Weezer – “The Green Album”
(Geffen/Interscope)

All I want to know is, how the hell did Weezer get to be so damn popular? After something like a 5 year hiatus, their fan base is probably bigger now than it ever was before. Tell me, where is the logic in that? Then again, I guess rock music never was very logical to begin with. It just goes to show that Weezer are a great band with a lasting appeal, and it’s easy to see why the Green Album was easily one of the most anticipated albums of the year. The big question in my mind was, could Weezer live up to their own legacy?

When Weezer toured last year, early indications were that their new material was dry, depressing and anything but poppy. But still, the hype built and built, and I can only think that that somewhere before they actually released the album, they feverishly reworked a lot of the songs. The end result of the new songwriting exhibited on the Green Album didn’t turn out nearly as bad as it could have. And yet… it doesn’t quite measure up to the songs found on their other two records.

One thing is clear: Rivers did not want to risk another commercial failure like Pinkerton, and so he went back to the tried and true pop rock formula of the blue album. But something is missing this time. Maybe that something is Matt Sharp. He was replaced by former Juliana Hatfield bass player Mikey Welsh, who can play bass just fine, but is simply not the great songwriter that Matt Sharp was. Sharp’s departure also seems to be the reason for the disappearance of the moogs and keyboards this time around.

I have few basic gripes with the record, one being that the music sounds watered down, rushed and a little generic. The Weezer big rock sound is still there, but now it sounds distant, buried in the mix. Plus there are few too many slow tempo songs, and too many wah-wah guitar solos.

If it wasn’t a Weezer album, quite honestly, I don’t think I would have given it a second listen. But maybe that’s just my bad.

On the flip side of the coin, there is a lot of catchy stuff on this album. Some of the songs grabbed me right off the bat, such as Photograph and Simple Pages. Now some of the other songs are starting to grow on me as well, especially Glorious Day and O Girlfriend (part of which reminds me of a Jam song, but I can’t figure out which one). I don’t even mind Hash Pipe, which I thought was a disgrace the first time I heard it on the radio. (I still think it needs an intro of some sort though.)

The reviews of the Green Album have been mixed pretty much all across the board, and I think both sides have good arguments. The thing with this album is that if you really want to fall in love with it, then I think you probably will. On the other hand, if you are just waiting for your chance to denounce Weezer, then you will find plenty to complain about as this record is far from bulletproof.

Personally I found the Green Album to be both a disappointment, and yet a relief at the same time. I’m not writing them off just yet. Let’s wait and see what else these boys have up their sleeve, shall we? — Sean