Most rock bands die the moment they start operating like a corporation, but for Weezer, accepting the executive role was the very thing that saved them.
The band released its 20th studio album, “The Gold Album,” on Aug. 21.
In the album’s centerpiece “C.E.O.,” frontman Rivers Cuomo spills his inner thoughts, comparing Weezer to a high-functioning enterprise supplying the demand for “another 90s jam.”
Weezer is self-aware, acknowledging they “could do something new, but nobody wants to hear that,” turning the audience’s justified cynicism into the very substance of the song.
“I gotta stop thinking like a mad professor ’cause it’s getting me nowhere,” Cuomo admits.
By removing the angst around trying to be revolutionary, the band actually sounds more energized, focused and fun than it has in over a decade.
Cuomo truly stepped into the C.E.O. position, opting for the band to record the album all together in one room, and handing off a share of the production to Kenny Beats, most known for his contributions to rap music.
These choices intentionally stripped away the overly polished sound that so many fans hate, resulting in one of Weezer’s most cohesive albums.
“Say Yes” is a solid intro track that lets listeners know right away this is old-school Weezer. Between its garage-band-style amplifier feedback and a big chorus anchored by a lovably outdated pop-culture reference, fans are instantly reminded of the band’s 1994 classic “Buddy Holly” from “The Blue Album.”
“Say ‘yes,’ like Yoko to John,” Cuomo sings with his signature quirky charm.
“Say Yes” isn’t as good as “Buddy Holly,” but for a band with a notoriously experimental and inconsistent discography that has lacked any sense of identity since “The White Album” in 2016, it’s a refreshing listen.
“The Gold Album” incorporates commentary about modern life while maintaining an old-school sound. And for the most part, it works.
However, “Hoops” is the worst song on the album. It still has some great social commentary, but the chorus is repetitive and just plain annoying.
“Hoops, hoops, jump, jump, jumpin’ through hoops,” Cuomo drones on.
Yet, on an album by an eccentric band with a song as meta as “C.E.O.,” making “Hoops” itself feel like an exhausting “hamster wheel” has to be purposeful. The song’s structure mimics the frustrating repetition of jumping through modern life’s endless hoops.
On “The Gold Album,” Weezer at its worst is still operating with a wink.
“Bought a toaster just to make some toast, first I had to scan a QR code,” Cuomo complains in relatable fashion.
The next track is “Nowhere,” an excellent song about self-isolation caused by the overwhelming eyesores of modernization. “The Gold Album” has a clear and deliberate structure to the order of the tracks, highlighted by these two songs being back-to-back.
If “Hoops” is the annoyance of participating in modern life, “Nowhere” is the catharsis of rejecting it. When the outside world has become overwhelmingly devoid of spirit, choosing to go nowhere is unfortunately the ultimate form of peace.
Weezer begs the question: “Why did they clear the trees, just to put up some s***box condos?”
“The Gold Album” ends on high notes.
“Up in the Clouds” is the best song on the album. Cuomo expands on the balance required of a C.E.O., describing his mental dissociation as a coping mechanism against label pressures and the insincerity of the music industry.
“I’m getting lost in the stratosphere while everybody is fake sincere and telling me to sign on the dotted line,” he harmonizes.
The outro, “The LA Sound,” neatly wraps up the album with more of the garage-band energy people love Weezer for.
“We’ve come to melt your face,” Cuomo sings.
“The Gold Album” isn’t perfect. It’s not “The Blue Album,” “Pinkerton” or “The Green Album.” But it’s among the best of the rest. And for a band that has released 20 albums over 32 years, it’s impressive.
Hopefully we don’t have to wait 10 years for another one.
OVERALL: 3.5 out of 5
