There's
a reason why Weezer's third
album consciously recalls their first,
not just in its eponymous title, but in
its stark cover, Ric Ocasek production,
and tight pop songs. That's not because
Weezer was trying to recapture their core
audience because, unbeknownst to them,
they already had. Once their second album
Pinkerton stiffed on the charts and was
lambasted in the press (including an devastatingly
unfair pan from Rolling Stone, who named
it the worst album of 1996), the group
dropped out of sight and leader Rivers
Cuomo went into seclusion. Remarkably,
the group's following, unlike so many
of their peers from forgotten label-sponsored
alt-rockers like Nada Surf to indie rockers
as respected as Sebadoh — never
waned, it only strengthened, as fans slowly
realized the brilliance of Pinkerton and
how the debut only seemed better, catchier,
funnier as the years passed. Weezer eventually
realized this through the magic of the
internet (plus an uproarious Japanese
tour), and they toured in 2000, knocking
out a new album at the end of the year,
when they realized that there were thousands
of fans eager to hear a new record. The
cynical out there might interpret this
as crass commercialism .Hey! They only
made a record when they realized people
were listening, but it's actually a reflection
of one of Weezer's greatest strengths:
Cuomo's shyness and awkwardness, neither
of which he can disguise, no matter how
he tries. He didn't want to record another
album unless he knew somebody was listening,
because he didn't know if there was a
purpose otherwise. This is the quality
that came shining through on Pinkerton
(and is most likely the reason he disdains
the album as too personal, no matter how
great it is), and it's also apparent on
this Weezer album (which will inevitably
be known as the Green Album, much like
how fans dubbed the debut the Blue Album,
due to its background cover), even if
he consciously shies away
from the stark autobiography that made
their previous album. Sure, there may
be clues tucked away in any of these songs,
but for the most part, this is simply
a collection of punk-pop songs in the
now-patented Weezer style. And that, quite
frankly, is more than enough. This may
be a very short album — a mere 28:34,
actually — but that just makes it
bracing, a reminder of how good, nay great,
this band can be. Especially since this
is a conscious return to their debut,
this may seem like nothing special —
it's just punk-pop, delivered without
much dynamic range but with a whole lot
of hooks — but nobody else does
it this well, no matter how many bands
try. And, frankly, that's enough, because
this band rocks tight and focused, with
wonderful melodies, and songs that have
enough little details to give them personality,
even when Rivers is avoiding personality.
This is a combination of great performances
and great songwriting, something that
puts to shame both the mainstream rockers
and underground wannabes of the early
'00s. That's Weezer's great strength they
certainly are accessible, but they're
so idiosyncratic within that realm, it's
hard not to think of them as outsiders.
The fact that this Weezer sounds as fresh
as the first Weezer is as much a testament
to the band's talents as the musical stagnation
of the post-grunge, post-Britpop '90 Britpop,
but, three albums out, they've yet to
deliver a record that isn't immensely
satisfying. Yeah, it's about 70 cents
per minute, but you'd be a fool not to
consider it just about the best value
of any rock record yet released in 2001.