These days, bands are rarely silent between studio albums.

Thanks to a host of Youtube videos, b-sides and live albums, there’s plenty of material to keep fans happy as new material ripens.

“The Fall”

by the Gorillaz 3 of 5

Considering it was recorded almost exclusively on an iPad, “The Fall” by the Gorillaz is an impressive achievement.

While the album doesn’t capture the usual robust swagger of the famed cartoon band, it does showcase the skills of frontman Damon Albarn.

The former Blur singer recorded “The Fall” mostly on his iPad between gigs promoting the album “Plastic Beach” in the U.S., a tour that featured soul singer Bobby Womack, half of The Clash, the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble and performances by Mos Def, Lou Reed and Snoop Dogg.

During a colossal tour, Albarn steps back the sound for an intimate electronic album.

Like “Plastic Beach,” “The Fall” emits a sound akin to floating away at sea — only swap in a tour bus and the highways of North America. Most of the tracks pay tribute to stops on the tour. The song “Detroit” melds a series a blips, strums and bleeps that harkens to a Motor City assembly line. “The Parish of Space Dust” opens with clips of country radio stations and morning news brief before transitioning into a ballad to Texas sunrises and life on the road.

Unlike prior Gorillaz albums, “The Fall” is largely devoid of guest appearance. Ex-Clash rockers Mick Jones and Paul Simonon each lend guitar and bass on a track, and Womack adds a romantic croon to “Bobby In Phoenix.”

But most of the album is Albarn on his own. The album was first released free to members of the band’s fan site last December. It’s set to be released in stores April 18.

In many ways, “The Fall” is a treat for loyal fans. Regardless, the album packs plenty of its own merit.

“Awesome As F——”

by Green Day 2.5 or 5

Is there a difference between forever young and forever adolescent?

That’s the question behind Green Day’s new live album “Awesome As F———”

About a dozen years into his career, a transformed Bob Dylan released the song “Forever Young” as dedication to his children. More than 20 years into their careers, “Awesome as F———” proves Green Day is treading a thin line between exuding youthful charm and auditioning as the spokesmen for post-pubescent angst.

It’s impressive that Green Day and the band’s music has maintained youthfull energy and power perhaps longer than any band in history, but that’s a blessing and a curse. At some point, a band dropping F-Bombs on stage and in album titles loses its charm, even if the music is still catchy. The trio is aging (nearing their 40s), but their target audience is still fixed on the youth.

The band has shown it has immense capability to growing and express emotion — not angst. There is a difference. “Wake My Up When September Ends” is the gem of the live album. The song means so much to singer-guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong that he reportedly started crying once when he performed the song. That meaning emanates on the original version on “American Idiot” and on the live performance.

But on the very next track, Green Day slips back into adolescence. On “Good Riddance” — probably Green Day’s most recognizable song — Armstrong replaces a melodic acoustic guitar with strumming grunge chords like a teenager jamming in a garage. It ends the album on a firm taste of adolescent.

But after all, isn’t rock ‘n’ roll about staying forever young?