Billie Joe Armstrong names Green Day’s best song and his favourite album
Green Day‘s Billie Joe Armstrong has revealed what he believes to be the band’s best song and his favourite album ever released by the band.
The punk icon was speaking in a new interview with Vulture when he revealed that he considers ‘Jesus Of Suburbia’, the band’s 10-minute 2004 epic, to be the best song they have ever recorded.
“‘Jesus of Suburbia’” is the one that sticks out. It’s so epic,” explained Armstrong.
“I mean, I’m tooting my own horn, but I think it encompasses so much about my life and friendship and family, and it’s flamboyant and big and bombastic. It’s one of those moments where I was feeling like I wanted to take a big risk. It’s so fun to play live, seeing how the entire crowd sings along. It’s just one of those songs.”
When it came to his favourite album, he praised 1991’s ‘Kerplunk’ for perfectly capturing the sound of Green Day’s earliest years.
“It’s kind of autobiographical. We wrote that record when I was 18, 19 years old, and it was at a time before punk became mainstream,” he said of the album.
“There’s something about it that feels like a fanzine. All of us were living together, living in bands together. It was a coming of age in a way. A song like ‘Welcome to Paradise’ wasn’t just about teenage heartbreak anymore. It had a lot more to do with life slapping you in the face.”
Armstrong recently opened up about his biggest hits and misses in a new podcast series. The guitarist also re-imagined some Green Day classics for the series, including ‘Basket Case’, ‘Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)’, ‘Wake Me Up When September Ends’ and ‘American Idiot’.
Speaking about Green Day’s postponed tour with Fall Out Boy and Weezer, Armstrong said he was hopeful it could still happen this year.
“It’s looking promising that we’re gonna do Hella Mega later this year in the United States. It’s so crazy that it got put off another year because of COVID. This tour is three years in the making at this point.
“So hopefully, if the world would open up, and everybody will be able to get into stadiums, we’d be able to get a big, giant barbecue fiesta of rock and roll music.”
Last year, Armstrong also provided NME with an update on new Green Day music.
“I’ve been writing a lot,” he explained. “I’m always putting something together, whether it’s a full demo in my small studio or just some voice notes on my phone.
“The great thing about this is that if I ever feel creatively blocked, I can just do a cover – just to keep the momentum going.”
Armstrong also talked about the potential of putting out a new Green Day album, even though the band only released their 13th studio album, ‘Father Of All Motherfuckers‘, in February last year.
“It’s possible,” he said. “Whether we do a full-length album or an EP or just a song, we have a lot of different options. It’s a matter of whenever the right moment happens.
“That’s the beauty of the way you can put music out these days. You don’t have to wait for any gatekeeper to tell you that the timing is right.”
He continued: “With the new stuff that I’m writing, I don’t know – a lot of it is kind of more self-deprecating and funny. Not that I’m doing a comedy record or anything. On one hand it feels autobiographical and funny, but on the other when you look at it you can put a social commentary twist to it.”
In other news, a Green Day fan recently reimagined the group’s ‘Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)’ single as if it had appeared on ‘Dookie’.
