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Weezer Polydor biography - June 2001
Author: Polydor Press Department
Date: c. June 2001
weezer
Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar)
Brian Bell (guitar, vocals)
Mikey Welsh (bass, vocals)
Patrick Wilson (drums)
Okay, Rivers Cuomo, the main guy behind Weezer, was supposed to call last night. I sat by the phone, tape recorder ready to roll, pen and notepad in hand, and my advance of Weezer's self-titled third album (henceforth referred to as The Green Album) spinning in my Walkman. After waiting an hour I called the publicist, who assured me that this was normal.
"Rivers does this all the time," she laughed, a little nervously. "If he doesn't call an hour from now, let me know."
An hour later I called her back. "Let me call their manager," she said.
So now it's the next morning, and I'm figuring that Rivers must have his reasons for not doing a bio interview. We'd spoken briefly a couple of times in trying to set this up, and he seemed like a decent guy. Clearly he's no dummy: even without those long hours spent grinding over English texts at Harvard, you can hear it in his lyrics. They're sharp, acerbic, perceptive -- the kind of lyrics that someone who knows how to keep an appointment would write.
Maybe his car broke down? Or he forgot to pay his phone bill? Whatever the reason, it's down to this: me and the music, and maybe a little bit of imagination.
Let's start by pointing out that The Green Album is killer. I mean it. For me, it cuts Pinkerton and even the first album. Maybe that has something to do with how much lame music we've had to deal with these past few years, but I think there's more to it than that. Fact is, each of these songs wraps big beats around deadly hooks, then sprinkles classic pop lyrics all over melodies that refuse to vacate your brain.
I imagine asking Rivers why it took so long to get this one together. He'd probably express some exasperation, since no doubt every journalist he meets will open with this vaguely accusatory question. No, no, I'd assure him. As far as I'm concerned, you could have taken another year to get this together, and it would've been worth the wait.
But Rivers would remain skeptical. He's had more to deal with since spilling his guts all over Pinkerton back in '96, He would proceed to tell me what all those things were. Maybe he'd dish a little on Matt Sharp's departure, and on the arrival of Mikey Welsh from Juliana Hatfield's band to take his place on bass. He'd talk also about guitarist Brian Bell and drummer Pat Wilson, and how they're still with the group even after this or that annoying issue created some problems -- but they worked everything out and everything's cool now,
Let's see. I guess I'd ask him about how the new album differs from the earlier ones. We'd go through each track, and he'd tell me the story of, for example, why his recollection of a lost love, "O Girlfriend," never mentions the lady's name. Why does he keep calling her "girlfriend" instead of, I don't know, Heather? This would elicit a chuckle, not so much from amusement as from the predictability of it all, and then he'd give me a serious answer about how "girlfriend" emphasizes the impersonality of his supposed passions -- or he'd say something brief and dismissive, and we'd have to move on.
This is turning into a tough interview. Rivers asks for a break. While he's away, I can let you know that the hammering guitars, the retro harmonies on "Don't Let Go" and "Smile," the falsetto riffs and handclaps of "Photograph," the wicked gender-bending of "Hash Pipe," the simple, head-nodding feel of "havin' fun" captured by "Island in the Sun," the inspired and somewhat deceptive chord changes that lead from the opening to the verse on "Glorious Days" (Ray Davies would appreciate this kind of writing), the ecstatic energy that drives every track on this disc -- all this made it a joy for me to prepare for my dialogue with Rivers. This album rocks -- I can't put it any better than that.
Just before Rivers comes back, I thumb through the press clips -- you can see some of them yourself, in this package. This is getting discouraging: Lots of clever writers have already grilled Weezer on all the stuff that I wanted to get. Look, here's David Daley in Alternative Press, coaxing Rivers into talking about differences between The Green Album and Pinkerton. And Erik Himmelsbach getting into the tedium of fame with Rivers in Request. At least Rivers tells Jon Regardie in New Music that he's not gonna discuss what went on over these past few years.
"Rivers," I would have said as he picked up the phone, "I think I got what I need here."
"Uh-huh," he might have answered, munching on the sandwich he had possibly left in the refrigerator from the night before.
"Why don't we just let people know that this is the best Weezer album ever, and encourage them to read the press clips, and insist that they listen to The Green Album at least three times a day for the next six months -- because what could make their lives brighter than that?... Hello? Rivers?"
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June 2001
For further information:
Polydor Press Department
035 6261 506
www.universalmusic.nl
WEEZER IN CONCERT: JUNE 25TH - MELKWEG - AMSTERDAM
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