Father of all Motherfuckers - What are your thoughts on the new album?

[pacejunkie punk]

1 hour ago, Chin for a Day said:

I also listened to The Longshot. It made my heart feel good.

FOAM actually sounds great with the Longshot album back to back.

It is odd though how there’s been no discussion of the songs’ music or lyrics in any great detail, and there are some great lines here.  Maybe it’s because nearly every song is “I’m so depressed over the state of the world I want to drink and do drugs so I don’t kill somebody”.  

The shame is I think we all feel depressed over the state of the world but in the past when Billie would write about those feelings it was relatable — The excessive rock star level partying he’s talking about to escape those feelings is not.  I think the substances (and maybe the depression he admits he was in when he wrote this album) unfortunately makes it harder for him to get at those underlying fears and emotions clearly and honestly and puts a distance between the writer and the listener.  The retconning of his past struggle is just more evidence of this masking he’s doing. It makes it harder to connect with him.

[gaslight13]

10 hours ago, pacejunkie punk said:

That’s actually an interesting point because while you would think shorter songs would be easier to digest, sometimes the opposite is true because they can feel incomplete and ultimately unsatisfying. I listen to Tony Molina and have a similar issue because nearly all of his songs are anywhere from thirty seconds to a minute long and he has albums of 10-15 minutes total. The songs are great and full of potential but at the same time so frustrating I actually find his short albums harder to listen to because everything feels incomplete. It’s like leaving off that final note every time after a while I can’t take it anymore.

I wonder if FOAM is having a similar effect, like if some of these songs were just thirty seconds longer or the album five or ten minutes longer at most it would be a more satisfying listen.  Like shorter isn’t always better there’s a limit.

Totally. The first time I noticed this as a possible issue with short songs, was on a new album by my other favorite band. Most of the songs were normal length and then there was one that was really short. Despite listening to the album intently for weeks, I  DIDNT NOTICE the short song. Someone mentioned it and I realized I couldn’t even recall it. Took seeing it live for it to imprint on my brain. And I have a really short attention span! But when I get distracted during JOS, the song is still on when I refocus 😏.

[michael1989]

15 hours ago, RisingRedWolf said:

There are countless amounts of reasons why this is a massive troll

Although I desperately want to believe, I just can't imagine this is a troll. I think they genuinely wanted to put this album out. Other than the weak album and talking about being off their contract, there's been no real evidence that this is a troll album. They haven't spoken negatively about the label once. It's quite possible they will even end up renewing the contract. Plus it would be a real shitty way to treat the fans to put out a troll album and charge for it.

[Little Boy Named Booze]

Just now, michael1989 said:

Plus it would be a real shitty way to treat the fans to put out a troll album and charge for it.

This.

Green Day selling Bundle at $150 on their store. If it was a troll they would have sold it wayyyyy lessss than that. 

[Thatsername]

1 minute ago, michael1989 said:

Plus it would be a real shitty way to treat the fans to put out a troll album and charge for it.

Take the money and cra-a-a-a-awl.

[Lenny]

11 hours ago, pacejunkie punk said:

That’s actually an interesting point because while you would think shorter songs would be easier to digest, sometimes the opposite is true because they can feel incomplete and ultimately unsatisfying. I listen to Tony Molina and have a similar issue because nearly all of his songs are anywhere from thirty seconds to a minute long and he has albums of 10-15 minutes total. The songs are great and full of potential but at the same time so frustrating I actually find his short albums harder to listen to because everything feels incomplete. It’s like leaving off that final note every time after a while I can’t take it anymore.

 

But then you have those early Black Flag EPs and it's the complete opposite

[Beerjeezus]

I have a hard time getting into genres like grindcore that have super short songs but I don’t really mind the shortness on FOAM. It feels like the album ends just when I start getting into it, but other than that, it’s not an issue

[The Grohl]

Yeah I don't really mind its length but I still think one, maybe two more songs would've made the album feel more complete. Otherwise I still love it. Makes me sad that it's being precieved as a flop. And the extreme hate is...wow. I get not liking it but some of these reviews are just over the top brutal.

[Lenny]

3 minutes ago, kaylubd said:

Yeah I don't really mind its length but I still think one, maybe two more songs would've made the album feel more complete. Otherwise I still love it. Makes me sad that it's being precieved as a flop. And the extreme hate is...wow. I get not liking it but some of these reviews are just over the top brutal.

You might find when you hear the other 7 songs that the best 3 of those swapped with the worst 3 on Foam may make it feel more complete even with a 10 song tracklist 

[Beerjeezus]

I have a feeling this album has a better reception outside of the narrow circle of the fandom. Most reviews were from OK to positive. 

[Lenny]

3 minutes ago, Beerjeezus said:

I have a feeling this album has a better reception outside of the narrow circle of the fandom. Most reviews were from OK to positive. 

Green day will always be judged in the shadow of their previous work 

[Beerjeezus]

3 minutes ago, Sheenius said:

Green day will always be judged in the shadow of their previous work 

I get that but it doesn’t make FOAM any less fun for me

[Lenny]

2 minutes ago, Beerjeezus said:

I get that but it doesn’t make FOAM any less fun for me

I get that 100% I enjoy the album as well the stronger songs are a lot of fun but objectively the album deserves exactly a 68-72 out of 100.

