Last night was something like my 40th set of music in under a week, and it came on the heels of my second night with My Bloody Valentine (Roseland was amazing). But still it was never in danger of being overlooked: Wednesday was my first evening with Weezer, and Weezer’s first with Madison Square Garden (Rivers called it “a dream”). For both of us, though, it was some years too late. That’s not for any reasons of performance stamina or proficiency on the band’s part: when the material is right, Weezer’s infectious, vulnerable pop is powerful as ever. Which is saying something. Namely, it’s saying a Weezer show is as good as its setlist. And mostly last night’s selection was pretty OK: the show opened with the Blue album’s “My Name Is Jonas,” and quickly hit my money spot (i.e. anything off Pinkerton) with “Pink Triangle.” Singing “I’m dumb she’s a lesbian” with an arena, you should try it sometime. And for the rest of the night, as long as we were clear of the mostly unfortunate Red Album, it clicked.
The years have been good for some things, of course, like a critical reevaluation for the aforementioned second LP, the band’s ability to command tour revenue far beyond the peanuts they got a decade ago, and the winning of lots and lots of fans who, as Weezer ’08 has shown time and again, they want to impress. And so they aimed to entertain, dressing the part with white jumpsuits (stripped to reveal red versions after the photo pit closed) while Rivers rocked that silly mustache (expected) and a yarmulke-sized bald spot (quite the opposite). The stage had two tiers, and Cuomo had a trampoline which he used both as a platform for jumping and a bed for supine soloing. When not laying down, Rivers solos came with arched backs and “Oh” faces.
A good number of songs saw Rivers give up vocal duty to the band, including “El Scorcho,” the only other Pinkerton track unfortunately, with Scott Shriner and Brian Bell doing most of the work. Others saw the vocals overtaken by a hits-loving audience. That included Blue album career-makers “Buddy Holly,” “Say It Ain’t So,” and “Undone (The Sweater Song),” although the latter also featured Tom DeLonge singing lead on a few verses (his band Angels & Airwaves opened, and I was lucky enough to miss it). MSG seemed to enjoy Tom being out there about as much as I did, a shower of boos greeting his introduction; either the fans hate his band, or they thought he should be sitting bedside with Travis Barker. In my case the two aren’t mutually exclusive.
Other guests making the stage included producer Jacknife Lee playing moog in Weezer uniform, and “30 or so” of NYC’s biggest Weezer fans, all toting instruments in Hootenanny renditions of the first encore’s “Island In The Sun” and “Beverly Hills.” And since Weezer is all about THE PEOPLE these days, the encore fit. But I wouldn’t mind a return inward. I wouldn’t mind reconnecting with =w= not because I have an internet connection, but because of their ability to express social anxieties and sexual frustrations are rarely expressed so melodically, pithily, and set to such insanely catchy hooks, all in under three-and-a-half minutes. But you know, like I said: Last night came a few years too late for the setlist I wanted. And for the most part, I didn’t mind settling for the mustache, the bald spot, and the hootenanny (boy, the candy).
I’ll leave you with a look at the setlist (yes, they covered Nirvana) and a spread of pics.
SETLIST
01 “My Name Is Jonas”
02 “Pink Triangle”
03 “Perfect Situation”
04 “Say It Ain’t So”
05 “Susanne”
06 “Keep Fishin’”
07 “King”
08 “Undone (The Sweater Song)” (w/ Tom DeLonge)
09 “Pork And Beans”
10 “Dreamin’”
11 “Dope Nose”
12 “Troublemaker”
13 “Automatic”
14 “Hash Pipe”
15 “El Scorcho”
16 “Morning Glory” (Oasis cover)
17 “Greatest Man That Ever Lived”
—-
18 “Island In The Sun”*
19 “Beverly Hills”*
—-
20 “Heart Songs” (playing on a red record player, kicked by Rivers mid-song)
21 “Sliver” (Nirvana cover)
21 “Buddy Holly”
* w/ 30 piece ensemble of instrument toting NYC Weezer fans
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i cannot believe they played MSG.
signed,
trying not to burst amrit’s bubble
Love the setlist. Now I wish I had went!
For a very brief period of time when Pinkerton came out, they were truly, TRULY something special. I saw them play with Foo Fighters last tour and it’s just all so odd now. For everyone except the band, Rivers and Weezer were better when Rivers didn’t know how fucked up he was.
Rivers, please shave off the pedostache.
please, it appears to me that someone somewhere started a stupid joke and said they could make rodeo hillbilly mustaches a trend. some people want it to pick up, but it’s simply silly. shave it off/don’t even think so
I’m surprised and thrilled that they played ‘susanne.’ some of the b-sides are gorgeous tracks: mykel & carli, american girls, etc.
when the rentals toured last fall, ‘I just threw out the love of my dreams’ garnered oohs and aahs from only the geekiest of fans
Yeah, hearing Susanne would have made up for the not-so-great moments.
happy birthday will smith
Great pics. No need to hate on the mustache so much: Rivers grew it for his baby daughter because it reminds him of his own dad back when Rivers was just a kid. And I think the Red Album is underrated. Sure, it has its share of cringe-worthy moments, but overall it’s my fave since Pinkerton.
what the fuck is with all the parenthetical asides? amrit, are you fucking retarded or just a really bad writer?
were they selling the jumpsuits at merch? i’m thinking i have my idea for my halloween costume.
What is it with this uncanny obsession everyone has with Pinkerton? Sure, it’s a great record but it’s not AMAZING. Both Blue and Green stand up pretty well to it song-by-song. Maladroit is probably their most, dare I say, experimental, encompassing the most “arena rock” into their sound. Make Believe was just wierd, I didn’t know if he was being ironic or sincere. Dig the first half of the Red Album a lot. I just get annoyed with fans of bands who “just want to hear the old stuff, maaaaaan”
One could argue that The Blue Albm stands up with Pinkerton (though Pinkerton is my personal favorite), but their first two albums are laughably better than anything that came after. I agree in certain cases that bands should keep progressing and pushing forward and that fans should accept their new material. But when a band produces two flawless pop albums and then churns out one crappy disappointment after another, I just want to hear the old stuff maaaaan. And this is coming from a DIE HARD Weezer fan.
I can’t believe they didn’t play Only In Dreams!!! I would’ve been extremely disappointed. Amrit you should’ve refused to even review the show. I’ve seen them twice and pretty much all I remember about the shows are the big build up with the =W= rising behind them. They take that off the setlist and keep Beverly Hills?!!!
Hey Guys i was there and it was amazing!!!!! I actually am a fan of Angels and Airwaves so it was a double awesome Concert and my first actually too so it was pretty rad!
Oh my fuck, they played “Susanne”? Never thought I’d see that day. And a Nirvana cover? Pretty decent setlist.
I’m still upset about the mixed-up vocals, though. While I commend the band for mixing things up and wanting to share vocals and also get the fans involved, most of the band’s long-time fans would much rather hear the band perform the songs the way they were originally meant to be performed — by Rivers. It’s certainly true that Rivers once used to keep the band in a constant state of tight-assedness, but now I feel like they’ve maybe become a little too loose.
Still, sounds like a good show, despite the presence of Tom DeLonge and “Heart Songs.”