Category: The Rock & Other Listening Material

So I was in Chipolte for lunch today and I hear a Tejano version of Hall and Oates’ “I Can’t Go For That.”

I guess bad music knows no cultural boundaries.

Weezer fans are nervous after a recent mtv report hinting that the days of the weez may be over.

In the article, recently-married Rivers Cuomo says “Really, for the moment, we are done. I’m not certain we’ll make a record again, unless it becomes really obvious to me that we need to do one.”

While there is a hint of finality in that quote, it’s really nothing different from what he’s said in the past. In interviews from last fall and earlier this year, Rivers said he’s looking forward to taking some time off to enjoy married life. Not to mention, to take a lot of time meditating. This is no different from what he said months ago–he’s just choosing not to comment on the future.

Of course I don’t want to see the band call it quits. If this is the end, I think I’m fine with it. They’ve given a lot of great music (even though there’s more out there still unheard).

But I really don’t think this is the end. In the past, after other albums, the future of the band was always uncertain (except following the green album, when Rivers was in world domination mode), but they’ve always found their way back together. In the past two years, the band has been more creative and more unified than ever. And Make Believe has given the band its two highest-charting hits ever. I just don’t think this is it.

By the way, I love how everyone jumps on these stories, not caring at all about accuracy. I mean, “his move to Japan“? Do some freakin research sometime!

Somehow, in between graduating, watching the World Cup and getting married last week, Rivers Cuomo managed to find the time to answer a bunch of questions from fans.

I’m actually surprised that out of the four questions I submitted, he answered two directly and the other two by proxy.

Go me. And congratulations Rivers.

In 1995, after the Blue Album was released, Rivers Cuomo began writing the band’s follow-up album. Rivers developed a rock opera called Songs From The Black Hole, which told the story of a group of space cadets.

The band started recording SFTBH, but enthusiasm for the concept wasn’t really there and recording sessions were sporadic at best, with Rivers moving off to his first year at Harvard.

At the end of his first semester, the band returned to recording, scrapping the rock opera concept after Rivers showed up with a new concept, a crop of autobiographical songs which would become 1996’s Pinkerton. Some of the black hole songs survived, but the rest were seemingly discarded.

With the publication of the first version of the weezer recording history, fans were clued in to the original concept. And in early 2002, Rivers himself started funneling some of the original SFTBH demos directly to fans, speaking of an “en masse” distribution of not just the black hole songs, but the hundreds of other songs which he and the band worked on throughout the years, but never officially recorded.

For a few years, the band released dozens of songs straight to fans, but that stopped after the summer of 2002, with Geffen finally putting their corporate foot down.

The point of all this: things have changed again. In the last week, Rivers started writing blog entries about the held-back songs, saying:

I’m putting up the lyrics now because I suddenly realized that I can. I’ll also put up the sheet music (when I have time) so that you can play them for each other! I’ll release my home demos as soon as I am legally able.

And he’s put up lyrics and music for two songs, one from SFTBH, another a Pinkerton-era b-side. Fans with much more musical talent than I have started to work off these, developing their own versions based off what Rivers has posted.

While they’re not exactly Rivers’/weezer’s demos, it’s still an interesting idea. While I’m glad to finally be getting an idea of what the songs were supposed to be like, it’ll be nice if we actually get the real versions one day (perhaps when the band is free of its Geffen contract?).

I’m also interested in songs from other years- the late 90’s hiatus period, the Make Believe era and the future, which for weezer, looks like it’s going to happen.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the past however many years of being a weezer fan, it’s that it’s going to be interesting. And I’ll probably get to hear some good music too.

For various reasons, I’m not a fan of the “New York” Times.

The paper that claims to get behind the news has turned out a feature story on Rivers Cuomo that really doesn’t go anywhere. I suppose it may be interesting for the masses, but there are only four interesting bits (to me) in the whole article:

-Rivers is into Jane Austen. Great! So is the Civee! Maybe they can form a book club.

-It doesn’t really sound like it’s the end for weezer:

Remarking on rumors that his enrollment at Harvard means the end of Weezer, he said, “After graduation, I’ll be able to make a better commitment to the band.”

-Rivers just ended the interview:

With that, he politely asked to be excused and left to find out if the dining hall was still serving lunch.

-And finally, this is the first time I’ve seen it official that Rivers is getting married. Even though I don’t see him getting into the wedding planning, good for him! Congratulations Riv-Dog!

I’d like to wish everyone out there a happy international Weezer day!

Legend has it, that fourteen years ago today, Elisha Cuthbert taught the band to play. After dumping some Kool-Aid on Scott Shriner’s head, the former motorcycle-rock band kicked her out and replaced her with roadie Rivers Cuomo. The band returned to it’s Kenosha, Wisconsin roots and played several dance contests while Matt Sharp wrote and composed many of the band’s later hits.

Matt then left to be bigger than Elvis, while Rivers locked himself into a closet bouncing a rubber ball against the wall and burning his master tapes. Brian lost several shirts and sweaters he would later lament. It was around this time that Rivers’ marriage to Lisa Loeb fell apart and the band found itself playing at several Mexican weddings. This period was promptly erased from the annals of band history.

All that I’m sure of now is that Miss Piggy fell in love with Pat, Rivers became Yoda and a lot of other stuff happened. I think.

Weird Al Yankovic is now eligible for the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame.

I should sign the petition, but it actually requires you to print it out and send it in. That must be why they only have three people on it so far. At least if I were to sign it, my name wouldn’t be joined by the likes of I.P. Freely, Mike Rotch and Homer Sexual.

I consider myself a fan- I do own more than a few of his albums/tapes/CDs (okay, no albums) and I know the words to some of his parodies better than the songs they’re based off of, and I think that UHF is one of the funniest movies ever made. But I never realized Al has been around this long. I don’t know why, but this makes me feel old.

But I figure he deserves it as much as that Elvis guy.