Green Day's 'Holy Toledo' Sounds Like a New Direction for the Act

Green Day inch closer toward a sound mostly devoid of punk indicators on "Holy Toledo!," a new song the Billie Joe Armstrong-led rockers released on Friday (Nov. 5).

The tune, which comes from the soundtrack to the movie Mark, Mary & Some Other People, finds the band channeling an aesthetic gleaned from the mod revival and the Motown sound — especially in bassist Mike Dirnt and drummer Tré Cool's lockstep rhythms that recall new-wavers The Jam or singer Phil Collins' cover of The Supremes' "You Can't Hurry Love." Armstrong is no stranger to digging into the sounds of early rock 'n' roll, previously teaming with Norah Jones on their Everly Brothers-indebted Foreverly collab album.

Near the bottom of this post, listen to "Holy Toledo!" and see the lyrics for the song. Watch the trailer for Mary, Mark & Other People — out Friday — after the track.

"LET'S GOOOOO," Green Day said. "our new song 'Holy Toledo!' from @MarkMaryMovie is out everywhere now. … Catch the film in theaters + on demand."

The song joins other standalone Green Day singles from 2021, "Pollyanna" and "Here Comes the Shock." In September, the group issued a live cover of KISS' "Rock and Roll All Nite" to mark the end of their U.S. Hella Mega Tour with Fall Out Boy and Weezer. Green Day's latest album, Father of All Motherfuckers, emerged in February 2020. It's currently unclear if this year's singles will appear on an upcoming Green Day album.

NEW MUSIC PLAYLIST: Keep up with each week's new songs by following Loudwire's "Weekly Wire" Spotify playlist, featuring 50 tracks with updates each Friday.

Green Day, "Holy Toledo!" Lyrics

I wanna go where the trouble begins
And the morning after
Smells just like a dirty ashtray
Oh give shame
And lock me in the shower
The penitentiary
Elementary school
For losers
If this is how it's gonna end
Then it feels alright
Baby let's get sick again
We're hell raisers
Death wish cravers
We're running with razor blades
Party favors
Sex with strangers
We don't care what the neighbors say
If this is how it's gonna end
Cause it feels alright
Baby let's get sick again
Crawling out of a dead mans bed
We don't wanna know
We don't wanna know
Killing myself just to live
We don't wanna go
We don't wanna go
We’re hell raisers
Death wish cravers
We’re running with razor blades
Party favors
Sex with strangers
We don’t care what the neighbors say
If this is how it’s gonna end
Cause it feels alright
Baby let’s get sick again