Green Day has officially joined the ranks of buskers, (aka performers) who have taken to the subway platform under 30 Rockefeller Center where The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon is filmed, as the trio proceeded to stun the hell out of midday commuters on Jan. 16.
Tre Cool, Mike Dirnt and Billie Joe Armstrong at the MTV Europe Music Awards, November 2019.
Dropping down in advance of their 14th studio release, Saviors, on Jan. 19, the band and Fallon bundled against the cold and strolled along the subway platform, disguised in aviator sunglasses, wigs, stocking caps (and for Fallon, a quasi-Gregg Allman getup complete with chest-length blonde hair and beard). The set began with a low-key acoustic take on Bad Company's 1975 classic "Feel Like Makin' Love," with Fallon and (possibly) Armstrong trading off lead vocals, as Fallon punctuated the abbreviated chorus with tambourine claps. But the crowd had already started to form and suspicions were on high alert.
The quintet (guitarist Jason White has been a touring member since 1999) proceeded to rip off the fakery and blasted through a mini-set, including "Basket Case" from their 1994 Grammy-award winning, Diamond-certified album Dookie, "Look Ma, No Brains!" and "Dilemma" from the soon-to-be-released Saviors, a cover of KISS' 1975 "Rock and Roll All Nite" (which turned into a subway singalong) and the title track from 2004's American Idiot.
It's been a whirlwind of appearances since the announcement back in November of Saviors' impending release. Since then, the band played Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest and promptly fired up conservatives when Armstrong altered the lyrics in "American Idiot" singing "MAGA agenda" instead of "redneck agenda."
They've also been given their own SiriusXM channel Green Day Radio until Jan. 23, where Armstrong, Tre Cool and Mike Dirnt are playing their fave Green Day tracks, unveiling exclusive stories and insights and playing a SiriusXM live release show for Saviors on Jan. 18 at New York City's Irving Plaza. They will then take off for European and North American dates playing Dookie and American Idiot in their entirety with the Smashing Pumpkins, Rancid and The Linda Lindas in support
Green Day - Saviors
Saviors is coming in several variations, including colored vinyl, 180g black vinyl, CD, cassette and bundles. The album's feature image is of a young boy holding a stone during a riot in West Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1978 during "The Troubles," snapped by photojournalist Chris Steele-Perkins. It has been slightly altered to show a more open smile, but it's unknown to this day his identity.
