Review Rewind: Weezer

Weezer has risen to social media fame in recent years, with fans arguing over the band’s best and worst albums. The album “Weezer,” more commonly known as the “Blue Album,” is most agreed to be their best. With the 30th anniversary edition of the “Blue Album” released last year in November, I thought it would be a great idea to delve into Weezer’s debut release.

The “Blue Album” first released on May 10, 1994 to not-so-critical acclaim, but slowly gained a cult following. The album did so well as a debut that many critics believed they were an industry plant, as the record went platinum in just eight months. Another reason they were disliked was from their geeky sound and appearance. One of the current members of the band, Scott Shriner, spoke during Weezer’s Spotify Session.

“My singer in my band, Black Elvis, at the time was like, ‘you gotta come see this, this band, they’re like totally nerds, but they have like heavy distorted guitars and killer melodies and songs.’ I’m just like, ‘this doesn’t sound good.’ He’s like ‘no, come and see it.’ But I went and saw them and I was very impressed. I’d never heard music like that or saw a band that looked like that.”

At the time the “Blue Album” came out, many eyes were on big grunge bands like Nirvana, Alice In Chains, and Pearl Jam, so Weezer seemed very out of place in the sea of more serious bands at the time. People were not open to the idea of something not as serious as these other bands.

The “Blue Album” has an iconic album cover, with all founding members featured on it. Drummer Patrick Wilson, lead vocalist and guitarist Rivers Cuomo, bassist Matt Sharp, and backup vocalist and guitarist Brian Bell are lined up on that iconic blue background. The album conveys feelings of teenage angst, heartbreak, love, and self-acceptance. Songs like “No One Else” delves into those themes of love with the line, “I want a girl, who will laugh for no one else.” “In The Garage” has Rivers talk about his nerdy obsessions at the time, such as Dungeons and Dragons, comic books, and bands he liked. The guitars on the records are filled with catchy riffs and melodies. One of the most known guitar parts from the band’s legacy is the lick right before the third chorus on the song “Buddy Holly.” The rest of the instrumentals are amazing as well, with the subtle yet amazing bass lines from Matt Sharp, the simple but iconic drum parts and fills from Patrick Wilson, and the amazing harmonization from Brian Bell on backing vocals.

Bell on backing vocals. With catchy and iconic songs, Weezer’s “Blue Album” stands out as one of the best albums of the 90’s. My five standouts from this album have to be “The World Has Turned And Left Me Here,” “Undone - The Sweater Song,” “Surf Wax America,” “Say It Ain’t So,” and “Holiday.” The album is consistently amazing and has no duds, which is why I’m giving it 5 out of 5 stars.