| | village voice > music > Green Day's American Idiot by Piotr Orlov |
 | | Since many of these runaways are the indirect progeny of Green Day's decade-long campaign to bring punk's various freedoms to the 'burbs, it's hard not to hear the politically charged American Idiot as their tale—a story of rebels without a clue actually looking for one. |
 | | Though not too deep a clue, since Billie Joe Armstrong's imagination outstrips his encyclopedia of symbols and three-chord truisms. |
 | | Hearing an album that entered the charts at number one rail against a "subliminal mindfuck America," a "redneck agenda," and "President Gasman" while pretending that arena punk can actually have a semiotic roar, keeps hope alive better than any nü-wavers playing dress-up agitprop ever could. |
| www.villagevoice.com /music/0442,orlov,57678,22.html (553 words) |