I loved the piano parts in "Viva La Gloria" and the Hardcore punk that Green Day is known for in "Horseshoes and Handgrenades".

I also enjoyed the upbeat "power-pop" feel of "Last of the American Girls".

Billie Joe's songwriting ability is definitely shown in this album. His unmistakable voice and guitar playing are more recognizable in this album.

They have shifted from more of a hardcore punk to a slurry of rock/acoustic/punk/pop.

Tre cool's drum part in Know Your Enemy is very punkish and upbeat and reminds me more of American Idiot.

I highly reccomend buying this album as soon as possible. It's definitely worth the 9-15$.

Brendan Seyka

"I'm sat here, on track 18 of 18 on my second listen of 21st Century Breakdown, supposedly the 'most anticipated album of 2009'. I was looking forward to it, don't get me wrong, but I feel the emotions of anticipation left Green Day once Warning was over with.

There were two ways I could have written this. One road to go down was the "Green Day are one of the biggest bands in the world after American Idiot and this will go a long way to cementing their place" or the other..."Green Day are forefathers for modern pop-punk but since their Dookie days they've turned their back on what they were best at". Unfortunately, one may view, I've chosen the latter.

21st Century Breakdown has hints of what once was. It's there, at times, pushing at the speakers - wanting to break out one last time. The 'new' sound doesn't work for me, though. It's a continuation of the last album, rarely sparking anything new or bold.

If it were another band I have to admit that I'd take this as an acceptable album and give a listen from to time. But this is Green Day. They can do so much better.

Billie Joe can write a love song then joke about cross-dressing from track to track. Here, the serious message takes over and something gets lost in its delivery. There are high points, I'm not completely pessimistic! Horseshoes & Handgrenades is a blast. It screams of early 2000s 'The Hives' and is a refreshing highlight in the later tracks. The last few, in fact, are all fairly decent, I can see American Eulogy as a hit single in the near future.

The issue is, though, that these quality tracks are too few and far between, and instead we sit in the middle of the road, watching the screaming traffic fly by.

Mark Fell

What do you think to the album or the two reviews? Let us know below. Or if you want to review another album, e-mail Tim Morriss and we will publish your review online.