RAK studio London pic.twitter.com/rlPiTmTe4V

— Green Day (@GreenDay) December 19, 2021

Some fans however have started to stir the pot of hype and come up with their own theories of the meaning behind the clip. At one point in the clip, the number “1972” can be spotted flashing on screen. “1972? 50th birthday special?” commented one fan, referencing the fact that the bands’ 3 core members; Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, and Tré Cool were all born in 1972. Possibly alluding to a great big half-century celebration for them all wrapped up neatly in a bunch of old and new Green Day recordings? Who knows?

This wouldn’t make the only moment of reflection for the band in recent months. Only a few weeks ago the band put out The BBC Sessions, a retrospective take on music recorded between 1994 and 2001. In a description taken from the band’s merch store here, they explain, “Green Day would visit the BBC’s Maida Vale studios in London four times and record live sessions for Radio 1’s “evening show” and its popular DJ Steve Lamacq” adding, “this compilation documents those sessions, and includes many of the band’s hits including “when i come around”, “basket case”, “brain stew/jaded” and “minority”.

GO GO GO!! BBC Sessions (featuring songs recorded between ’94-01) is out now https://t.co/oTzkxK1Lds pic.twitter.com/FIdcbz8e6V

— Green Day (@GreenDay) December 10, 2021

There has also been a new line of merch released to celebrate the 30^th birthday of their sophomore LP Kerplunk. See the store here, although if you’re after anything more exciting than a t-shirt with the old cover on the front, and a reissue of the CD… I wouldn’t bother.

The band are also STILL embarking on their massive “Hella Mega Tour” with pop-punk neighbours Fall Out Boy, and the ever tongue and cheek Weezer. With the UK dates still yet to come you can find information on dates here. See below the remaining European dates for the tour beginning next summer:

19/06/2022 – Ernst-Happel Stadion – Vienna – Austria
21/06 – Antwerps Sportpaleis – Antwerp – Belgium
22/06 – Stadspark – Groningen – Netherlands
24/06 – London Stadium – London – UK
25/06 – John Smith’s Stadium – Huddersfield – UK
27/06 – Venue TBA – Dublin – Ireland
29/06 – Bellahouston Park – Glasgow – UK
02/07 – La Defense Arena – Paris – France

sunn O))) BBC 6Live announcement!! @pitchfork https://t.co/qXNc7BuOP6@avonhausswolff @IdeologicOrgan @BBC6Music

— Southern Lord (@TwatterLord) November 3, 2021

The session consists of three tracks and was recorded in Studio 4 at BBC’s Maida Vale following a 2019 UK tour, which concluded with a sold-out show at Roundhouse in London. The songs in the session are derived from the band’s eighth and ninth studio albums, Life Metal and Pyroclasts, both released in 2019 and produced by the legendary Steve Albini, known for his work with Nirvana and The Jesus Lizard.

The core members of the group, Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson are accompanied by a whole host of musicians on this session, according to a recent press release. This includes the likes of long-time Sunn O))) collaborator and keyboardist Tos Nieuwenhuizen, trombonist Stephen Moore, bassist Tim Midyett and prolific Swedish composer and singer-songwriter Anna von Hausswolf, who has worked alongside bands such as Swans and Wolves In The Throne Room. Many of the other personnel mentioned, including Midyett and Moore, performed on the studio recordings of the band’s last two albums.

The dense and ominous sound of Sunn O))) is unmistakeable, and the group have truly established themselves as giants of experimental metal over the years, having released nine full-length albums since 2000. These last two albums, Pyroclasts and Life Metal, maintain the same feedback-heavy, fuzz-laden sound that Sunn O))) have always been known for, but there is a heavy emphasis on improvisation and free-form rhythm within these pieces, prioritising texture and pure experimentation above all else. The group’s musical catalogue, including these last two albums, is available on all streaming services, and physical media can be found here.

Yesterday, on the 3^rd of November, Southern Lord Recordings shared a five-minute-long teaser for the upcoming live session, featuring an excerpt of the song “Troubled Air”. This can be viewed here. The band also has an official European merch store, which features some vinyl variants that are completely EU exclusive.

For other information regarding Sunn O))), a catalogue of the band’s live recordings can be found on Bandcamp. You can visit the band’s website here. 

Shown below is the track list for the forthcoming session.

1). “Pyroclasts F”
2). “Pyroclasts C#”
3). “Troubled Air”