Review
Weezer
Pacific Daydream

I think that sometimes it’s really hard to review a Weezer record… I mean.. Their first record, the self-titled Blue album, is firmly perched on the list of “best debut albums of all time”. It’s quick punch of pop-punk aesthetic, quirky songwriting, and heavy crunch guitar is only mirrored by the sensitivity and honest lurch of songs like “Say It Ain’t So” and “Only In Dreams”. With Weezer, it is rather difficult, and completely unfair, to continue to compare each subsequent record to that one. Unfortunately we all do it. We want another Blue record, and while they have come close with the equally impressive Pinkerton and the Green record, it’s been a firm tongue-in-cheek mediocrity ever since. With that said, artists deserve the right to grow and change, and we can sometimes get fixated on a moment in time where we want that same sound. And... while their newest record Pacific Daydream, offers a sunny, California vibe with decent songwriting, it gets close to the edge, but with not enough oomph to send it over. 

That said, with every Weezer album since the Green album there are a few songs that find their way to the top. First track “Mexican Fender” is a light vibed, huge chorus, sing along of a song that has the ability to stick close for a random burst of the chorus hours later. “Happy Hour” trips along a light dance vibe, and name drops Stevie Ray Vaughan in an unlikely place. “Sweet Mary” is a Weezer classic with a chorus of ‘oohs’ and aahs’ in true Beach Boys fashion. “Get Right” has a Motown feel pining for the 60s. 

While this record has the California beach stamped all over it, the sun shines a little darker than normal. How many of us actually knew that this was Weezer 11th studio record? I feel that if you took the two best songs from the past seven records you would have a fairly solid and cohesive album. Weezer is a great band, and I can’t wait to see them on tour next year with The Pixies, but we all need to stop expecting another “Buddy Holly.”