Crossfade Reviews: Weezer "Van Weezer"

by Karl W.

 Weezer "Van Weezer"
[Atlantic/Crush]
Hard Rock/Arena Rock

    So last episode I reviewed the latest Greta Van Fleet album, and I criticized the album for leaning a bit too hard on its influences. Admittedly, they are getting better at not doubling down on that sound, but I do still see some people mock the band for sounding like a carbon-copy of old artists, saying that they bring nothing new to the table with their sound or content and using the sound as a style for their lack of depth. Well, it just so turns out that they aren't the only ones going the hard rock worship route, as Weezer now decided to have a slice of the pie. I'll admit I'm not a fan of Weezer (a band I thought were past their prime for over two decades now), but I'll admit Weezer going into a hard rock style for this album, inspired by Van Halen (and later dedicated to late guitarist Eddie Van Halen), seemed interesting to me on the forefront, with "End Of The Game" being a great lead off single. Admittedly, this album did have a bit of a troubled production (given it was slated for release last year before the pandemic put a damper on those plans), but with it out now, how did it turn out?

    Well, like I said before, I'm not a fan of Weezer, but never did I expect to be disappointed with an album from them like this. I thought Weezer mixing their lovestruck and admittedly cringeworthy and melodramatic lyrics paired up with the theatrical arena rock that Van Halen was known for would be a smash hit. However, there are not many opportunities where that comes through. Some of the homages towards hard rock bands come through, like on the tribute to Ric Ocasek on "I Need Some of That" or the Van Halen inspired "The End Of The Game", but a handful of the songs on here don't sound too far removed from your typical Weezer album. Though sometimes, the hard rock experimentation just falls flat on its face, namely on "Blue Dream" which straight up rips off the famous riff from Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train" with no real interesting spin on the original song. It's just a Weezer song with a riff from another song. The album also falls apart near the second half of the project as some of the songs don't have the same hit as earlier songs on the project and Rivers Cuomo devolves into the typical mode that I typically detest from him, such as on "She Needs Me", which is about as needy and cloying as you can expect from a title like that. I think I've come to grips that I'm not ever going to be love Weezer like a lot of people are, but there's a part of me that feels like this could've hit stronger heights if they had doubled down on the hard rock sound. It's not one of their weaker albums, admittedly, but it's certainly nothing to really write home about either.

Best Songs: "Hero", "The End Of The Game", "I Need Some of That"
Worst Songs: "Blue Dream", "She Needs Me"
5/10 (Average)