The road is often both a musician’s best friend and worst enemy. It’s nice to get away from the studio environment for a while. But it only takes three or four shows for people to realize they’ve committed to years of living on a bus and not seeing their families for extended periods. However, it all comes back to the love of playing music. Billie Joe Armstrong was not having fun when Green Day went on tour to support Insomniac.
Green Day began to gain popularity as everyone’s favorite childish punks, they had also made more than a few enemies. Throughout their time in the California punk scene, the amount of fans they earned one gig at a time was thrown out the window the minute they signed to a major label. Either this new album had to work, or they would return to their old stomping grounds as one of the biggest embarrassments to their local scene.
Dookie did more than just deliver. It was a musical representation of a nuclear bomb. Following Kurt Cobain’s death in 1994, many fans turned to Green Day as an outlet for their rage. They returned to the snotty pop songs that first drew them into rock and roll, such as ‘Longview‘ and ‘Welcome to Paradise‘.
The album would also become legendary in the punk community, as one of the few punk albums to receive Diamond certification. Green Day may have been on top of the world. But no label will release such a big album and not get their money’s worth from the band on the road the next time around.
After going into the studio for the album Insomniac, the band’s harsh response to the punk backlash earned them even more fans. They propelled them from small theaters and support slots to headlining their festival. It may have been a marketing dream come true, but not for the band.
Speaking with Alan Di Perna, Armstrong admitted that he did not enjoy working in those venues at the beginning of his career. He said, “Playing those huge arenas sucked. I tried to remain optimistic, but it just sucked. That isn’t our thing. We are a three-piece, tight-knit band that belongs in a tight-knit room. “I think we belong in theaters.”
Green Day had never performed outside of their traditional punk rock squats. But the transition to arena rock was unlikely to be smooth. It also didn’t help that the sell-out backlash from their old haunts reappeared. It was with many “true punks” attending their shows solely to boycott the band.
Although Armstrong had reservations, this did not mean that the band’s momentum was about to stall. After becoming one of the biggest names in music, they made the arena their new home. They eventually produce music that sounds great in arenas on albums like American Idiot. Artists may have a clear vision of what they want from their careers.
