Green Day is back with the release of the band’s latest, album, “Revolution Radio” — featuring the lead single, “Bang Bang” — and performances scheduled at Rough Trade NYC and Webster Hall this week.
In honor of that, amNewYork ranks the band’s lead singles from their impressive discography.
8. ‘Know Your Enemy’
It’s hard to follow up the critical and commercial success of 2004’s “American Idiot” and “Know Your Enemy” suffered from being a cog in yet another rock opera’s wheel. (“21st Century Breakdown,” 2009)
7. ‘Oh Love’
Kicking off the ambitious three-disc release of Uno! Dos! Tres! “Oh Love” was a slightly low-key first single compared to albums past. Derailed by frontman Billie Joe Armstrong’s addictions at the time and the quantity over quality approach ultimately found this lead single among the most forgettable. (“Uno,” 2012)
6. ‘Bang Bang’
The band is at its best best when they’re capturing the growing unrest in today’s youth. Behind a blistering beat supplied by drummer Tre Cool, “Bang Bang” marks the return of the Green Day we’ve come to know and love. (“Revolution Radio,” 2016)
5. ‘Hitchin’ A Ride’
While not “Nimrod’s” most commercially successful single — that would be the acoustic ballad “Good Riddance” played at every high school graduation, senior prom and television series finale in the late ’90s — “Hitchin’ A Ride” provided a nice change of pace for a band looking to distance itself from its pop-punk roots. (“Nimrod,” 1997)
4. ‘Geek Stink Breath’
Slammed at the time for its overly aggressive sound, “Insomniac” has found a place with younger fans today, headlined by this blistering lead single about crystal meth and hard partying. (“Insomniac,” 1995)
3. ‘Minority’
Encapsulating Green Day’s energetic sound, catchy hooks and anti-establishment motto, “Minority” proved to be the only single to transcend an otherwise ill-received album in “Warning.” (“Warning,” 2000)
2. ‘American Idiot’
Green Day effectively reintroduced themselves to the masses with this unrelenting criticism of the war in Iraq, the George W. Bush White House and the American media. (“American Idiot,” 2004)
1. ‘Longview’
An ode to the timeless pastime of American youth, “Longview” was the perfect debut single to herald in the return of punk rock to the mainstream. Solidified by Mike Dirnt’s bass line and a music video comprised of bubbling-to-the-surface angst, “Longview” will forever be the anthem for teenage America. (“Dookie,” 1994)
If you go: Green Day is at Rough Trade NYC on Oct. 7 at 7 p.m., 64 N. Ninth St., Williamsburg, 718-388-4111, buy their band’s new album day off for entry to the show. The band is at Webster Hall on Oct. 8 at 7 p.m., 125 E. 11th St., 212-353-1600, sold out
