Funny how time slips away... Some weeks it feels like yesterday that Green Day were releasing breakthrough record Dookie, while on others it seems like three lifetimes ago.
Either way, the trio sound in very good shape for the next two decades on Revolution Radio - middle-aged, loud and snotty suiting them just as much as the earlier incarnation.
After the paunch and notions of 2012's ¡Uno! ¡Dos! ¡Tré! this is a real cobweb-buster, with a hunger that would put many of their minted brethren to shame. Adhering to the golden rule running time of one side of a tape, every song justifies its inclusion with the record feeling like a 'new compilation' of landmark moments in Green Day's career. There is something for everyone.
They're still keen to poke a stick at the state of the world - Bang Bang, Say Goodbye, Troubled Times - but Revolution Radio works best with the personal stuff, be it the rear-view mirror of Outlaws and Too Dumb to Die, or finding reasons to believe on Still Breathing.
For both band and audience Revolution Radio is a don't-touch-that-dial reminder of why all this stuff mattered so much to us in the first place. If, like many an old pal, you've lost touch with each other for too long, this is just the moment to reach out. It'll be like picking up right where things left off.
Harry Guerin
