Weezer - The White Album (Atlantic) 2016
9
The ‘90s was, both musically and socially, a unique time. As Nirvana infected minds and Rage Against The Machine hit the radio, three kids in their 20s found a different response to the new decade. On a warm, foggy Los Angeles day in May of 1994, The Blue Album (though officially titled Weezer) was released to an overwhelmingly positive response.
Over two decades and 10 albums later… Weezer’s still got it. With classy guitar riffs and fun hooks, The White Album is where pop antics meets modern day rock. Starting off with an entertainingly generic (yet somehow unique) song about life in California, the surfer pop/rock anthem “California Kids” stands as a positive way to present the album. As the record progresses, a somewhat rare instrument is welcomed as a regular in the Weezer world… the piano. And though the group has successfully used keyboards in the past, they have yet to at a capacity quite like this. Descending into the final minutes of the album, the song “Jacked Up” sheds new light on a more modern pop sound for Weezer using powerful piano hits and a falsetto chorus. Then, as if to contradict the previous track, The White Album comes to an end with the slow and simple acoustic tune “Endless Bummer”. Lyrically, the record can hold its weight as a Weezer album. Musically and socially, this album proves that Weezer is right where they should be in 2016.
For a band that is been together for 24 years, their ability to progress and adjust with time has never failed. Without a hint of doubt, The White Album will shape and mold the pop rock world in years to come. =W=