Green Day's Insomniac turns 16 today
Oct. 10, 2011 / Comments
[img=101011_insomniac.jpg] On October 10, 1995 Green Day released their fourth studio album, Insomniac. The album was the follow-up to their major label debut, Dookie, released only a year before.
The album was much darker than Dookie, as the band wrote and recorded songs that captured their experiences jumping from the underground punk scene at Gilman to signing to a major label, and everything that went along with it. Big changes to their personal lives (marriage, children) also played a role in the creative process.
The album's release was highly anticipated as Dookie shot Green Day to world-wide fame, and singles from Insomniac did well on the charts. "Geek Stink Breath" reached #27 in the US, while "Brain Stew" reached #35 (the video of course, was released as with Brain Stew and Jaded combined). The album itself made it to #2 on the Billboard Top 200 and went on to sell over 2 million copies in the US alone.
Insomniac also featured it's infamous cover titled "God Told Me To Skin You Alive" by artist Winston Smith. From the artist's website:
To celebrate the album's 16th anniversary, put aside 40 minutes of your day to listen to the entire thing from start to finish. Let us know your favorite lyrics on twitter (@GDA) and we'll retweet some of our favorites.
Songs, lyrics and music videos can all be found on our Insomniac page.
The album was much darker than Dookie, as the band wrote and recorded songs that captured their experiences jumping from the underground punk scene at Gilman to signing to a major label, and everything that went along with it. Big changes to their personal lives (marriage, children) also played a role in the creative process.
The album's release was highly anticipated as Dookie shot Green Day to world-wide fame, and singles from Insomniac did well on the charts. "Geek Stink Breath" reached #27 in the US, while "Brain Stew" reached #35 (the video of course, was released as with Brain Stew and Jaded combined). The album itself made it to #2 on the Billboard Top 200 and went on to sell over 2 million copies in the US alone.
Insomniac also featured it's infamous cover titled "God Told Me To Skin You Alive" by artist Winston Smith. From the artist's website:
The colÂlage on the album cover was creÂated by WinÂston Smith and is called God Told Me to Skin You Alive, a refÂerÂence to Dead Kennedys first album, "Fresh Fruit for RotÂting VegÂetaÂbles". InterÂestÂingly enough, the cover art conÂtains an image (the denÂtist) that was origÂiÂnally used in a colÂlage feaÂtured in the insert bookÂlet art of Dead Kennedys' album PlasÂtic Surgery DisÂasÂters. There are also three skulls on the entire album cover- one for each memÂber of Green Day. One of the skulls requires you to view the piece at an angle. The hidÂden skull is taken from Hans Holbein's 1533 paintÂing The Ambassadors.
To celebrate the album's 16th anniversary, put aside 40 minutes of your day to listen to the entire thing from start to finish. Let us know your favorite lyrics on twitter (@GDA) and we'll retweet some of our favorites.
Songs, lyrics and music videos can all be found on our Insomniac page.
