X-Kid - Green Day

X-Kid - Green Day

3:41

¡Tré!, 2012

Written by Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, and Tré Cool

The title of this initially serviceable power pop number is the first hint at the darkness underneath Armstrong's ebullient chords and sing-along chorus.  The "meaning" of a song is rarely very simple, of course, but most sources agree that this song commemorates a friend of Armstrong who committed suicide: "And you were searching your soul / And you got lost and outta control / You went over the edge of joking / And died of a broken heart."  That tension between bright, almost carefree music and deeply wounded lyrics is what lifts "X-Kid" a lot of its brethren on the oft-maligned trilogy.  The song works whether you hear it as a lament for a lost friend, a reflection on aging and the disappearance of youthful recklessness, or a broader meditation on transitional moments when identity fractures under pressure.  What might otherwise land as mid-tier Green Day gains weight and resonance through its emotional honesty, ultimately one of the band's more affecting late-career moments.

Suzie Chapstick - Green Day

Suzie Chapstick - Green Day

3:16

Saviors, 2024

Written by Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, and Tré Cool

As the lads in Green Day age, their sharp edges grow softer.  This song could be from Weezer or Fountains of Wayne, or even a late 1960s love song (without the Instagram mention).  It's a brooding, gentle pop number, bemoaning a lost love.  "Will you dedicate a song to me? / Do you want me to just go away / I just want to be your nobody / Is there any chance that I can stay?"  It's a perfectly pleasant pop-rock song, but for those of us who discovered Green Day through Kerplunk in the early 1990s, it's hard not to wonder what those snotty, angsty lads would think of this glossy sweetness. 

Xmas Time Of the Year - Green Day

Xmas Time Of the Year - Green Day

2:17

single, 2015

Written by Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, and Tré Cool

A track from the poppiest and most toothless era of Green Day, but given the subject matter, for this song the sweet, slick sound fits.  It's a whole optimistic song, without any performative sneering.  "The sleigh bells deck the halls with good will / Say a prayer for lost souls / Christmas time of the year."  It's not an essential track, but it's fun to hear the band's take on goodwill.