brought in lots and lots (and lots) of new fans for Green Day. Not just the bandwagon fans who only liked Green Day 'cause they were cool at the time. It also brought new fans that are here to stay.

I wish I had been into Green Day back then, because they were so BIG.

But my parents sheltered me from the media a lot when I was a child.

I sort of like the 21st Century Breakdown era better, because there aren't any bandwagon fans. I know I would just hate it if there were all these preppy girls going around and squealing "OMG Billie Joe so HAWT!!!!!111" and "OMG Green Day so awseome!!!11" when they probably don't even know what Dookie is.

But the American Idiot era, all in all, was amazing. Even though I couldn't properly enjoy it. Because of my young-ness. (Youth?)

I like it. I think it's controversial, not only in terms of the general public and how they view it, but also for the fans. Some people love it, some hate it. And I actually find that to be one of the most appealing aspects of that era. I think it was good for them to try something new, and it showed that they're passionate about more than what people originally thought. It's respectable for any band to take that much of a risk and still remain as down to earth and in touch with their roots as Green Day.

agreed.

[Maddy.]

Sucked.

Why do you say that?

[Mommy's Little Nightmare]

I really loved the American Idiot era. I really enjoyed getting to see them be the biggest band in the world and get the credit, and respect that they've always deserved.

[anya.]

I wish I experienced the whole American Idiot era.

I was 8 (and a half) years old when the album came out, but I first listened to it in the beginning of 2005. I got my own AI back then and I listened, because I liked the music, I liked the powerful sound and I was enjoying it too musch. As I was young and from Slovenia, I just listened to the music and read a few word of Green Day in slovenian magazines and it was it. I was into music and at first I didn't even now how they looked-like. Anyways, I hope the next huge Green Day era's coming with the next album and I could experience big interesting for Green Day in the whole world, even here in Europe.

[Coffee409]

I was happy for them. As someone who saw them skyrocket to the top in the Dookie era, only to kind of "fizzle out" by the time Warning came around, it was nice to see them back where they belonged, getting the attention I always felt they deserved.

[Tubbie Head]

It's really weird, but I never noticed them when they were big, only in 2007.. But I remember that a girl I knew was a big fan of American Idiot, and she was dressing (pretending) to be punk and all, at that time hahah. I guess she was one of those that wasn't a fan of GD but a fan of American Idiot (and of Billie, 'course), since after that hype, she turned to other mtv stuff, and started dressing like an hippy oh well.. I remember being in her room and listening to Wake Me Up When September Ends. I'm sure I liked it, but wasn't really into music, at the time..

But then, I don't think I missed much, they didn't even came here for a concert! haha... oh well, they did perform a song at the Mtv European awards. But apart from, obviously being a Green Day fan, I didn't miss much =)