Weezer Album: “Weezer (Green)”

Weezer return after five years. I disagree with the band claiming the record is somewhere "between Pinkterton and the blue album", though I wish it were true. Production-wise, it's extremely sharp, very similar to the blue album. Musically, the songs on the green album are half as complex (as Pinkterton, at least). The solos (almost all of them) are simply the vocal melody churned out on guitar. Rivers can shred on guitar, but he totally opted not to on this album. Lyrically, it seems practically without meaning. Considering it's Weezer, and their prior song topics and lyrics, this album is weak by comparison. Not that they are BAD lyrics, they are simply pop lyrics. (Rivers himself is quoted saying that "the lyrics suck"...) HOWEVER... despite all of this, you're still left with an amazingly infectious power pop rock album that I don't think should disappoint many people. It's not groundbreaking, but it's just good rockin music that few bands create like this.

Although I like the new Weezer album entitled "weezer", (which is the best name by the way), I must say that it sounds a little sweet for me.....letting Ric Ocasek produce an album can only achieve one goal-it will definately sound "poppy". For any of you who love Guided by Voices-and I am a huge fan, you can relate to what I'm saying via the "Do the Collapse" album that Ocasek produced in 1999. I wish that guy would stay away from every band I listen to. He's a masterful producer, but tends to try to turn all bands into top 40 sound. Anyway, I like the album and am I weezer fan, all fans should and probably do have the album. Don't expect Pinkerton or even the Blue album, but you'll like it.

Am I the only person who thought Pinkerton was the Best Ever?

Nobody loved "Weezer" and "Pinkerton" more than me, and that's why I can say wholeheartedly that "Green" (or whatever we're supposed to call it) sounds like a bunch of dumb kids imitating Weezer. It has none of the intelligence, imagination, and wry wit of their first two albums. In fact, all it does have is Rivers Cuomo's reedy voice and the wall of guitars. Where are the riveting guitar leads? The neck-snapping shifts in dynamics? The delicate guitar intros and intervals? The intricate vocal arrangements and harmonies? And most of all, the sincerity, the warmth, and the passion?

Green leaves me cold. Light and poppy, with no guts at all. Serious Weezer fans may as well pass this one up and wait until Cuomo starts getting serious about his songwriting again, and stops worrying so much about what his fans think. Teen angst. Get over it.

...but I can't help but feel there's quite a bit missing here. The Blue Album came out when I was in middle school, and I got drawn to it for the catchy-as-hell melodies and the generally uplifting feel of songs like "The Sweater Song" and "In The Garage" - I ended up loving the album because there was more to it than just the pop. Pinkerton, on the other hand, drew me further in with a combination of the same great sense of melody and harmony and the more intense, emotionally stirring lyrics. This album, on the other hand, seems lacking in both departments. The riffs aren't really catchy - the only songs that stick with me much at all are "Don't Let Go" and "Crab" - and the lyrics don't have nearly the impact because, apparently, Cuomo was wounded by the indifferent-to-cruel reception that Pinkerton got. Seems a little cowardly, then, to backtrack into the relatively pointless subject material found here. All I'm really left with is a dissatisfied and disappointed feeling, and I hardly even want to go back to the older stuff because I can't help but be reminded, listening to the brutal honesty of Pinkerton, that Cuomo couldn't handle it, and ultimately kinda gave up: the honesty and raw openness I valued so much in Pinkerton, it seems, is regarded by its author as a mistake. I can't respect that.

And, honestly, "Hash Pipe"? Give me a break.

But I *do* like the song "Don't Let Go" quite a bit, if only 'cause of the catchy chorus, hence the second star.

First off, you cannot enjoy this album if you are too worried about it being able to live up to the Blue Album. This CD is a great progression for the band, mostly in the lyrics. Not as "geek-ish" as The Blue Album and not nearly as "techno-ish" as Pinkerton, The Green Album offers up 28 minutes of up-beat, self defying songs. Sure, the CD is really short, and that alone kind of made me wanting more by the end of my first listen, but after the second listen, you will be hooked. All the songs on here are perfect. "Photograph" is my favorite song, a song Rivers wrote about all of his failed relationships and about how to do things on his own, rather than depending on someone else, and that is pretty much the basis of this whole album. It isn't shy or awkward, instead, this album is fully self-aware and is brimming with confidence. The most noteworthy moments are Photograph, Don't Let Go, Glorious Day, Crab and Island in the Sun. Please, try to enjoy this album. There aren't many great bands left these days and the music scene seems to get worse every year. Cherish this album, because you know in 5 years nothing will compare to it.