For over 20 years, American rock band Weezer has held a place on music lovers’ lists of favorite bands. Despite experiencing ups and downs over the years, the band’s pleasant, pop-rock melodies like “Island In The Sun” and “My Name is Jonas” have brought success and critical acclaim.
The band released its 10th studio album Friday, a self-titled album referred to as The White Album, which offers more of the familiar sound fans have come to love. This record marks Weezer’s fourth self-titled album, following The Blue Album, The Green Albumand The Red Album. The band may need to work on picking better album names, but luckily it saves that creative energy and puts it back into the music.
Ultimately, Weezer created its new album as a concept album. It revolves around an old-fashioned theme that college students can relate to: summertime fun. This concept translates well, as you can easily imagine jamming out to these songs while relaxing at the beach.
Album opener “California Kids” has a pleasant feel that will inspire a longing for California during the summer. The catchy guitar work and strong vocals, courtesy of frontman Rivers Cuomo, work well here, with a contrasting sense of hopeless optimism on display.
The album continues with songs like “Wind In Our Sail,” where Cuomo mentions Charles Darwin sailing on the HMS Beagle, and “Thank God For Girls,” a song about a girl and a cannoli. Let’s not forget “Do You Wanna Get High?” a tune with self-explanatory content. Throughout the song, Cuomo simply asks the question posed by this track’s title.
“L.A. Girlz” and “Summer Elaine and Drunk Dori” come off as the album’s strongest songs. “L.A. Girlz” has an anthem-like feel to it that will make you want to get up, take out your lighter and slowly sway to the music. “Summer Elaine and Drunk Dori” has a catchy chorus that will remain in your head long after the album has finished playing.
The last song on the album, “Endless Bummer,” veers off into a change of tone. All the other tracks are fun and upbeat, while the ending song takes on a slower and less-optimistic point of view. Cuomo, or at least the narrator he sings for, questions summer before finally articulating that he just wants it to end. This acoustic track ends the album on a high, albeit somber, note.
At only ten songs, listening to The White Album will not take up too much of your time, but its primarily fun and upbeat sound makes it an enjoyable listen. Cuomo and the rest of Weezer have created another high-quality album, on par with some of their stronger, earlier work.
That said, the album lacks a wow factor. The summertime theme works, but no particular song grabs the listener’s attention. After the hype of summer ends, this album may be forgotten. Never the less, with the summer fast approaching, this release could not have come at a better time. Hopefullyit will become a summertime favorite; a perfect soundtrack for chilling by the pool or relaxing on the beach.
Grade: B
Follow Alec Kuehnle on Twitter.
