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Rating: Among the plethora of reviews on Green Day, it seems that "Insomniac" is missing, so I hereby propose to complete their discography with this contribution.
This album review begins with a premise: you either like Green Day or you don't. For purists, they represent the hateful commercial component that sells out, betraying the original punk spirit. They also embody that part of lighthearted and crazy punk that never takes itself too seriously and will find many imitators in the future.
For the fans of the latest generation, the term punk embodies the iconic expression "how cool is Billie...". Finally, for those adolescent fans of the mid-nineties, Green Day represent a memory associated with a turbulent winter, with those self-managed school assemblies that stirred up occupations, or a dreary return home with a failing grade in math, or even the racist distinction between those in class who listened to hit mania dance...
In short, their music could also be one of the windows through which someone was about to discover idealisms, bitterness, and misunderstood adolescent turmoil. The album was released in 1995 and contains 14 tracks of easily catchy punk-rock, with perhaps a slightly more challenging impact than "Dookie" from the previous year.
From the more intense cover, one can already sense the direction of this 'Insomniac', whose title stems from the recent fatherhood of the frontman. The lyrics also become more interesting and often focus on strong personal self-criticism. It starts with "Armatage Shanks", which is somewhat of a programmatic manifesto for the entire work, where Billie Joe sings about being an alien, having perfected the science of the idiot; the tempo doesn't drop, moving on to "Brat" and quickly reaching "Stuck With Me", another among the most representative songs along with "Geek Stink Breath". "86" is a song with a melancholic flavor with lyrics about someone looking for answers but it's neither the time nor the place anymore. The tempo remains intense when it reaches "Panic Song", truly striking, with an interesting instrumental introduction of about a minute.
In short, the songs on this 'Insomniac' are all enjoyable even though they somewhat resemble each other; maybe not all withstand the test of time, and perhaps that's why this album isn't talked about much, although in my opinion, it's better in some aspects than "Dookie".
An album that I recommend to the youngsters who will resume the school routine in September; for the older folks, well, time passes for everyone, and once you've listened to it and lived it at 17, it's more than enough... "there's no return from 86..."
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Armatage Shanks (02:17)
Stranded, lost inside myself
My own worst friend and my own closest enemy
Branded, Maladjusted
Never trusted anyone let alone myself
I must insist
On being a pessimist
I'm a loner in a catastrophic mind
Elected the rejected
I perfected the science of the idiot
No meaning and no healing
Self loathing freak and introverted deviant
I must insist
On being a pessimist
I'm a loner in a catastrophic mind
02 Brat (01:43)
Mom and Dad don't look so hot these days
They're getting over the hill
Death is closing in and catching up
As far as I can tell
Got a plan of action and cold blood
And it smells of defiance
I'll just wait for Mom and Dad to die
And get my inheritance
Now I want more
'Cause I'm getting bored
And I'm going nowhere fast
I was once filled with doubt
Now it's all figured out
Nothing good can last
Crows feet and rot are setting in
And time is running out
My parent's income interest rate
Is gaining higher clout
I'm a snot nosed slob
Without a job
And I know I damn well should
Mom and dad don't look so hot these days
But my future's looking good
03 Stuck With Me (02:15)
I'm not part of your elite
I'm just alright
Class structure, waving colors
Bleeding from my throat
Not subservient to you
I'm just alright
Down classed by the powers that be
Give me loss of hope
Cast out... Buried in a hole
Struck down... forcing me to fall
Destroyed... giving up the fight
I know I'm not alright
What's my price and will you pay it if it's alright?
Take it from my dignity
waste it until it's dead
Throw me back into the gutter
'Cause it's alright
Find another pleasure fucker
Drag them down to hell
Cast out... Buried in a hole
Struck down... forcing me to fall
Destroyed... giving up the fight
I know I'm not alright
1, 2, 3, 4
Cast out... Buried in a hole
Struck down... forcing me to fall
Destroyed... giving up the fight
I know I'm not alright
04 Geek Stink Breath (02:15)
RARGH!
I'm on a mission
I made my decision
To lead a path of self-destruction
A slow progression
Killing my complexion
And it's rotting out my teeth
I'm on a roll
No self control
I'm blowing off steam with
Meth Amphetamine
Don't know what I want
That's all that I've got
And I'm picking scabs off my face
Every hour my blood is turning sour
And my pulse is beating out of time
I found a treasure
Filled with sick pleasure
And it sits on a thick white line
I'm on a roll
No self control
I'm blowing off steam with
Meth Amphetamine
Don't know what I want
That's all that I've got
And I'm picking scabs off my face
I'm on a mission
I got no decision like a cripple
Running the rat race
Wish in one hand and shit in the other
And see which one gets filled first
I'm on a roll
No self control
I'm blowing off steam with
Methamphetamine
Don't know what I want
That's all that I've got
And I'm picking scabs off my face
Geek... stink... breath!
06 Bab's Uvula Who? (02:08)
I've got a knack for fucking everything up
My temper flies and I get myself all wound up
My fuse is short and my blood pressure is high
I lose control and I get myself all wound up
Tension mounts and I fly off the wall
I self-destruct and I get myself all wound up
Petulance and irritation sets in
I throw a tantrum and I get myself all up
Chip on my shoulder and a leech on my back
Stuck in a rut and I get myself all wound up
Killed my composure and it will never come back
Loss of control and I get myself all wound up
Blown out of proportion again
My temper snaps and I get myself all wound up
Spontaneous combustion
Panic attack
I slipped a gear I get myself all wound up
07 86 (02:47)
What brings you around?
