International Superhits!

Green Day Strangely for a greatest hits compilation, Green Day's International Superhits opens with two new songs recorded in 2001. ""Maria"" is Green Day playing to their strengths, a burst of rattling skinny tie new wave that has you itching to join the nearest mosh pit, and the cool acoustic pop of ""Poprocks and Coke"" is worthy of the trio's Nimrod. The implication is clear: the unfortunate diversion undertaken by 2000's Warning (where the band horrifically mutated into The Levellers) is over and now it's business as usual. Thank God for that. Although a host of skate chancers have tried to rewrite the likes of ""Basket Case"" and ""Brain Stew"", no one does punk pop better than Billie Joe and the boys. No one does it quite as intelligently either. ""Longview"" almost sneers at the slacker ennui it seems to embody, ""Welcome to Paradise"" sneaks in a cheeky steal from Dead Kennedys, and ""Redundant"" runs on a sublime psyche melody worth of Elliott Smith. All of which proves you don't need a potty mouth and a dull 'tude to be a real rebel--and dreadlocks and dogs on strings are a definite no no. --Ian Watson