Nimrod (album) - Music and Lyrics

Music and Lyrics

Nimrod is more musically varied than previous Green Day albums. Armstrong noted that with the album, Green Day went down "different avenues," adding: "Each song has its own character and identity so we wanted to be able to bring that out as much as possible." Sandy Masuo of the Los Angeles Times likened "Worry Rock" to the music of Elvis Costello. "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" has been referred to as a "pop-punk campfire singalong ballad". After opening with Haden's violin solo, "Hitchin' a Ride" evolves into a bass-driven rock song with a "Stray Cats vibe". Cool referred to "Take Back" (on which Armstrong employs death metal-style vocals during the chorus) and "Platypus (I Hate You)" as "some of the most punk songs we've ever done". "Last Ride In" is a surf rock instrumental, and "King for a Day" is a ska punk song featuring a horn section. Armstrong compared the song to the Oi! genre, and noted "It would be funny for a bunch of macho fraternity guys to be singing along and, little do they know, the song's about being in drag." The "chiming" guitar riffs of "Redundant" have been compared to those of The Byrds.

Lyrically, Nimrod touches upon more reflective themes not present on earlier Green Day albums. Much of the album illustrates Armstrong's sentiments on growing up and his role as a husband and father. "The Grouch" centers on Armstrong's fears of "wasting away, getting fat, becoming impotent, and losing his ideals." On "Walking Alone", he reflects on old friends from his childhood, and notes that he is "too drunk to figure out they're fading away." Armstrong discusses the struggle to stay sober on "Hitchin' a Ride". "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" was inspired by Armstrong's failed relationship with a woman that ended when she joined the Peace Corps in 1990. The same woman is also the subject of "She" from Dookie and "She's a Rebel" from American Idiot (2004).

However, other songs contain subject matter and themes more typical of Green Day's previous work. Armstrong wrote "Nice Guys Finish Last" about the band's interactions with the band's lawyers and managers and how "everybody thinks they know what's best for you." "Jinx" contains self-deprecating lyrics characteristic of many of the band's songs, while "Prosthetic Head" has been referred to as a "typical ticked-off kiss-off". "King for a Day" tells the story of a cross-dresser. "Uptight" contains repeated mentions of suicide; Armstrong explained, "I think the word 'suicide' just sounded really good. And the line, 'I'm a son of a gun'. It made sense, but I can't really explain why it made sense. It just sort of does."