''Kerplunk'' (stylized as ''Kerplunk!'') is the second studio album by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band Green Day, released on December 17, 1991, by

Lookout! Records Lookout Records (stylized as Lookout! Records) was an independent record label, initially based in Laytonville, California and later in Berkeley, California, Berkeley, focusing on punk rock. Established in 1987, the label is best known for having ...

. ''Kerplunk'' was Green Day's last independent release on the Lookout Records label, and was also the first album to feature

Tré Cool Frank Edwin Wright III (born December 9, 1972), better known by his stage name Tré Cool, is a German-born American musician, singer, and songwriter best known as the drummer for the punk rock band Green Day. He replaced the band's former drumme ...

on drums. ''Kerplunk'' officially includes only 12 tracks, but the versions released on CD and

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in th ...

also include the 4 tracks from the '' Sweet Children'' EP. One of those tracks is a cover of

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

's "

My Generation "My Generation" is a song by the English rock band the Who, which became a hit and one of their most recognizable songs. The song was named the 11th greatest song by ''Rolling Stone'' on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It becam ...

". Green Day guitarist and singer

Billie Joe Armstrong Billie Joe Armstrong (born February 17, 1972) is an American musician who is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Green Day, which he co-founded with Mike Dirnt in 1987. He is also a guitarist and vocalist for ...

stated in a 2021 ''

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including Condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to North and ...

'' magazine interview that ''Kerplunk'' is his favorite album, citing it as "kind of autobiographical."

Music

Kerplunk's sound has been described as punk rock,

pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti- suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other p ...

, and

indie rock Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the music they produc ...

Artwork

''Kerplunk'' was banned from certain stores because of the cover art. The cover features a mostly white picture (with some green added in) of a girl with a gun that has been fired. On the back cover, there is a boy lying on the ground with a gunshot wound on his back.

Release

The album sold 10,000 copies its first day and became Lookout!'s biggest-selling release. After debuting it to their fans in the Berkeley, California, area and receiving much approval from the critical

924 Gilman Street The Alternative Music Foundation located at 924 Gilman Street, often referred to by its fans simply as "Gilman", is a non-profit, all-ages, collectively organized music club. It is located in the West Berkeley area of Berkeley, California, about ...

crowd, the band packed up in a cramped, converted Bookmobile and headed east. Green Day developed a fan base on the east coast by way of the determined grassroots efforts of lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong. The opportunity paid off, as album sales reached over 50,000 copies. Along with the successful live shows, major labels took notice of ''Kerplunks phenomenal popularity. As a result, many labels approached the band. Green Day realized that they had outgrown their record distribution capacity with Lookout! and eventually signed with Reprise Records. With Reprise, Green Day recorded and released their next album ''

Dookie ''Dookie'' is the third studio album and the major label debut by American rock band Green Day, released on February 1, 1994, by Reprise Records. The band's first collaboration with producer Rob Cavallo, it was recorded in late 1993 at Fantas ...

'' (1994). In August 2005, Green Day pulled the album – as well as all of their other material released through the Lookout! label – due to unpaid royalties. It was reissued on CD by Reprise Records, who Green Day has been with since leaving Lookout!, on January 9, 2007. In Europe, the album was released by

Epitaph Europe Epitaph Records is an American independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, most acts signed to the label were punk and pop punk acts, while there are many post-hardcore and emo band ...

, and has remained in print. It was reissued on

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...

on March 24, 2009, by Reprise Records. There were no official singles released from the album, although "2000 Light Years Away" and "Christie Road" were released as mock-up singles in a Green Day singles box set entitled ''Green Day: Ultimate Collectors''. In November 2017, to coincide with the band's second compilation '' Greatest Hits: God's Favorite Band'', a music video was released for "2000 Light Years Away". As of November 2013, ''Kerplunk'' has sold more than 1,000,000 copies in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and more than 4,000,000 copies worldwide.

Reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

regards ''Kerplunk'' as the "perfect dry run" for the band's later mainstream appeal, saying it contains "both more variety and more flat-out smashes than previous releases had shown."

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

states "All in all, it's a magnitude better than its predecessor and only a hair behind the follow up." In December 2007, ''

Blender A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender container with a rotating me ...

'' magazine ranked the album number 47 on their "The 100 Greatest Indie Rock Albums Ever" list.

Track listing

Personnel

Adapted from the album liner notes.''Kerplunk'' liner notes. Retrieved 2011-10-13 Green Day *

– lead vocals,

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

, drums and backing vocals on "Dominated Love Slave" *

Mike Dirnt Michael Ryan Pritchard (born May 4, 1972), better known by his stage name Mike Dirnt, is an American rock musician who is the co-founder, bassist, backing and occasional lead vocalist, and former guitarist of Green Day. He has also played in seve ...

– bass,

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

– drums, lead vocals and guitar on "Dominated Love Slave" *

Al Sobrante John Kiffmeyer (born July 11, 1969), known professionally as Al Sobrante, is an American cinematographer and retired musician and songwriter. He is best known as the first drummer for the punk rock band Green Day. His stage name is a reference t ...

– drums on bonus tracks "Sweet Children", "Best Thing in Town", "Strangeland" and "My Generation" Production * Andy Ernst – producer,

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

, mixer * Green Day – producers *

John Kiffmeyer John Kiffmeyer (born July 11, 1969), known professionally as Al Sobrante, is an American cinematographer and retired musician and songwriter. He is best known as the first drummer for the punk rock band Green Day. His stage name is a reference to ...

– executive producer * John Golden – mastering * Chris Applecore – cover art, disc * Pat Hynes – artwork * Thadicus – art direction

Certifications

References

External links

''Kerplunk''
at

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

(streamed copy where licensed) {{Authority control 1991 albums Green Day albums Lookout! Records albums Albums produced by Andy Ernst