Albums

Weezer
The Red Album (Deluxe)

Listening to Weezer's blue album always takes me back to the sweet days of being 14 again. Oh yes, the days I started getting in on the music scene of my fellow upper classmen in high school. I remember Stacey listening to them on the bus and that's how I was introduced to the album, although I had heard the Sweater Song numerous times on the alternative radio station before that. The blue album became one of my favorite and most defining albums of Freshmen year. Okay, let's skip the nostalgia and fast forward about 12 years or so. Although my music tastes have expanded and evolved over the years, I still bought every album Weezer came out with. Pinkerton was exceptional, I have to say. Which is why, even after the disappointing green album, I still continued to buy their music hoping their new stuff would be like their old stuff. But nothing they've done has really impressed me since the days of my youth. And why should it? I can't expect them to make an album exactly like what they had done in the past or music that can give me the same feelings I had when I first heard My Name Is Jonas or El Scorcho. Just as I can't expect Da Vinci to recreate the Mona Lisa. So, I suppose Weezer has evolved too. But it seems to me that they haven't grown up a whole lot since then. And I feel like they aren't trying to appeal to the generation that made them big in the first place. I get the impression that the band is shifting their focus to the teeny boppers of today. And I also get the feeling Rivers is only out to get the attention of those kids who just wanna be weird for the sake of being weird, just like him (hence the new cowboy getup and molestache, not to mention lyrics like "I ain't got a thing to prove to you.) Cant' blame a guy for trying. So now to the red album. Yes, I bought it before listening to it (besides the over played Pork and Beans) only because I consider myself a Weezer fan, and as a fan I just have to get it, ya know? My first listen through I thought, "This album is kind of lame." And then I listened again. And then again. And some of the songs started to get in my head. You know, a lot of them were kind of catchy. But some of them were rather boring. I don't think it's a spectacular album, but there are some things I like about it. First of all, the album is more of a joint effort of the band, as not all of the songs are written and sung by Rivers. So some of the lyrics have a different style to them and the music has a little bit different feel than if it was all done by Cuomos. This particular album (Deluxe) supposedly has 4 extra songs on it than the original album. It also includes a booklet that contains the lyrics and commentary from the band that the original doesn't have. My favorite tracks are Automatic and Thought I Knew. If you're a Weezer fan, I'm sure you've already got the album. But for those of you who aren't, I don't recommend buying the album. Just go download Pork and Beans because I'm sure you think it's sooooo cooool.