Did you lose something the last time you were here?
You'll never find it now
It's buried deep with your identity
so stand aside and let the next one pass
Don't let the door kick you in the ass
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
Don't even try
Exit out the back
And never show your head around again
Purchase your ticket
And quickly take the last train out of town
so stand aside and let the next one pass
Don't let the door kick you in the ass
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
Don't even try
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
There's no return from 86
Don't even try
09 Stuart and the Ave. (02:03)
Standing on the corner of
Stuart and the Avenue
Ripping up my transfer
And a photograph of you
You're a blur of my dead past and rotting existence
As I stand laughing on the corner of insignificance
Destiny is dead
In the hands of bad luck
Before it might have made some sense
But now it's all fucked up
Seasons change as well as minds
And I'm a two faced clown
You're mommy's little nightmare
Driving daddy's car around
I'm beat down and half brain dead
The long lost king of fools
I may be dumb
But I'm not stupid enough to stay with you
10 Brain Stew (03:12)
I'm having trouble trying to sleep
I'm counting sheep but running out
As time ticks by
And still I try
No rest for crosstops in my mind
On my own, here we go
My eyes feel like they're going to bleed
Dried up and bulging out my skull
My mouth is dry
My face is numb
Fucked up and spun out in my room
On my own, here we go
My mind is set on overdrive
The clock is laughing in my face
A crooked spine
My sense dulled
Passed the point of delirium
On my own, here we go
My eyes feel like they're going to bleed
Dried up and bulging out my skull
My mouth is dry
My face is numb
Fucked up and spun out in my room
On my own, here we go
11 Jaded (01:30)
Somebody keep my balance
I think I'm falling off
Into a state of regression
The expiration date
Rapidly coming up
It's leaving me behind to rank
Always move forward
Going "straight" will get you nowhere
There is no progress
Evolution kill it all
I found my place in nowhere
I'm taking one step sideways
Leading with my crutch
Got a fucked up equilibrium
Count down from 9 to 5
Hooray! We are gonna die!
Blessed into our extinction
Always move forward
Going "straight" will get you nowhere
There is no progress
Evolution kill it all
I found my place in nowhere
Always move forward
Going "straight" will get you nowhere
There is no progress
Evolution kill it all
I found my place in nowhere, in nowhere, in no-o-owhere
12 Westbound Sign (02:13)
Boxed up
All of her favorite things
Sold the rest at a rainy yard sale
Big plans and leaving friends and
A westbound sign
Weighed out
Her choices on a scale
Prevailing nothing made sense
Just transportation and a
Blank decision... she's taking off
No time and no copping out
She's burning daylight and petrol
Blacked out the rearview mirror
Heading westward on
Strung out
On confusion road
And ten minute nervous breakdowns
Xanex a beer for thought
And she determined... She's taking off
Is it salvation?
Or an escape from discontent?
Will she find her name
In the California cement?
Punched out of the grind
That punched her one too many times...
Is tragedy 2000 miles away?
She's taking off
13 Tight Wad Hill (02:01)
Cheapskate on the hill
A thrill seeker making deals
Sugar city urchin wasting time
Town of lunatics
Begging for another fix
Turning tricks for speedballs
One more night
Making your rounds once again
Turning up empty handed
Bumming a ride
Burning daylight
Last up at dawn... tight wad hill
Drugstore hooligan
Another white trash mannequin
On display to rot up on the hill
Living out a lie
But having the time of his life
Hating every minute of his existence
Making your rounds once again
Turning up empty handed
Bumming a ride
Burning daylight
Last up at dawn... tight wad hill
Making your rounds once again
Turning up empty handed
Bumming a ride
Burning daylight
Last up at dawn... tight wad hill
14 Walking Contradiction (02:32)
Do as I say not as I do because
The shit's so deep you can't run away
I beg to differ on the contrary
I agree with every word that you say
Talk is cheap and lies are expensive
My wallet's fat and so is my head
Hit and run and then I'll hit you again
I'm a smart ass but I'm playing dumb
Standards set and broken all the time
Control the chaos behind a gun
Call it as I see it even if
I was born deaf, blind and dumb
Losers winning big on the lottery
Rehab rejects still sniffing glue
Constant refutation with myself
I'm a victim of a catch 22
I have no belief
But I believe
I'm a walking contradiction
And I ain't got no right
Do as I say not as I do because
The shit's so deep you can't run away
I beg to differ on the contrary
I agree with every word that you say
Talk is cheap and lies are expensive
My wallet's fat and so is my head
Hit and run and then I'll hit you again
I'm a smart ass but I'm playing dumb
I have no belief
But I believe
I'm a walking contradiction
And I ain't got no right
I have no belief
But I believe
I'm a walking contradiction
And I ain't got no right
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Other reviews
By anarcho92
Compared to 'Dookie', 'Insomniac' is harder, more pissed off, recorded all at once after a dose of amphetamine by the band... And you can tell!!
The song is about a boy waiting for his parents to die so he can inherit their money.
By Trofeo
The common thread of the fourteen tracks is anxiety, this time accompanied by anger.
Personally, I am very attached to this album, always underrated but very powerful and convincing with every listen.
