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After 15 years, Weezer embraces its past and looks to the future

By Joe Szczechowski

Add Comment | Comments: 0 | Posted Sep. 25, 2008

Red Hot After 15 years, Weezer embraces its past and looks to the future by Joe Szczechowski

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Considering that most rock bands don't last five years in the music business, you'd expect one that has thrived for more than 15 to stick to its proven formula for success. But on their latest self-titled release (a.k.a. The Red Album), the members of L.A.'s power-pop-rock band Weezer decided to shake things up a bit.

"One of my greatest challenges this time was to write songs that didn't have the same old verse-chorus-bridge structure," says singer, songwriter, and guitarist Rivers Cuomo in a press release for the album.

Beyond arrangements and song structures, a more obvious change can be found in the song credits. Weezer's biggest hits from its previous five albums include "Buddy Holly," "Say It Ain't So," "Undone (The Sweater Song)," "Hash Pipe," "Island In The Sun" and "Beverly Hills" -- all written and sung by Cuomo. On The Red Album, all four members of the band, which also includes guitarist Brian Bell, drummer Pat Wilson, and bassist Scott Shriner, contribute to the songwriting, and each takes a turn on lead vocals.

Weezer performs Friday at the Borgata. Angels and Airwaves and Tokyo Police Club open the show.

In an exclusive interview for the Atlantic City Weekly, Bell said that Cuomo's decision to more fully involve the entire group in the creative process generated a sense of camaraderie that blossomed when the band regrouped for some unique live performances earlier this summer.

Dubbed "the Hootenanny Tour," it allowed musically inclined fans to bring their acoustic guitars and other instruments to the shows and play along with their heroes on a set of Weezer originals and covers. The lucky participants were selected in advance via YouTube tryouts.

"It was more fun than I could possibly imagine," Bell said. "We hadn't played live for [more than two] years as a band, and it was a really good way to get our feet wet again. It really helped get a great vibe going within the band and was a great bonding experience between us."

Much of the thrill for both the band and the fans stemmed from the interactive nature of the shows.

"We didn't know what to expect," Bell says. "We weren't up on a stage. We were in the middle of the floor, and the people were between us. It was kind of frightening at first, but the energy was so positive, and the smiles on people's faces were so welcoming and inviting that we all relaxed and had a great time."

Bell says that same sense of fun and rekindled excitement within the band will be evident at Friday's show.

"We're utilizing everybody's talents, the way that I always wanted to," he says. "Along with playing bass, Scott has keyboards on his side of the stage. I also have some keyboards, as well as vocal responsibilities. Pat sings and plays guitar. Rivers plays some drums. It's fun for all of us to show what we can do in addition to playing our usual instruments."

Fans can expect to hear The Red Album's two singles -- "Pork and Beans" and "Troublemaker" -- as well as its most experimental song, "The Greatest Man That Ever Lived (Variations on a Shaker Hymn)," a nearly six-minute opus that combines musical styles ranging from hip-hop to arena rock to Gregorian chant into a surprisingly cohesive track.

"I don't want to give the show away, but we'll be playing some hidden gems, some of my favorite songs, and all our hits and singles, too. It's going to be fantastic," Bell says.

Much of the media attention Weezer has received lately focuses on the more democratic nature of the group, largely because in the past Cuomo was perceived as a control freak -- a view further propagated by the fact that he was uncomfortable with interviews and media attention in general. As James Montgomery wrote for MTV News, "[Weezer] was seen as his personal vehicle, operating on his personal schedule and subject to his personal whims."

But Bell, who joined the group prior to the recording of the band's self-titled 1994 debut (a.k.a. The Blue Album), says all members of the band have always had creative input in the recording process.

"We've always contributed things like introductions, suggestions of arrangements, the feel of songs, ideas for sounds," he says. "Of course, Rivers is extremely talented and knows what he wants. I think he's one of the best melodic writers of our time. If he has a melody and a song that he's into, I try my best to see his dream through and make it a reality."

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