Songs from the Black Hole: Difference between revisions
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'''''Songs from the Black Hole''''' (SFTBH) is an unreleased, unfinished [[Weezer]] album. A space themed rock opera/musical, it was originally envisioned as the follow-up album to ''[[Weezer (The Blue Album)|The Blue Album]]'', but over the course of recording, the album's concept was discarded and the album was transformed into ''[[Pinkerton]]''. Some of the SFTBH songs ended up on Pinkerton (or as b-sides), some slightly altered lyrically and sonically. SFTBH was, in the words of songwriter [[Rivers Cuomo]], "supposed to be a whole album of songs transed together," meaning a seamless flow from one song to the next (previous examples of this technique include the closing medley of The Beatles' ''Abbey Road'' and various Pink Floyd albums including ''The Dark Side of the Moon'' and ''Wish You Were Here''). | '''''Songs from the Black Hole''''' (SFTBH) is an unreleased, unfinished [[Weezer]] album. A space themed rock opera/musical, it was originally envisioned as the follow-up album to ''[[Weezer (The Blue Album)|The Blue Album]]'', but over the course of recording, the album's concept was discarded and the album was transformed into ''[[Pinkerton]]''. Some of the SFTBH songs ended up on Pinkerton (or as b-sides), some slightly altered lyrically and sonically. SFTBH was, in the words of songwriter [[Rivers Cuomo]], "supposed to be a whole album of songs transed together," meaning a seamless flow from one song to the next (previous examples of this technique include the closing medley of The Beatles' ''Abbey Road'' and various Pink Floyd albums including ''The Dark Side of the Moon'' and ''Wish You Were Here''). | ||
In a 2007 Rolling Stone Rock & Roll Daily feature the album was called one of rock music's "mythical lost masterpieces." In an April 2007 issue of the Australian weekly print mag "Zoo", the album was named number 7 in their "Top 10 Never Released Albums" list. Songs from the Black Hole also ranked #7 on a list of the top ten albums you have never heard. | In a [[2007]] Rolling Stone Rock & Roll Daily feature the album was called one of rock music's "mythical lost masterpieces." In an April 2007 issue of the Australian weekly print mag "Zoo", the album was named number 7 in their "Top 10 Never Released Albums" list. Songs from the Black Hole also ranked #7 on a list of the top ten albums you have never heard. | ||
==History== | ==History== | ||
The characters were to be [[Jonas]] (voiced by [[Rivers Cuomo|Rivers]]), [[Laurel]] (voiced by [[Rachel Haden]] of that dog.), [[Maria]] (voiced by [[Joan Wasser]] of the Dambuilders), [[Wuan]] & [[Dondó]] (voiced by [[Brian Bell]] and [[Matt Sharp]]), and a robot, [[M1]] (voiced by [[Karl Koch]]). At the time, Joan was unaware of Rivers' intention of having her play a role on the album. | The characters were to be [[Jonas]] (voiced by [[Rivers Cuomo|Rivers]]), [[Laurel]] (voiced by [[Rachel Haden]] of that dog.), [[Maria]] (voiced by [[Joan Wasser]] of the Dambuilders), [[Wuan]] & [[Dondó]] (voiced by [[Brian Bell]] and [[Matt Sharp]]), and a robot, [[M1]] (voiced by [[Karl Koch]]). At the time, Joan was unaware of Rivers' intention of having her play a role on the album. | ||
In the words of Rivers, taken from an interview in the November 15, 2007 issue of Rolling Stone, "There's this crew - three guys and two girls and a mechanoid - that are on this mission in space to rescue somebody, or something. The whole thing was really an analog for taking off, going out on the road and up the charts with a rock band, which is what was happening to me at the time I was writing this and feeling like I was lost in space." | In the words of Rivers, taken from an interview in the [[November 15]], 2007 issue of Rolling Stone, "There's this crew - three guys and two girls and a mechanoid - that are on this mission in space to rescue somebody, or something. The whole thing was really an analog for taking off, going out on the road and up the charts with a rock band, which is what was happening to me at the time I was writing this and feeling like I was lost in space." | ||
Over the course of writing the album, Rivers, who'd enrolled at Harvard in the fall of 1995, changed his focus from the space rock opera theme of SFTBH to the Madama Butterfly theme of [[Pinkerton]]. Pinkerton was released on September 24, 1996 and included the songs "[[Tired of Sex]]", "[[Getchoo]]", "[[No Other One]]", and "[[Why Bother?]]". These four songs had been written prior to the conception of SFTBH but reshaped for SFTBH. Rivers had unshaped them for inclusion on Pinkerton. Further leftovers "Devotion", "Waiting on You", and "I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams" surfaced as b-sides to the Pinkerton singles [[El Scorcho]] and [[The Good Life]]. "I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams" is notable as it features Rachel Haden singing lead vocals. | Over the course of writing the album, Rivers, who'd enrolled at Harvard in the fall of 1995, changed his focus from the space rock opera theme of SFTBH to the Madama Butterfly theme of [[Pinkerton]]. Pinkerton was released on September 24, 1996 and included the songs "[[Tired of Sex]]", "[[Getchoo]]", "[[No Other One]]", and "[[Why Bother?]]". These four songs had been written prior to the conception of SFTBH but reshaped for SFTBH. Rivers had unshaped them for inclusion on Pinkerton. Further leftovers "Devotion", "Waiting on You", and "I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams" surfaced as b-sides to the Pinkerton singles [[El Scorcho]] and [[The Good Life]]. "I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams" is notable as it features Rachel Haden singing lead vocals. | ||
