Scattered was never one of the best-known songs on Nimrod, the album Green Day released in 1997, and perhaps that is exactly why it suits Tess & The Details so well. Rather than reaching for an obvious anthem, the band chose a more personal track shaped by memory, disorientation and the passing of time, feelings that also run through the music video and their own connection to San Francisco.
“Scattered is one of those hidden gems in the Green Day catalog. It reminded me of walking around San Francisco with your headphones in. The feeling of isolation, recalling those memories that you wish you could recreate. Those feelings are universal, human. Timeless. That’s why Green Day connects to so many. The two videos, “When I Come Around” and “Good Riddance,” naturally embody those feelings. Together, they create something original. We’re proud to be from the Bay. We share this home.”
— Tess Stevens
Led by Tess Stevens, Tess & The Details are a San Francisco melodic punk band known for their forceful guitars, memorable hooks and firmly DIY approach. Their version of “Scattered” keeps the energy of the original while giving it a character of its own. It sounds fuller and more forceful, driven by a solid rhythm section and a more open, emotional performance from Stevens. That approach brings the song’s reflective side to the surface: the urge to look back, revisit shared memories and wonder what remains after everything has changed.
The choice also makes sense within Green Day Tribute Compilation Vol. 3, released by Coffin Curse Records and Punk Rock Radar, with proceeds going to no-kill animal shelters. Tess & The Details will also appear at the compilation’s release show at the Punk Rock Museum in Las Vegas, making their contribution feel like part of a wider celebration rather than an isolated cover.
Directed and edited by Stevens, the video extends that tribute through imagery and locations associated with “When I Come Around” and “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)”. The band even returns to the same BART station seen in Green Day’s video, where the payphone is still in place.
The final stop is Bottom of the Hill, where Green Day celebrated the release of Nimrod and Tess & The Details later launched Runaway. With the venue due to close at the end of 2026, the moment carries an added sense of farewell.
More than a cover, “Scattered” becomes part of the band’s own story. Listen to the song with the video playing, and its full emotional weight comes into focus.
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