''Van Weezer'' is the fifteenth studio album by American
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
Weezer
Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing ...
, released on May 7, 2021 by
Crush Music and
Atlantic Records. Featuring a classic rock and hard rock inspired sound, the album was announced in September 2019 with an original release date of May 2020, coinciding with announcement of the band's participation in the
Hella Mega Tour
The Hella Mega Tour was a concert tour by American rock bands Green Day, Fall Out Boy, and Weezer that was announced on September 10, 2019 and originally included dates from March to August 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Oceania and Asi ...
alongside
Green Day and
Fall Out Boy
Fall Out Boy is an American rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer Andy Hurle ...
. However, due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, the tour was delayed indefinitely and ''Van Weezer''s release was delayed until May 2021, almost four months after the release of the band's previous album ''
OK Human
''OK Human'' is the fourteenth studio album by American rock band Weezer, released on January 29, 2021 by Crush Music and Atlantic Records. Featuring a baroque-pop influenced sound, inspired by albums such as Harry Nilsson's '' Nilsson Sings New ...
''.
Four singles were released ahead of the album's release; "
The End of the Game", "
Hero
A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...
", "Beginning of the End" and "I Need Some of That". A fifth single, "All The Good Ones," was released on the same day as the album. The album received generally positive reviews from critics. It debuted and peaked at number 11 on the US ''Billboard 200'' chart.
Background
In February 2019, Weezer frontman
Rivers Cuomo
Rivers Cuomo ( ; born June 13, 1970) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and songwriter of the rock band Weezer.
Cuomo was raised in a number of Buddhist communities in the Northeast U.S. until the age of 10, wh ...
began working on new songs with a
hard rock influence, in contrast to the
pop rock
Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...
and
electropop sound that had been featured on the band's previous albums ''
Pacific Daydream
''Pacific Daydream'' is the eleventh studio album by American rock band Weezer, released on October 27, 2017. The album is their second release by Crush Management, is distributed by Atlantic Records, and is trademarked by a modern pop sound, dif ...
,'' the
Teal Album, and the then-upcoming
Black Album. In an interview that month with ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...
'', Cuomo mentioned that an album tentatively titled ''Van Weezer'' was in the works, and that it would take the band "back to big guitars". He remarked that when the band would perform "
Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...
" live in concert, he would perform a guitar solo that was not present on the recorded version of the song. "We noticed that, recently, the crowd just goes crazy when I do that. So it feels like maybe the audience is ready for some shredding again."
The album has been compared to their fourth studio album ''
Maladroit'' (2002), and is inspired by 1970s and 1980s
hard rock and
heavy metal bands such as
Kiss
A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
,
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
,
Metallica and
Van Halen
Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...
(the last of whom inspired the album's title). Cuomo would also state that the album is "
Blue Album-ish, but a little more riffy."
Release
On September 10, 2019, the first single from ''Van Weezer'', "
The End of the Game" was released along with an announcement that the album would be released on May 15, 2020.
The announcement coincided with the revelation of the
Hella Mega Tour
The Hella Mega Tour was a concert tour by American rock bands Green Day, Fall Out Boy, and Weezer that was announced on September 10, 2019 and originally included dates from March to August 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Oceania and Asi ...
, a 2020 concert tour featuring Weezer,
Green Day, and
Fall Out Boy
Fall Out Boy is an American rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer Andy Hurle ...
.
On May 6, 2020, the second single "
Hero
A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...
" was released onto streaming services; while Weezer announced that the album release would be delayed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, stating that despite this fans would receive "surprises" within the next week.
A short snippet of "Blue Dream" debuted on ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...
'' episode "
The Hateful Eight-Year-Olds", on which Weezer guest-starred as themselves.
On August 14, 2020, the band announced that the album had been delayed to May 2021 in order to coincide with the rescheduled Hella Mega Tour. That same day, the third single, "Beginning of the End", was released as a part of the soundtrack for ''
Bill & Ted Face the Music
''Bill & Ted Face the Music'' is a 2020 American science fiction comedy film directed by Dean Parisot and written by Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon. It is the third film in the ''Bill & Ted'' film series, and the sequel to ''Bill & Ted's Bogus J ...