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==Demand for SFTBH== | ==Demand for SFTBH== | ||
To this day, SFTBH tracks remain a holy grail for many Weezer fans. Over the years several petitions have been started with the aim of making the band release the lost "Black Hole" demos much in the same way the ss2k songs were released; the most recent petition was launched by Weezer fans on November | To this day, SFTBH tracks remain a holy grail for many Weezer fans. Over the years several petitions have been started with the aim of making the band release the lost "Black Hole" demos much in the same way the ss2k songs were released; the most recent petition was launched by Weezer fans on [[November 27]]th, 2005, with the goal of reaching 1000 signatures. It reached its goal of 1000 signatures on March 1st, 2006. | ||
On October 4th, 2005 during a Weezer show at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois, the band invited a fan up onstage to play the rhythm guitar for Undone - The Sweater Song. The fan took advantage of this moment to attempt to get the band to play "Blast Off!" by beginning to play the intro to the song and sang the first four lines of the song before Rivers laughed and jokingly pushed him away from the mic. After they finished "Undone", Weezer guitarist Brian Bell and Rivers all laughed at the fan's idea.[9] In early 2006 a low-quality video bootleg of the show began to circulate around various Weezer message boards and included the fan's special performance of "Undone" and Rivers' subsequent reaction. | On October 4th, 2005 during a Weezer show at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois, the band invited a fan up onstage to play the rhythm guitar for Undone - The Sweater Song. The fan took advantage of this moment to attempt to get the band to play "Blast Off!" by beginning to play the intro to the song and sang the first four lines of the song before Rivers laughed and jokingly pushed him away from the mic. After they finished "Undone", Weezer guitarist Brian Bell and Rivers all laughed at the fan's idea.[9] In early 2006 a low-quality video bootleg of the show began to circulate around various Weezer message boards and included the fan's special performance of "Undone" and Rivers' subsequent reaction. | ||
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It is unclear however if the recent online petition which garnered over 1000 signatures has influenced his decision. | It is unclear however if the recent online petition which garnered over 1000 signatures has influenced his decision. | ||
On October 15, 2007 Rivers posted a blog on his official blog stating that he had permission from Geffen to release a collection of demos spanning 1992-2007, Alone - The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo. Shortly after, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Rivers revealed that many of the songs on the CD will be unreleased demos from Songs From The Black Hole.[10] A news post on Geffen's official website read, "The vast majority will be new to even the most die-hard Weezer fan," hinting that the SFTBH demos will be songs previously never heard.[11] In an Alternative Press interview from October 30, 2007, Rivers revealed that "Blast Off!", "Who You Calling Bitch?", "Dude, We're Finally Landing" and "Superfriend" are slated to be on the album. | On October 15, 2007 Rivers posted a blog on his official blog stating that he had permission from Geffen to release a collection of demos spanning 1992-2007, Alone - The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo. Shortly after, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Rivers revealed that many of the songs on the CD will be unreleased demos from Songs From The Black Hole.[10] A news post on Geffen's official website read, "The vast majority will be new to even the most die-hard Weezer fan," hinting that the SFTBH demos will be songs previously never heard.[11] In an Alternative Press interview from October 30, 2007, Rivers revealed that "Blast Off!", "Who You Calling Bitch?", "Dude, We're Finally Landing" and "Superfriend" are slated to be on the album. It has been reported that "Longtime Sunshine" will also be on the record. A clip of this song was posted on weezer.com on November 27, 2007, along with clips of "Superfriend" and "Blast Off!", confirming that it will also be on Alone. | ||
On November 22, 2007, Rivers updated his blog, stating "I want to share with everyone the excitement I felt when I went back and heard the original master tapes of these demos. In most cases, they sounded much better than the mp3s I've been listening to for years--clearer, warmer, deeper. I highly recommend that listeners buy the CD rather than the digital version so that they can enjoy the highest quality listening experience." | On [[November 22]], 2007, Rivers updated his blog, stating "I want to share with everyone the excitement I felt when I went back and heard the original master tapes of these demos. In most cases, they sounded much better than the mp3s I've been listening to for years--clearer, warmer, deeper. I highly recommend that listeners buy the CD rather than the digital version so that they can enjoy the highest quality listening experience." | ||
==Possible connection to The Rentals== | ==Possible connection to The Rentals== | ||