Aaaaaaand.. Here it is!

According to Rivers Cuomo, it will be on the upcoming Weezer album, coming out this fall and being produced by Blue/Green album producer and Cars front man Ric Ocasek.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xxo5gsVwVI8

Some of you may hate this song, and yes, during the first listen, the lyrics may seem cheesy and awful with too much name dropping. That's what I thought when some of the lyrics started to leak, too (before the video was released). But you know what? This song has an honesty to it that's been missing from Weezer for a very, very long time. Rivers knows he made mistakes with albums like Hurley and Raditude, dropping his guitar for a trampoline (ugh, don't ask), letting Pat play lead guitar, and having Josh Freese play drums, and he's acknowledging it. He knows he let a lot of his fans down, and this song is him basically saying "Okay, those were my mistakes, but here I am admitting it. I know what this band needs to be about now." (emphasis on now, this isn't Memories).

Personally, I really like that. And, to me, a song with lyrics like this takes a lot of guts. It really gives me hope and makes me excited for the rest of the album, and here's why:

Musically, this song sounds like a band that has matured from the days of the Blue Album. You can obviously still hear the signature/classic Weezer sound that's been missing from the last handful of albums (The intro sounds like a cross between Blue and Maladroit to me, same with the solo), but no band can play the same songs and sound the same way for 20 years.

Look at a band like Queens of the Stone Age, or the Foo Fighters. QOTSA's new album is the best album of 2013, bar none. Their sound has definitely "matured" over the years, but it's been for the better (and it's a shame that a lot of people can't see that).

Their sound has grown into something completely different, but you can still put on a song from their new album, and you still know that it's QOTSA and that it kicks ***.

Anyway, why am I talking about that band? What I'm trying to say is, I can hear the same maturity in Weezer's new song. They're not going the other way completely and doing some stupid rap song with Lil Wayne like they did on Raditude. To me, this song sounds like a natural progression from what you and I know as the "classic" Weezer sound.

Now for the lyrics. The thing I like about them is that Rivers is telling us what's on his mind now. He's not making some **** up like Raditude's Can't Stop Partying from 2009, he's not telling us about something he did 25 years ago like on 2008's Red Album, he's not talking about going back in time like Memories from 2010's Hurley, and hopefully he won't go back on a promise like in Pork and Beans. He's talking about what he's doing now and what he's going to do in the future.


You can make an arguement about songs like Beverly Hills, Perfect Situation, or The Other Way being "honest" and "current", but those songs fall short musically and production wise. Musically (in my opinion), this is the most interesting thing since 2002's Maladroit.


And there's nothing wrong with some reflection such as certain songs on The Red Album or Say It Ain't So from the Blue Album. But the thing with albums like Red is that it's filled with those songs.. And again, it falls short musically. The Blue Album has a good variety, and is played out beautifully. This song in itself has a good variety (in my opinion), but again, its main focus is on the present and the future, which is good. Also: See my thoughts on the music above.


Some of my favorite lyrics in this song:


Finally settled down with my girl and I made up with my dad/I had to go and make a few mistakes so I could find out who I am/I’m letting all of my feelings out even if it means I fail


To me, this gives us a good preview for what is to come on the new album. After Pinkerton was released (which is arguably Weezer's most personal album), it was panned by critics. This.. Well, pretty much drove Rivers insane, and it made him start writing more lyrics/music to.. I guess you could say "please everybody". Weezer were playing it safe for a while, and, I have to hand it to them, it worked for a while.. Until about 2005 (when the shitty music and shitty production came into play), but that's another story for another time.


To me, the lyrics that I lifted from the song earlier tell me that Rivers is spilling his guts again no matter if it sounds hokey or not, and I like that. But I just have to laugh when some people complain about how the topics in his songs have changed. Well duh, he's a 40 year old famous musician with a wife and kids. He's no longer the shy 20-something year old who wrote The Blue Album and Pinkerton (The reason I say this is because, one guy I was argueing with said that he could no longer relate to Weezer's lyrics, and then in the same breath he talked about how he thought the song Can't Stop Partying featuring Lil Wayne was a great idea. *facepalm*)


Obviously I haven't heard what the production is like yet, but I have faith in RIC OCASEK, who's producing this album. Ric also produced Weezer's classic debut album (The Blue Album) and their third release, 2001's The Green Album. This is another reason why I'm really excited for the upcoming album.As far as the other band members go, they look like they're having a great time playing the song. Members Pat Wilson and Brian Bell have openly talked about their dislike for Weezer's last two albums (Raditude and Hurley), so if they're happy, I'm happy! (Not really, but in this case I think everyone's happy.. Except the stuck up "fans" on the All Things Weezer forum who have no idea what they want)


Of course, I could have just said "I like the new Weezer song. It has a very mature (but classic) sound, and the lyrics are brutally honest, cheesy and hokey as they may be." But, I was bored, so there.