GREEN DAY ROCKS THE RACKS AT INDIE RETAIL

During the week leading up to the 1/19 release of Saviors, Green Day collaborated with Reprise and Crush Management to set up album playbacks at 250+ indie retail stores around the U.S. and abroad. Green Day and indie retail have a longstanding relationship, and these playback parties, which found hundreds of fans amid the record racks, was a vital reminder of the bond between the band and its grassroots constituency. Frontman Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist Mike Dirnt and drummer Tré Cool topped off the festivities with a surprise pop-in at Burbank’s Run Out Groove Records.

The band announced the in-store listening parties on social media in early January, promising “exclusive giveaways while supplies last.” The fans turned out in force, as the photo gallery below demonstrates.

The celebration culminated at NYC's Irving Plaza on 1/18 with a SiriusXM concert attended by 1,100 fans from all over the country. Rolling Stone reported that many stood for hours in the freezing cold waiting for the doors to open.

Three decades after Green Day’s breakthrough LP, Dookie, and 20 years after the trio upped the ante with the thematic tableau American Idiot, the pop-punk progenitors have reconvened with Rob Cavallo, who co-produced their signature records, and return to their sweet spot with the expansive, 15-track long-player Saviors. Along the way, they revel in Armstrong’s brand of political satire (“The American Dream Is Killing Me,” “Strange Days Are Here To Stay”), gleeful self-mockery (“Look Ma, No Brains!,” “Dilemma”) and nostalgia (“1981,” “Corvette Summer”) while applying the melodious sparkle of their Crush-managed peers Weezer to “Bobby Sox” and “Suzie Chapstick.” They reach for majesty with the anthemic lullaby “Father to a Son” and Revolver-esque closing title cut.

The effectiveness of Green Day's triumphant indie retail campaign won’t be reflected on the Bible’s album chart given that most of the stores involved don’t report to the trade’s Luminate database. But HITS’ newly launched Indie Retail Top 50 chart will compile every transaction, so take a look early next week for the results.