Tales from the UC

Warning: 

Good news ahead
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Judging by the above picture, I assume you know this post will be about my beloved band. Indeed, you are right.(Yay)  I have lots of wonderful news to report today. Let us start this report by recognizing that Weezer has been with the Geffen label since their music birth. We will never forget the label  for bringing us  gems like Pinkerton and the Red Album, but it is  time to bid adieu to the Geffen regime, as Weezer has decided to move on to smaller and better things!  Yes, it is true, yesterday the band announced they will be releasing their eighth album on the Epitaph label, marking the first time they will release an LP with an indie. FINALLY!  My Rivers will now have the freedom to be as raw and melodic as he pleases. As you know, (see Urban Dictionary post titled "As You Know") Epitaph has brought us amazing music from bands like Bad Religion, (one of my fav's) You Me At Six, Social D (another one of my fav's) Refused and many, many other smashing bands.

I just had one problem...

The cover

(and Rivers facebook profile pic)

Without the backing of the major Geffen label, Is Rivers panicking about the publicity of the album? Does he think that if he puts the picture of the dude from Lost all the annoying "Lostees" will buy the album because  the face of one of the characters is on the front? And worse, it's named after him? Is he trying to win over the Lost fans? Who cares about them?

   That was my first reaction...  

However, I have more faith in Rivers than that. He is very intelligent (A Harvard Grad, after all) and I feel he makes most of his music decisions through pure inspiration. So I am not judging the cover or it's title.

I read an article in the LA Times where River says, he's not a fan of Lost (thank goodness)... He has only seen one or two seasons, But Rather just a fan of Gorge Garcia (AKA Hurley) and "his gleaming mug". It is kind of comical that while most bands obsess over what name they will give their next album or even ponder for months on the cover, Weezer is just going to use a  modified version of Rivers' facebook profile pic...And then name their album after it.(Hurley...and please bless this title has nothing to do with the 1987 clothing company that only seventh graders wear.)
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There are so many reason why I love this clever band. It may be nostalgia. I  have loved them since I was 15 years old.  We would listen to them in my Subaru wagon every night as we would drive to Brighton to enjoy some night boarding.Or maybe it is just Rivers and his sense of realness. Or perhaps it's just him... How could you not love him? Just look at that face! Yes, they have had some less than stellar Albums... too poppy or too cheesy, (those are the ones we hear on the radio... I choose to overlook them because I have the "Mac condition"...see Vita Mix post )  but Pinkerton sold me for the rest of my life. If they can make more music like that (and I am hoping with this new label they will) I will be in music heaven.

  Here is a excerpt from the LA Times Article. I will just copy and paste the whole thing  because I couldn't have said it better myself.

"Any live music maven in the second decade of the 21st century knows that a plain old rock band has a little problem. Shows have become so elaborate, overstimulating fans with lights shows, props, dancers and other distractions, that three or four people banging away on standard instruments can seem awfully dull.Weezer  leader Rivers Cuomo has overcome this disadvantage by diving deep into the rock and roll frontman's smelly trick bag and refreshing its contents with the kind of energy you'd expect from a young brat, not a 40-year-old dad with 15 years of stardom under his corduroy-hoisting belt.
Performing Saturday afternoon at the U.S. Open of Surfing in Huntington Beach, Cuomo spent more time in the audience than he did onstage. He climbed onto camera dollies, played catch with giant Nerf footballs and several beach balls, and consistently invaded the personal space of his screaming fans. The madman routine was sharp as an ice pick -- Cuomo nailed every vocal in Weezer's wordy hits, led the band and pulled out several large guitar solos to boot."