Dos!

If ‘return to form’ was the phrase that came to mind for Uno!, the first album in Green Day’s Uno! Dos! Tre! trilogy, ‘return to sender’ is more appropriate this time around.

Granted, Dos! doesn’t sound much different to Uno! – it’s a big blast of pop punk and generally speaking, what Green Day does best.

But while Uno! was bursting with catchy and fun tunes, Dos! sounds more like a bonus disc of outtakes.

The rockers are sludgy and lethargic, the riffs are more derivative than before and the lyrics are often lazy and ridiculous.

Case in point is 12-bar-blues rocker “Fuck Time”.“Baby, baby it’s fuck time/you know I really, really wanna make you mine,” Billie-Joe Armstrong sings over an uninspired early rock ‘n’ roll instrumental.

Meanwhile, the slinky R&B of “Nightlife” is just bizarre. The refrain is dirge-like while the rapped verses by Lady Cobra of Mystic Nights Of The Cobra are downright cheesy.

To be fair, it’s not all bad. With its Motown inspired bassline, lead single “Stray Heart” is a saving grace and is easily catchier than anything on Uno! or Dos! while squalling “Wild One” could pass for an early Oasis track. Still, these redemptive moments are few and far between.

After the release of Uno!, Green Day sounded more vital than they had in years. But now, they just sound tired. Given the recent emergence of Armstrong’s substance abuse problems, perhaps that’s understandable.

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