Green Day

Warning (2000)

ChrisGorman2

Perhaps Green Day's best effort to date. While most folks I know prefer the "38/Smooth" through "Dookie" era of Green Day, "Warning" proves to be the most consistently listenable album the Berkley Boys have put together thus far.

Yes, for fans of pure punk rock, I would recommend you look elsewhere. This is the pure pop side of Green Day. Songs like "Warning", an acoustic pop number, "Macy's Day Parade", a syrupy ballad and "Misery", a demented Primus-influenced waltz will most likely scare off the remaining punker than thou folks who still hung around after "Time of your Life" off of the "Nimrod" album. What I think is great about this album is its total lack of punk fury. In the wake of a new batch of mainstreamer punk like Blink-182, Sum 41 and A New Found Glory, Green Day could have easily just released another "Dookie", and raked in the cash.

Instead, they come out with their most experimental album ever, and it rocks. Say what you will about Green Day, but they are truly modern punk stalwarts, and deserve a special place in the punk history books.