What makes Rivers Cuomo a good songwriter? Well in my eyes it’s his ability to take simple song concepts, that have been subject to every hoary cliché since caveman first started banging sticks together, and elevate them to something greater. He’s just as likely to talk about a missed romantic opportunity as a baseball allegory or, I don’t know, a treatise on land rights claims by Native Americans.
The point is you don’t have to listen to a bunch of whiny, crying ‘why doesn’t she love me, I love her’ b.s.
Which is a GOOD thing.
It’s been three years since I’ve had the good fortune to be graced with another Weezer studio album. 2005’s Make Believe was one of the band’s strongest releases to date with a sound reminiscent of a more polished version of their debut album.
So does their sixth album, Red, stand up?
Well after putting the album on repeat on my iPod for almost a week, I’d have to say…pretty well. After all these years the band still retains their core sound. It’s pure Weezer all the way and even a passing fan will enjoy the music. Songs like Pork and Beans and Everybody Get Dangerous seem almost familiar, built around Weezer’s traditional growling guitars, driving drumbeats and Cuomo’s tongue in cheek lyrical stylings.
And while I don’t find they’ve gone out of their way on this album to push creative boundaries they’ve still gone a bit further than the average bear would. I recommend The Greatest Man That Ever Lived and Heartsongs. It took me a little while to get into both of these songs but once I did I found they retained a cultish appeal that some of the album’s more format friendly tunage lacks.
So where does this album stand in a completely subjective ranking with their other work?
…Something like this.
1. Pinkerton
2. Make Believe
3. Blue
4. Green
5. Red
6. Maladroit
So yah. It’s not their greatest album. But that doesn’t mean it’s a bad album by any stretch of the imagination (Maladroit I’m looking at you). But after a couple days I found myself skipping over some songs and that’s a sure sign that you’re never going to get into Chris’ personal musical hall of fame.
So in the end, a solid album, even a good album, but not a great album. I’d recommend it to hardcore and casual fans alike, but I suspect that aside from one or two singles that this album isn’t going to be big with general population.
3 comments:
Yeah, after listening to my disc for as long as you have, I would have to say that The Greatest Man That Ever Lived and Heart Songs are my standout faves as well. Good solid Weezer CD.
Oh, and I would actually put this above the Green album in your list.
I debated calling it a tie.
Because the best songs from each album easily hold up to each other.
But overall, I think Green was a more solid album, with fewer songs that I was ambivalent about.
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