Green Day have seen a mix of highs and lows throughout their career, and given their crossover success, they’ve become one of the more divisive acts for hard rock and punk fans.
But at 14 albums in to a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame career, does the group have another rebound in them? The band just released their new SAVIORS album, and the fan reaction has not only been positive, but there’s a lot of sentiment that this new record is one of their best in quite some time.
“Was not expecting the new Green Day album to be this good,” posted one X commenter about the new album. Another noted, “If you’re a Green Day fan who hasn’t been too crazy about their work since American Idiot, their newest record Saviors is for you. This shit is awesome.” A third commenter added, “I’ve been a die hard #GreenDay fan for 30+ years and listening to #Saviors in the predawn hour with my headphones on and coffee in hand is the most fun I’ve had listening to a new album in a very long time. Rock on @GreenDay!! #DancingInTheKitchen.”
One fan noted that they hadn’t been totally drawn in by the singles, but added, “It seems like they saved the good stuff for the actual album release as a whole.” Another commented suggested, “It’s definitely very familiar ground for the band in terms of style and sound, but this time it feels like there’s no fluff or pretensions to it unlike Rev Rad or Father of All.”
But not every social media review was as glowing. “Better than most late period Green Day but nothing special,” offered one X reviewer. Another offered the middling comment, “The new Green Day is fine. I fell off a bit towards the end, but there’s nothing offensively terrible on there and the production is pretty decent for a modern rock album.”
But overall, it appears as though the fans view the new SAVIORS album as a definite uptick in their career, especially over previous outings.
As for the critics, Metacritic, which tallies the reviews of music sites, has at press time given Saviors a 74 out of 100 score, with a majority offering positive responses, one mixed response and no negative responses.
Ultimate Classic Rock noted in their review, “Saviors‘ best songs arrive early on: ‘Look Ma, No Brains!,’ ‘One Eyed Bastard’ and ‘Dilemma’ show up in the first third of the album and to varying degrees recall the band’s Dookie, American Idiot and 21st Century Breakdown peaks. But the hammering riffs, singalong choruses and similar structures wear down on late-album throwaways ‘Living in the ’20s’ and ‘Father to a Son,’ which begins with acoustic shades of ‘Good Riddance (Time of Your Life).’
Despite the occasional looking-back-at-life subject matter, Saviors is an old-school pop-punk record that’s not quite grown up but not exactly springing with fresh life either.
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