From the early '90s upstarts that brought us Dookie and Nimrod comes Green Day's latest album; American Idiot, a collection of songs that take biting jabs at the political and social scene of the United States today.

American Idiot is a 13-track punk rock opera that in form is almost an old school throwback to albums by Styx and Pink Floyd. If you're a Bush fan, you might have trouble getting past the pretentious first track and that's unfortunate because it's probably the best Billie Joe Armstrong's given us since "Basket Case."

The most pleasantly surprising aspect is one of the nine-minute bookends, depicting the character called "Jesus of Suburbia." What's that, Meat Loaf? Nine minutes, you ask?

Well it's actually several two-minute power beat songs wonderfully concocted to leave you feeling beautifully confused.

It's (dare I say it?) emo at times, with tracks like "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," and "Wake Me Up When September Ends," a comparatively nice sequel to "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)."

For the past decade it seems Armstrong has been searching for a new sound; with American Idiot, the band connects more of its quirky punk with unpredictably engaging ballads.

Sure it's a risky concept; most things political tend to be. But all the songs connect so solidly you'll start to see that it's simply classic Green Day with a new "idiotic" twist.

-- Reviewed by Lindsey Zahuranec