Green Day: American Idiots and the New Punk Explosion
by Ben Myers
Disinformation
Writer and music journalist Ben Myers has penned what he claims is the world’s first full biography on punk-pop trio Green Day.
Meticulously researched, Green Day: American Idiots and the New Punk Explosion will undoubtedly appeal to hardcore fans of the band, especially newer recruits to their fanbase following the hugely popular American Idiot This record catapulted the band to a level of stardom that eclipsed even their breakthrough album, Dookie.
The problem with the book is that, despite Myers’ clear knowledge of a band he has met on countless occasions through his writing for Kerrang! and Melody Maker, his account of the band’s history reads like a conventional scrapbook of soundbites and facts that many fans will already be acquainted with. Furthermore, his attempt to give Green Day’s rise to fame a sociological context over-intellectualises the achievements of a band that cannot claim to have had the same cultural influence as the original exponents of the punk genre.
Green Day: American Idiots and the New Punk Explosion is a useful reference for new fans to the band, but anyone seeking more than a potted history will be disappointed.
