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Green Day’s forthcoming album, Revolution Radio, is due out in October, and its release in close proximity to the election is not a coincidence. The punk rockers have never shied away from expressing bold opinions about politics and have channeled their frustrations with the system into their music for decades. Last week, the trio — Billie Joe Armstrong, Tré Cool and Mike Dirnt — premiered the first single,”Bang Bang” from the new album, a track that explores mass shootings.
Revolution Radio, frontman Billie Joe Armstrong told Rolling Stone, explores “mass shootings, political spin in the run-up to the presidential election and narcissistic social media.” Unsurprisingly, Armstrong is staunchly opposed to a Donald Trump presidency, and recently compared the aspiring commander-in-chief to Adolf Hitler in a newly published interview in the UK-based rock mag Kerrang.
“The worst problem I see about Trump is who his followers are. I actually feel bad for them, because they’re poor, working-class people who can’t get a leg up. They’re pissed off and he’s preyed on their anger. He just said, ‘You have no options and I’m the only one, and I’m going to take care of it myself.’ I mean, that’s f*cking Hitler, man!”
It’s not the first time Armstrong has spoken out about a conservative leader. He was vocal about his distaste for former President George W. Bush, and the trio released American Idiot in 2004, which was later adapted as a Broadway rock opera that delved into the tragedies of war during that era. But Armstrong believes that Trump is far more disastrous.
“I don’t even know how else to explain it,” the singer continued. “I wish I were over-exaggerating. And sometimes maybe I do over-exaggerate with [George W] Bush. But with Trump, I just can’t wait ’til he’s gone.”
Watch the band’s music video for “Bang Bang” below.