.''
On October 6, 2020, after
Eddie Van Halen died, the album was dedicated to him.
In addition to Van Halen, the album is also dedicated to
Ric Ocasek
Richard Theodore Otcasek (March 23, 1944 – September 15, 2019), known as Ric Ocasek, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was the primary co-lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, songwriter, and frontman for the rock ...
, who produced the band's debut, ''
The Blue Album'', ''
The Green Album'', & ''
Everything Will Be Alright in the End'', as Ocasek passed away in September 2019.
The track listing was announced on April 20, 2021, and the fourth single, "I Need Some of That" was released the following day.
The album was officially released on May 7, 2021 along with an animated music video for "All The Good Ones".
The album was released just three and a half months after its predecessor, ''
OK Human
''OK Human'' is the fourteenth studio album by American rock band Weezer, released on January 29, 2021 by Crush Music and Atlantic Records. Featuring a baroque-pop influenced sound, inspired by albums such as Harry Nilsson's '' Nilsson Sings New ...
'', which was originally intended to be released after ''Van Weezer''.
Critical reception
''Van Weezer'' received generally favorable reviews from music critics. At
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, which assigns a
normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an
average
In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7 ...
score of 67 based on 20 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Stephen Thomas Erlewine at
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
gave the album a positive review, stating "...any of its retro origins are washed away by big, dumb sounds that keep the record grounded in the eternal now, an aesthetic choice that also helps the album be a rousing good time." Erlewin praised the homage to Van Halen on the album.
Mark Beaumont from ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' was a bit more mixed on the album, whom considered the choruses as some of the band's best, but opined that the second half of the album as lesser quality from the first half. Beaumont went on to observe "there's a stone-cold classic Weezer album hidden beneath the fretboard flam."
Track listing
Sample credits
*"I Need Some of That" contains interpolations of "
Heat of the Moment", as written by
Geoff Downes and
John Wetton
John Kenneth Wetton (12 June 1949 – 31 January 2017) was an English musician, singer, and songwriter. Known for his dexterous bass playing and booming baritone voice, Wetton first gained fame in the early 1970s.
Wetton was the singer and p ...
and as performed by
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
, and "
(Don't Fear) The Reaper
"(Don't Fear) The Reaper" is a song by American rock band Blue Öyster Cult from the band's 1976 album '' Agents of Fortune.'' The song, written and sung by lead guitarist Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser, deals with eternal love and the inevitab ...
", as written by
Donald Roeser
Donald Roeser (born November 12, 1947), known by his stage name Buck Dharma, is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is the sole constant member of hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult since the group's formation in 1967. He wrote and ...
and performed by
Blue Öyster Cult
Blue Öyster Cult ( ; sometimes abbreviated BÖC or BOC) is an American rock band formed on Long Island in Stony Brook, New York, in 1967, and best known for the singles "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", "Burnin' for You", and "Godzilla". The band h ...
.
*"Beginning of the End" contains an interpolation of "
The Longest Time
"The Longest Time" is a doo-wop song by Billy Joel, released in 1984 as the fourth single from the 1983 album '' An Innocent Man''. Following the theme of the album in paying tribute to Joel's musical influences, the song is presented in the st ...
", as written and performed by
Billy Joel.
*"Blue Dream" contains an interpolation of "
Crazy Train
"Crazy Train" is the debut solo single by English heavy metal vocalist Ozzy Osbourne and was released in 1980 from his debut album as a solo artist, ''Blizzard of Ozz'' (1980). A live version of the song recorded in 1981 from the album ''Trib ...
", as written by
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
,
Randy Rhoads, and
Bob Daisley
Robert John Daisley (born 13 February 1950) is a retired Australian bass guitarist. He has collaborated on several occasions with Ozzy Osbourne, for whom he contributed bass, backing vocals, co-production and songwriting. He has also worked wi ...
and performed by
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
.
