Irresponsible and illegal behavior has consequences on “The Kids Aren’t Alright,” “The End of the Line” and a thief’s Waterloo, “Walla Walla. “Though short on answers, “Have You Ever” and “Starin’ at the Sun” make astute observations about life.
A bitter punk version of 1975’s “Feelings” puts an enraged spin on the syrupy love ballad. Sexual activity, selfishness and insensitivity are central to “She’s Got Issues.” “Why Don’t You Get a Job?” uses profane, derogatory terms to criticize lazy people. Lead singer Dexter Holland whines “I don’t give a s— if Ieven ever wake up in the morning”(“No Brakes”). He rants “f— you” repeatedly on the title track, a nightmarish diatribe about the state of American culture. Morbid liner art focuses on pain and death.
On “Have You Ever,” Holland declares, “I’d like to leave the world as a better place.” He can begin by staying off stage and out of the studio. Americana‘s few decent themes aren’t worth enduring the rest of The Offspring’s incendiary, obscene screaming.
