Green Day Deserve Another Listen With ‘Uno,’ ‘Dos’ and ‘Tré’
Green Day have enjoyed the kind of longevity few rock bands get to experience. The band exploded onto the music scene in 1994 with their infamous Dookie album, a combination of pop and punk that gloriously spoke to suburban kids across the country. Very quickly, it was evident these guys would help bring punk to the mainstream, and they did that with contagious songs such as “When I Come Around,” “Longview” and “Basket Case,” to name a few.
Green Day, of course, stunned the world by releasing their American Idiot rock opera in 2004, which became one of their most notable albums ever. Heck, American Idiot even got its own Broadway musical.
So, how could Green Day top their American Idiot opus? It was a difficult task, and they set out to do it by releasing an album trilogy in 2012 of Uno, Dos and Tré.
Don’t Count Uno, Dos and Tré Out
Now, Uno, Dos and Tré were certainly not Green Day‘s most popular albums. If anything, some fans and critics saw them as a bit of a letdown after American Idiot and 2009’s 21st Century Breakdown.
But, you should give Uno, Dos and Tré another listen, because there’s something special about these releases.
Uno is very ’90s sounding, with songs that could have come out in the flannel decade, such as “Oh Love” and “Let Yourself Go.” It’s that old-school Green Day sound that should give longtime fans some comfort. Think of it like comfort food – mac and cheese in the form of nostalgic-sounding music.
Dos goes more experimental and serves up a range of genres. Sure, Green Day are known for being purely pop-punk, but even they’ve said they don’t like that term, and Dos simply rocks with a variety of sounds. While Dos is my least favorite of the trilogy, some songs, such as “Makeout Party” and “Stop When the Red Light Flashes,” are worth hearing.
Tré is the closest of the releases to American Idiot. While it doesn’t have the blockbuster singles of the latter, it’s a high-energy album from start to finish. Songs like “Brutal Love” and “The Forgotten” speak to the disgruntled adolescent, as does much of Green Day’s music.
While Uno, Dos and Tré are some of Green Day’s more criticized work, you can’t deny that there are a ton of great songs on here. Do yourself a favor and indulge for a few hours. You might just find a new favorite Green Day song.
