Your problem may be your lighting. If there is little light to reflect even a yellow will look blah. Make sure you pick clear colors, not the greiges that seem to proliferate in popularity-the black tint added to the base paint is not your friend!

Do you mean a fresh green, for example, rather than a sage green?

Yes. Try samples on the walls to give you an idea of how reflective the colors will be. If this is part of a major redo, be sure you check out your lighting options. The problem with most basements is that the low ceilings will also contribute to that closed-in feeling and using a bunch of can lighting can help more than the usual lamps.