*"Sheila Can Do It" contains an interpolation of "
Girls, Girls, Girls", as performed by
Mötley Crüe.
Notes
:1.On
Apple Music
Apple Music is a music, audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users select music to stream to their device on-demand, or they can listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the Internet radio stations Apple M ...
, tracks 1 & 3 are switched.
Personnel
Credits adapted from
TIDAL
Tidal is the adjectival form of tide.
Tidal may also refer to:
* ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple
* Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim
* TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music
* Tidal (servic ...
.
Weezer
*
Rivers Cuomo
Rivers Cuomo ( ; born June 13, 1970) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and songwriter of the rock band Weezer.
Cuomo was raised in a number of Buddhist communities in the Northeast U.S. until the age of 10, wh ...
– lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, backing vocals
*
Patrick Wilson
Patrick Joseph Wilson (born July 3, 1973) is an American actor and director. He began his career in 1995, starring in Broadway musicals. He received nominations for two Tony Awards for his roles in ''The Full Monty'' (2000–2001) and ''Oklahoma ...
– drums
*
Brian Bell
Brian Lane Bell (born December 9, 1968) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, backing vocalist, and occasional lead vocalist of the rock band Weezer, with whom he has recorded f ...
– guitars, backing vocals
*
Scott Shriner
Scott Gardner Shriner (born July 11, 1965) is an American musician best known as a member of the rock band Weezer, with whom he has recorded twelve studio albums. Joining the band in 2001, Shriner is the band's longest serving bass guitarist.
Pri ...
– bass, backing vocals
Additional personnel
*
Joe LaPorta
Joseph J. LaPorta (born ) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in New Jersey.http://www.allmusic.com/artist/joe-laporta-mn000199340/credits/date-asc/
Career
Born and raised in New York, LaPorta graduated from New York Unive ...
–
mastering
* Matty Green –
mixer
*
Suzy Shinn –
producer ,
engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...
,
recording engineer , additional guitar , additional vocals , synthesizer
*
Charlie Brand – engineer , additional vocals
* Ivan Wayman – engineer , assistant engineer
*
Shawn Everett
Shawn Everett (born July 6, 1982) is a Canadian music engineer and producer best known for his work with Alabama Shakes, Kacey Musgraves, The War on Drugs, The Killers, and Julian Casablancas. Everett has won six Grammy Awards.
Early life
Ever ...
– engineer
* Wesley Sideman – engineer
*
Coast Modern
Coast Modern is an American indie pop duo based in Los Angeles, California. The duo consists of Luke Atlas and Coleman Trapp.
History
Early beginnings-2015
Luke Atlas is a Seattle, Washington native and Coleman Trapp is from Los Angeles. Trapp ...
– additional
programming, additional vocals
* Andreas Kvinge Sandnes – assistant engineer
*
Jake Sinclair – assistant engineer
* Sejo Navajas – assistant engineer
* John Sinclair – assistant engineer
* Johnny Morgan – assistant engineer
* Josh Skinner – assistant engineer
* Lizzy Ostro – assistant engineer
*
Michael Beinhorn
Michael Beinhorn is a North American record producer, composer, author and musician. He has produced albums for Red Hot Chili Peppers, Soundgarden, Hole, Violent Femmes and Marilyn Manson.
Career 1977-1983: Early Years, Material, Herbie Hanco ...
–
pre-production
Pre-production is the process of planning some of the elements involved in a film, television show, play, or other performance, as distinct from production and post-production. Pre-production ends when the planning ends and the content start ...
* Ross Garfield – drum technician
* Mike Fasano – drum technician
Charts
References
{{Authority control
2021 albums
Weezer albums
Atlantic Records albums
Crush Management albums
Albums postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Albums in memory of deceased persons
Albums produced by Suzy Shinn
Glam metal albums
Hard rock albums by American artists