Weezer - "Everything Will Be Alright In The End"

[Paintballr]

They haven't been anything worth listening to ever since they lost their bassist

I thought the same thing back when Matt Sharp left (went on to create the rentals).

I gotta admit this is the first album in a very very long time that I can confidently say it seems like they put in alot of effort and got "it" back. The way the album end is on par with the blue album with "only in dreams".

I was weary when I noticed that Rivers used a good bit of ghost writers (I have no idea to the extent, but it looks like he had one on almost every song). Last time he had that they put out albums like Make Believe and Ratitude etc. This album actually seems like it had a purpose compared to those that have been released since Pinkerton. This is their "rock opera". Each song is telling a story about a character he created and it goes on to progress the story as the album goes on. I'm very happy with this album mostly because their isn't songs like (Can't stop partying....seriously a weezer song with lil wayne...I try to block this out).

I highly recommend this album, if you go in expecting The Blue Album or even Pinkerton you wont like it. You wont like any of their albums ever again, they are in their 40's now, not angry/depressed 20 year olds. They won't make those albums again. But if you go in with an open mind, you will be pleasantly surprised. This isn't like any of their albums and it's a good thing.

Listen from 15 seconds on and you tell its not like a normal Weezer album.

[Paintballr]

I always liked Pinkerton, it just wasn't radio friendly.

This album is very similiar. I cant really think of a song on here (give or take 1-2) that I think will be played on the radio. Its worth a listen

[Proudiddy]

I thought the same thing back when Matt Sharp left (went on to create the rentals).

I gotta admit this is the first album in a very very long time that I can confidently say it seems like they put in alot of effort and got "it" back. The way the album end is on par with the blue album with "only in dreams".

I was weary when I noticed that Rivers used a good bit of ghost writers (I have no idea to the extent, but it looks like he had one on almost every song). Last time he had that they put out albums like Make Believe and Ratitude etc. This album actually seems like it had a purpose compared to those that have been released since Pinkerton. This is their "rock opera". Each song is telling a story about a character he created and it goes on to progress the story as the album goes on. I'm very happy with this album mostly because their isn't songs like (Can't stop partying....seriously a weezer song with lil wayne...I try to block this out).

I highly recommend this album, if you go in expecting The Blue Album or even Pinkerton you wont like it. You wont like any of their albums ever again, they are in their 40's now, not angry/depressed 20 year olds. They won't make those albums again. But if you go in with an open mind, you will be pleasantly surprised. This isn't like any of their albums and it's a good thing.

Listen from 15 seconds on and you tell its not like a normal Weezer album.

Excellent perspective man! With me being right at 30 and recently discovering the genius of Pinkerton, I was hoping they could tap some of that with this album. After spanning all of their unreleased material and the Alone series, I think they get way too bad of a reputation. I am convinced Rivers is among the all-time greats in terms of composing and creating music - like McCartney/Lennon, Brian Wilson-type great. I feel like this album brings that back into focus for people. They forget how great he is.

I almost equate it to first-round picks that get drafted and then flame out... it's like Blue Album was them making it. Pinkerton was them telling you how much they had dreamed of it, but once they got there they didn't want it... the journey was the fun part.

But, because Pinkerton was so personal, it hurt him when it was rejected still... so everything after was formulaic. Green Album was welcomed with open arms, so he was like, "oh that's what you want? Have some more!" That's what everything since kind of felt like. I still think they have so much good stuff even on their throwaway albums...

But, I feel like EWBAITE truly was inspired and it was what I was hoping for... for them, to get the respect they deserve. But honestly, I was hoping for some of that Pinkerton crunchy edge and the quirky charm and melodies of Blue, and I actually feel like it closely mirrors Blue in terms of flow and sound from song to song. I thought the same thing about the Futurescope paralleling Only In Dreams. And the album does have some of the crunchiness of Pinkerton, but as paintballr pointed out, if you were hoping for the angry-emo lyrics to accompany it, you are unrealistic and will be disappointed... that's pretty much impossible for a 40-something married with kids to create lol... he's just in a different place, one of peace... and it greatly benefited this album. I really feel like it's Blue Part Two, and yet, also as Paint said, it is "rock opera"-ish. I feel like it's also a sort of concept album like Songs From The Black Hole was going to be, except that each song is a new story rather than a piece of the same story.

You can sit and listen to the entire album and catch nuances you didn't hear the listen before, and it is amazing from start to finish.

As far as the writing, I think the co-credits were more consultants than anything. I think they were brought in to make sure Rivers stayed focused on the themes and to help him sort things out that were already there, as most of everything in there is very personal to him (themes of fatherhood, relationships, forgiveness, apolgizing to fans, returning to his roots, etc).

As an aside, I also wanted to point out that the bridge leading to the solo on "I've Had It Up to Here" is verry Freddie Mercury/Queen-ish.

[Proudiddy]

http://www.ign.com/blogs/coreyvan38/2014/10/11/weezers-new-record-is-a-concept-album-this-is-the-story

I was hoping at some point to get to ask Weezer/Rivers in some q&a format if Cleopatra was really a metaphoric vehicle dsicussing his relationship with fame, vanity, and/or the record industry as a whole...

Well, I just came across this on their reddit...

this guy makes the argument that the album is actually the rock opera that we were discussing here and that it does tell a story. I felt like there was something else behind it because of the teasers... they told a story, but it wasn't clear by those alone. When I bought the CD and briefly looked at the artwork, I noticed some stuff I found interesting but I didn't actually read through it, but this guy has and explains how it ties everything together. The plot of a father using a time machine to help his son in the future is pretty deep... I listened to Marc Maron's podcast with Rivers as a guest from a week or so ago, and Rivers talked about the reconciliation and how he has gone to his father's sermons recently and is amazed as he watches him perform and interact with his congregation, paralleling it to his own performance as a musician. He said he sees where he gets it from... so I feel like this guy is onto something...

Furthermore, I noticed that there are repetitive themes or phrases throughout the album's lyrics when held up to the teasers and underlying story too. Like the beginning of Ain't Got Nobody has the little kid saying, "I had another nightmare..." which was also in the teaser videos. His mom then says, "everything will be alright in the end," which is repeated in Da Vinci and Foolish Father as well. So there definitely is a story there... for all of the people that hoped SFTBH would come to light... it kind of just did. This is like his own Pet Sounds, lol.

Although I certainly hope his relationship with the fans doesn't end up as The Wasteland lol.