Weezer

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Weezer is an American rock and roll band. The specific genre of their music is debated, although it can be said that their style is related to alternative rock and/or emo. Formed on February 14, 1992, they have released four full length albums, an EP, a DVD, and most recently a two-disc set, deluxe remastered edition of their debut album with the addition of b-sides and imports. An as-of-yet untitled fifth album is presently being recorded and is expected to be released in early 2005.

On May 10, 1994, Weezer released their debut, their first self-titled album, which became known as The Blue Album (see 1994 in music). The Blue Album included several hit singles, such as "Buddy Holly," "Undone (The Sweater Song)," and "Say it Ain't So." The video of "Buddy Holly" was included on the CD-ROM of Windows 95. The band's popularity soared, and frontman Rivers Cuomo went into songwriting sessions for Weezer's second album, Pinkerton. The songs that came out of these sessions revealed much more about Cuomo's personal life than anything he had done previously. Pinkerton was released on September 24, 1996 and was immediately thrashed by critics (see 1996 in music). Sales of the album were, at best, lackluster. Cuomo declared Weezer in a state of hiatus and turned his back on Pinkerton, often saying he wished it was never recorded and even vowing to destroy all copies of the album in existence. However, thanks to the internet, Weezer's popularity grew tremendously during this hiatus, mostly emo fans that loved the album and demand for a Weezer rose. In 1998, Weezer reformed and went on tour without a new album. The tour was a huge hit, and sold out several of the large venues it traveled to. During the tour, Cuomo began writing songs again, and Weezer played some of them live. Eventually, the band went back into the studio to produce a third album. Weezer (2001) was self-titled again to signify a sort of rebirth for Weezer. This album quickly became known as The Green Album. Shortly after the release of The Green Album, Weezer went on another American tour, attracting many new fans along the way. A fourth album, Maladroit, was released in 2002 (see 2002 in music), and served as a departure from the catchy pop-influenced music of The Green Album.

Weezer has also played several shows under the pseudonym "Goat Punishment". In these shows, they have been known to wear bags over their heads and play mostly Nirvana covers. Goat Punishment has also been known to open for Weezer on several occasions.

Weezer is also very well known for their innovative music videos. While "Undone (The Sweater Song)" was big on MTV, it was the Spike Jonze-directed "Buddy Holly" video, which used footage from various episodes of Happy Days, that made them pop icons. The video is akin to other defining videos of the 90s such as Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and Smashing Pumpkins' "Tonight, Tonight," because all three of these videos helped the artists reach an audience not often reached by alternative rock bands. However, Weezer's Pinkerton videos were not well played and quickly forgotten. It would take the sumo clip of "Hash Pipe" (or as the title card stated, "H*** Pipe") to bring Weezer back into the eyes of music video viewers. They then recorded two videos for "Island in the Sun," the first focusing on a Mexican wedding, and the second involving Weezer with animals in a wildlife reserve. Their video for "Photograph" was a staple for Much Music USA (now Fuse). Maladroit's "Dope Nose" was unspectacular at best, though it was put into a rather regular rotation. However, it was the follow up, "Keep Fishin'", that would place Weezer in an elite group of defining music video makers of the early 2000s. "Keep Fishin'" combined Weezer with the Muppets and became an MTV staple.

In March of 2004, Weezer released their first DVD. Titled "Video Capture Device", the DVD contains all of their current music videos, live concerts, and homemade movies. The DVD hit hard on the DVD compilation charts and was declared "Gold" on November 8, 2004.

Related bands: Homie (Side project of guitairist Rivers Cuomo), The Rentals, The Special Goodness (Side project of drummer Patrick Wilson), Space Twins, Ozma

Members

The band currently consists of the following members:

Rivers Cuomo — vocals, guitar
Brian Bell — backing vocals, guitar
Scott Shriner — backing vocals, bass (since Maladroit)
Patrick Wilson — drums

Former members:

Jason Cropper — guitar (up to September, 1993)
Matt Sharp — bass (on The Blue Album and Pinkerton)
Mikey Welsh — bass (on The Green Album)

Discography

Weezer, a.k.a. "The Blue Album" (May 10, 1994)
Pinkerton (September 24, 1996)
Weezer, a.k.a. "The Green Album" (May 15, 2001)
Maladroit (May 14, 2002)
The Lion and the Witch — a live EP, recorded during the Maladroit tour in Japan (September 24, 2002)

External links

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