Weezer S/T Album Reveiw by Emily Winter

Hey everyone, it’s Jonas… I mean Emily… Welcome back to another blog. I hope you enjoyed my last one. Today I’ve got a new album review for y’all, and this one is on Weezer’s self-titled album, aka The Blue Album.

In Los Angeles, California, in 1992, a rock band by the name of Weezer was born. Members varied; however, on this album they include Brian Bell (guitar, vocals), Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar), Matt Sharp (bass, vocals), and Patrick Wilson (drums).

Released on May 10th, 1994, The Blue Album became Weezer’s debut album, and it features ten amazing tracks, each being so unique. The songs are My Name Is Jonas, No One Else, The World Has Turned and Left Me Here, Buddy Holly, Undone – The Sweater Song, Surf Wax America, Say It Ain’t So, In the Garage, Holiday, and Only in Dreams. From upbeat and catchy to more melancholy tunes, each track is totally indie and pop-punk. It’s a great album to put on repeat. So let’s dive into some of the tracks that stood out the most to me.

The only song I knew from Weezer’s catalog was Say It Ain’t So. I remember hearing it in a biker bar, of all places, one day and thinking, “This sounds sick…” and I’ve probably listened to it well over a thousand times by now. Written by Rivers Cuomo, he uses rich visualization and heavy instrumentation to show just how deep this story is. It’s a slow-ish but heavy rocker, and it fits the theme perfectly. Cuomo tells us about the struggles of alcoholism and a father falling away from his family. Lyrics from verse three really capture that struggle: “I can’t confront you, I never could do that which might hurt you, so try and be cool. When I say, ‘This way is a water slide away from me that takes you further every day’…” During the bridge, there’s this great build-up and everything speeds up. Then a long scream comes in at the end of the bridge that really captures this painful experience. The bridge is probably my favorite part of the song, especially with the sick guitar solo at the end. Overall, it’s a great song to listen to and one to throw on your “Snowboarding Playlist” if you’re anything like me.

Track eight, In the Garage, also written by Cuomo, is such a cool and creative song. I connect to it on so many levels. It’s about a person finding comfort, tranquility, and safety in their garage, and having creative freedom without the outside world’s judgment. This song really makes me wish I had a garage… The intro kind of catches you off guard. It’s calm and slow, with a harmonica being the first thing you hear, which is quite funny for an album such as this one. Then this heavy, distorted guitar comes in along with the vocals and drums. As the track plays, we hear about some belongings that bring this person comfort, but it also tells us about their creative side within their self-isolation. I connected most to the lyrics in verse three: “I’ve got electric guitar, I play my stupid songs, I write these stupid words, and I love every one. Waiting there for me, yes I do…” They make me think about when I’m away from home and how I’ve got songs I’m working on. Those words are sitting in a book waiting at home for me, as is my guitar. Cuomo almost makes out these inanimate things as friends, just patiently waiting. I especially love the line, “I write these stupid words, and I love every one…” As an artist myself, these words really hit me. Yeah, some of the words I write are stupid, but I wrote them, and I love every single one of them. And just like the song states, “No one cares about my ways…” There’s also a great musical build-up during the outro with the increased volume and the repeating lyrics: “In the garage, I feel safe. No one laughs about my ways. In the garage, where I belong. No one hears me, no one hears me…” Cuomo is almost screaming the lyrics, which really emphasizes just how passionate this place of safety is. Overall, it’s an amazing song to put on repeat.

Finally, I want to talk about track nine, Holiday, another Cuomo piece. Honestly, it reminds me of The Beach Boys’ song Wouldn’t It Be Nice. Obviously, there are many differences between these two songs, but it was one of the first things that came to mind. Wouldn’t It Be Nice is about a guy expressing how great it would be for him and his girlfriend to be older so they could be together and live alone. It’s a very passionate song. Holiday is really just about a guy wanting to get away with his girl to a far-away place they’ve never been to. But when you really listen, there’s a lot more passion involved than that simple meaning, which is why it reminded me of The Beach Boys’ song. The music gives off a dream-like feeling throughout the track, and there’s an amazing build-up that begins right before the end of the bridge, where everything gets more intense. There’s a quicker beat on the drums, a faster rhythm on the guitar, and the vocals get pretty heavy. Most notably during the chorus when they sing, “Heartbeat, heartbeat…” and during the outro: “Let’s go away, let’s go away (far away), to stay. Let’s go away, let’s go away (on a holiday, far away, to stay) in a heartbeat.” These heavily sung and repeated lyrics give off an intense drive to get away. Apart from the meaning behind this great song, the singing is fabulous, especially the harmonies. It’s probably one of my favorite aspects of the track. This song is so addicting to listen to and just another great track to put on repeat.

The Blue Album has many more great tracks, and I highly recommend throwing this one on your record player. Hope y’all enjoyed this album review. I had a lot of fun writing it and even more fun listening to it. As always, let us know in the comments if there’s an album you think I should review or a band I should go see.

All the best!