[Beerjeezus]

9 minutes ago, Sheenius said:

I get that 100% I enjoy the album as well the stronger songs are a lot of fun but objectively the album deserves exactly a 68-72 out of 100.

Yeah you’re right but that still makes it a good and enjoyable album. I get that it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea but I just don’t see where’s all the hate coming from

[Lenny]

3 minutes ago, Beerjeezus said:

Yeah you’re right but that still makes it a good and enjoyable album. I get that it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea but I just don’t see where’s all the hate coming from

I guess with Rev Rad everyone's expectation was for GD to kinda of repeat that or build off of 21cb. The latter being a great thing for them to try at some point but that requires a certain level of inspiration for it to be successful. 

But looking at the album and a song like Graffitia, it's one of the best songs they've ever written and one of their best closing songs ever. Sugar Youth, Take The Money and Crawl are great as well. Hell, even Junkies On A High is a fun listen I think it may have been a better single choice than Oh Yeah. 

I went through the lyrics recently and they're fun as hell with it's simplicity but the implications of deeper things are there. Really hard for a band to do when they said everything they had to say 2 decades ago.

[Beerjeezus]

7 minutes ago, Sheenius said:

I guess with Rev Rad everyone's expectation was for GD to kinda of repeat that or build off of 21cb. The latter being a great thing for them to try at some point but that requires a certain level of inspiration for it to be successful. 

But looking at the album and a song like Graffitia, it's one of the best songs they've ever written and one of their best closing songs ever. Sugar Youth, Take The Money and Crawl are great as well. Hell, even Junkies On A High is a fun listen I think it may have been a better single choice than Oh Yeah. 

I went through the lyrics recently and they're fun as hell with it's simplicity but the implications of deeper things are there. Really hard for a band to do when they said everything they had to say 2 decades ago.

That´s true. I was expecting they might go for a 21CB follow-up but FOAM is no disappointment. In the end it’s a fun album and that’s what matters.

[Lenny]

6 minutes ago, Beerjeezus said:

I was expecting they might go for a 21CB follow-up 

This is also Green Day, at any time they could pull it out of their back pocket. 

[That Dude]

35 minutes ago, Sheenius said:

Green day will always be judged in the shadow of their previous work 

No matter what they sound like or the quality of their work, the reviews always go to the fact that it isn't American Idiot.  

There is absolutely nothing they can do to avoid the mention and while I get it, it sucks. 

They could record a reboot of American Idiot, make it even better and more special than Idiot (if they were so inspired) but there would still be the reviewers going on and on about the original.  

I hope the guys aren't bogged down in trying to escape this shadow.  

All their other work it amazing too.  Before.  And after. 

[Lenny]

Just now, That Dude said:

No matter what they sound like or the quality of their work, the reviews always go to the fact that it isn't American Idiot.  

 

and Warning and Nimrod weren't Dookie 

 

[Squashie]

2 minutes ago, Sheenius said:

and Warning and Nimrod weren't Dookie 

 

neither was Insomniac 

[That Dude]

3 minutes ago, Sheenius said:

and Warning and Nimrod weren't Dookie 

 

And good for them!  Dookie IS classic Green Day, but give me the perfection that is Green Day circa 1997-2004 any day.  

I love Dookie, but Nimrod started all this insanity for me.

Warning cemented the band as a household name for my whole family.

American Idiot shook my soul.

And the hits just keep a coming! 

I guess what I'm saying....f#!k Dookie! 

Haha.

[Lenny]

5 minutes ago, DadBod said:

neither was Insomniac 

Actually Insomniac was received really well atleast here in Canada. 

Insomniac was actually a pretty decent seller for the band. If I'm not mistaken it was their fastest album to go platinum in the 90's. 

It just seems to be overlooked in later years and the band is to blame by including barely any songs from their best album in the set. 

 

[Guest]

49 minutes ago, Beerjeezus said:

I get that but it doesn’t make FOAM any less fun for me

I agree on the fact it's "fun" for me too. I'm just trying to stay objective. It has been on repeat in my ears and in my head, all the songs from FOAMF have been. But then I go into that mode of objectivity and my brain is like, hey wait, what? Did Billie Joe really write this filler shit and he takes it seriously? It's true that all of Green Day's work will always be kept being compared to the insanely popular era, my mind just probably takes it that way. FOAMF is fun as hell to listen to and is insanely catchy, the main argument here is that Billie can do better. That's why the fandom is disappointed in the album, we all were expecting something more than a 26-minute filler. That's what leads many to think it's just a "fuck you Warnerrrrrs" album.

[That Dude]

People take junk about the title and artwork of FOAM....but Dookie.

Also, while the artwork is iconic - it's not great.

Dookie is dookie.

[Thatsername]

57 minutes ago, Sheenius said:

This is also Green Day, at any time they could pull it out of their back pocket. 

Yes absolutely! I think one of the great things about those guys is that you never know what they're up to next, they're a bag full of surprises. Especially Graffitia totally has that epic, anthem-like, 21CB-esque vibe. I was dead serious about wanting a Graffitia-themed concept album.