Weezer's Raditude

June 09, 2010

I went to the Buzz Under the Stars concert last Friday night and the band was doing their thing!

I’ve never reviewed a CD or concert before, but in this case, I’ve decided to give it a whirl.

I’ve always enjoyed Weezer but was never really a true fan (I confess, I don’t own any of their CDs).  So when I saw their new album, Raditude, come through the circulation desk at the library, I checked it out. My thoughts were that I could at last be less of a “follower” (you know, the kind of person who only knows the one, super popular song played over and over and over on the radio and claims to love the band) and more of a “leader” (the kind of person who knows all the songs on the CD and rolls her eyes at all the squealing “followers”).

I had to laugh at most of the CD.  I Want You To, I’m Your Daddy, The Girl Got Hot, Can’t Stop Partying, Trippin’ Down the Freeway, Let it All Hang Out, and In the Mall all display Weezer’s typical upbeat melodies and beats, and goofy, ironic lyrics in which Rivers Cuomo mostly bemoans his lack of luck with the ladies (or his surprise at an unusual success). Only Love is the Answer and I Don’t Want to Let You Go slow it down and seem a bit more sincere. Don’t get me wrong, I’m totally not complaining. It is part of what makes them as great as they are. I think the genius of Weezer is that they play the role of being rock stars while making fun of rock stars.

For example, about halfway through the concert, they started talking about “Kansas City—woo-hoo!” and all of these random facts about it (being the “fountain capital,” having great barbeque, etc.). This is a common ploy at concerts to make the experience seem more personal, but most people attending recognized how scripted it was. You could practically see the tongue in cheek! Need another example? Take the lyrics to Can’t Stop Partying, a song which drew huge excitement from the audience. It’s all about how the singer has to party and have all the drinks, girls,cars, and money. Does Weezer mean this literally? No way! They’re just mocking the image most rock stars try to flaunt. This satirical attitude pervades almost all of their new songs (as well as many of their old ones—anybody else remember Beverly Hills?), which is really quite brilliant. How many people didn’t get it? Oh man, it felt good to be in on the joke.

I say thanks to Weezer for putting on such a great show and for continuing to be yourselves in your music, whether your fans get it or not.

Visit 96.5 The Buzz for info on their next Buzz Under the Stars concert.

Erin D.