Green Day - American Idiot

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American Idiot is Green Day's 7th studio album. It won the Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2005. American Idiot is the first concept album I listened to as a rebellious school kid, falling in love with the concept of concept albums :) American Idiot talks about Jesus of Suburbia (whom I'll refer to JOS) and his journey through life across a troubled nation. However, it also includes songs that are standalone but fit right in to the collective theme of the album criticizing the America of the time throughout.

The title song American Idiot is a straight-up protest song about the condition of America, apparently a 'nation controlled by the media'.

Jesus of Suburbia

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It is with the 9-minute track Jesus of Suburbia, that we are introduced to the protagonist of the album, JOS, a teenager living in suburban America. The track has different sections that allude to different character traits of our antihero, the son of rage and love. The first section talks about his dependence on cigarettes, alcohol and abusing various substances to 'keep himself insane' to deal with all the troubles of life. And he reinforces himself, saying this is how he is supposed to be, the attitude of every rebellious teenager. City of the Damned sees him commenting on his suburban home town, a city that is seemingly dead. His only influences are the graffiti and musings he reads on the walls of bathroom stalls. I Don't Care sees JOS criticize everyone, and how they're all hypocrites. It also sees JOS's disciples, the kids of war and peace, chant his name. It also talks about how the land of make-believe doesn't believe in him, but he couldn't care less! Dearly Beloved sees JOS doubt himself a little, asking if he is demented, retarded and if therapy can help him. He feels himself between insane and insecure, but dismisses it saying that nobody's perfect. Finally, in Tales of Another Broken Home, we see him questioning him living in this town, and deciding to leave this 'hurricane of f***ing lies'.

A New Life Awaits

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Holiday sees JOS leave his home town and venture to the city in hopes of starting his new life and finding himself. The track however, also criticizes the Bush government at the time directly, since Green Day has never cared about offending people and I respect that. JOS tells himself that leaving his home was a good decision and how it is 'the dawn of the rest of his life'. However, in Boulevard of Broken Dreams, JOS feels lonely and talks about how being alone is all he's ever known, but wishes that someday 'someone out there will find him'.

Self-doubt; St. Jimmy is born

A portrayal of St. Jimmy by Reddit user myprosthetichead. Credit: Reddit

Doubt creeps into him in Are We the Waiting as he ponders his decisions till now, waiting for seemingly, the unknown, as his future is a big uncertainty. He starts to go insane, questioning rage and love, and the story of his life. This is abruptly cut by St. Jimmy, the manifestation of all the rebellion and rage inside JOS. St. Jimmy is JOS's alter-ego, confident, sure of himself and on a path of self-destruction. I feel St. Jimmy is JOS's way of dealing with his new life that he chose; unable to cope with all the uncertainties, he creates this persona who will help him move forward. Give Me Novacaine talks about substance abuse to help JOS cope with his life, and how St. Jimmy reassures him of this.

She's a Rebel

From She's a Rebel, the lyrics describe the album art of American Idiot.

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In She's a Rebel, JOS meets Whatsername ( which is the name given to her since he cannot remember her actual name), and falls in love with her free-spirited and rebellious attitude. She brings a liberation that he 'cannot define', but regardless feels great with her. Extraordinary Girl talks more about their relationship, and presents the differences between their personalities. It is apparent that they're having problems in their relationship as she 'gets so sick of crying'. This is confirmed in Letterbomb when she writes, "Nobody likes you, everyone left you/They're all out without you, having fun" how she and everyone around him are fed up of him, with his followers dwindling and no longer rioting in the city. Being a free-spirited she tells him how his problems aren't hers. She finishes the letter with "I can't take this town I'm leaving you tonight", leaving him behind.

Wake Me Up When September Ends

A song not related to the story of the protagonist, Wake Me Up When September Ends, the hugely popular track on American Idiot, talks about Green Day lead Billie Joe Armstrong's father's death when he was 10 years old (Source: Wikipedia). Apparently, at his father's funeral, a young Billie left in tears and locked himself in his bedroom. It was then he muttered the words "Wake me up when September ends" to his mother through the door when she came to call him. (Source: Altpress)

Homecoming

We return to the story where a heartbroken and lonely Jesus of Suburbia decides to go home. Homecoming starts with The Death of St. Jimmy, where he chooses to kill his alter-ego, St. Jimmy. He realizes he can't blame everyone else for his failures, and makes the choice to take responsibility. The next section, East 12th St. talks about how JOS has now taken up a 'normal' job filling paperwork. he has a tough time adjusting to this with memories from his past life coming to haunt him, especially how Whatsername had enough of him.

Image credit: Penelope Nimirsi Ramírez Polanco

In Nobody Likes You we see JOS alone and lonely in his home, remembering his old life, and drinking too much coffee. The words from Whatsername's letter echo in his mind as he asks where did she go. It's heartbreaking, really. Rock and Roll Girlfriend sees JOS receiving a letter from Tunny, a friend he met during his time on the streets. Tunny brags about having a 'rock and roll' life, and how everything is great with him. However, at the end, he asks Jimmy to not bother him with his problems, indicating he's only writing to brag, not out of concern. In We're Coming Home Again we see JOS pondering over his decision to go home, and commenting on how hard he tries to run away, he wound back up in the same place. He also wants to write a letterbomb back to Whatsername as she did. He refers to his home as a 'barrio', Spanish for 'hood', but says to him, it is his home, finally deciding to come back home, singing it over and over again.

Whatsername

The final track of the album, Whatsername, sees Jesus of Suburbia remembering the love of his life, even though he still can't remember her name. He has tried everything to move on, burning all their photographs together, however, he seems unable to forget her, wondering how she is doing today. He feels all his regrets are useless, but he must confess that he cannot get rid of her, she is forever in his mind. At the end, he feels that even in one of his darkest nights and with his fading memory (probably due to years of substance abuse), he may forget her, but he will never forget the times they shared.

Image credit: u/JoaoMendez on Reddit