Progress: Maladroit represents new sound for Weezer
q by Andrew Yaksic News Editor
"Maladroit" is defined as "not adept." Maladroit is Weezer's fourth album, and it is a misnomer - Weezer displays brilliantly their adeptness at making music. The songs that appear on this album, released on May 14 by Geffen Records, have been in development for several years. Weezer posted the songs on their website, weezer.com, after each recording to allow the fans to listen and submit feedback. Maladroit is Weezer's second album within the space of a year. Their third album, Weezer (known as the "Green Album" for its green cover to differentiate it from their 1994 debut album, Weezer, known as the "Blue Album" for its blue cover) was released on May 15, 2001. Their second album, Pinkerton, was released in 1996, but it took five years to sell its millionth copy.
Weezer's sound has evolved since the Blue Album's release in 1994. They began with light poppy rock, and one such song, "Buddy Holly," was largely responsible for the success of the Blue Album, leading to triple-platinum status. By 1996, Rivers Cuomo, the lead guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter, decided to get emotional. Pinkerton is harder to listen to than the Blue Album, but it is arguably a better compilation. Many Weezer fans regard Pinkerton as the finest work that Weezer has produced, but the public disagreed. Rivers decided to go back to school at Harvard after Pinkerton's commercial failure, but he dropped out again before he graduated. In the five years between Pinkerton and the Green Album, Rivers decided to appease the masses and write very poppy songs that would clearly be commercially accepted. The public loved the Green Album, though the Weezer fans who fell in love with Pinkerton were less than satisfied with this gooey power-pop album.
Luckily, Rivers found a perfect balance between Pinkerton and either Weezer. Maladroit has elements of many of the great bands that went before Weezer, but it has a flair all its own. The current single, "Dope Nose," is a bit lacking lyrically but the music is solid. Indeed, most of the songs are better musically than lyrically. "Slave" and "Slob" are tightly constructed, but the words will not appeal to everyone. Rivers writes personally meaningful music, sometimes ignoring the fact that others will be listening to his music and trying to decipher its true meaning.
"Keep Fishin'" is a great example of balance between lyrics and music. It has a catchy tune and beat, yet many teenagers (and adults alike) sated with angst about females and work will identify with what Rivers croons about. "Love Explosion" is another such song, although some fans take umbrage to a last-minute change that Weezer decided to make that nobody could have foreseen due to a problem between Geffen and Weezer.
One of the key elements of Maladroit is that fans could download MP3s from weezer.com to track progress of the album, but during a dispute between Weezer and Geffen Records, Interscope (Geffen's parent company) ordered Karl Koch (maintainer of weezer.com) to shut down the Audio-Visual section of the band's website. This did not reopen until a few weeks before the release of Maladroit, at which point it would have been detrimental to sales to post all of the songs up for the fans. Indeed, the final release date for Maladroit was not set for a long period of time because of the disputes between the label and the band. Rivers took matters into his own hands by sending out a sample CD of 8 Maladroit tracks to hundreds of radio stations without Geffen's approval. This prompted a scathing letter from record executives telling Rivers to tell the radio stations to stop playing tracks from the yet-to-be-approved Maladroit. The phenomenon was unstoppable, however. As of publication, "Dope Nose" has been on Billboard's Modern Rock charts for 11 weeks, peaking at #8.
"Love Explosion" started out as a social commentary mixed with a plea to his girlfriend to "get out [of your] house, girl, and kiss me again." Upon playing the released version of Maladroit, an observant fan will notice a drastic change in lyrics. Instead of a scathing social commentary about "a world where nobody's kind to themselves," we hear a story of people who have "been wanting to kill you in your sleep." Weezer purists resent the degeneration of the lyrics, but the music is as solid as ever.
Clearly, this is the Weezer album with the most backstory, and having listened extensively to each of the three previous albums is helpful to a fuller appreciation of Maladroit. This collection of songs has deep meaning to long-time Weezer fans, as it represents a resurgence in creativity by Rivers, Brian Bell, and Pat Wilson. Scott Shriner, the new bassist for Weezer, entered in August 2001 after Mikey Welsh, the former bassist, dropped out of the band and moved back to Boston. Rivers, a Connecticut native, held auditions in Los Angeles, the city where the band was founded, and ended up with Shriner as a 'temporary' bassist for the impending nationwide tour. When it became clear that Welsh would not be returning, Shriner was commissioned to become a permanent member of Weezer. Maladroit is his first album.
There are two ways to judge Maladroit when considering whether or not to purchase it. The way that most music fans will view it is as an independent piece of music. There are 13 tracks on Maladroit, all unique in their own way and all containing very solid rock music. In this respect, it is certainly worth purchasing if one is a fan of the genre. The second way to view Maladroit is as a product of the 10 year existence of Weezer. The band has gone through so much, especially since they regrouped in 2000 after Rivers's hiatus, that Maladroit should be appreciated for its place in the series of music produced by Weezer. Previous albums had followed a color scheme (green, then black, then blue), but this features no distinct color or theme. Weezer, Pinkerton, and Weezer each contained 10 tracks, providing symmetry between albums. Maladroit is the first to break the mold, containing 13 songs. In most of the previous songs Weezer had published, with the exception of the Blue Album's "Only in Dreams," the guitar solo was just a repetition of the tune of the chorus. Maladroit contains impassioned riffs with impeccable timing, a great distinction from albums of old. Change is not always bad, however; Maladroit represents a progression, not necessarily a change, in Weezer's music. However, if one has been listening to Weezer's music for long enough to track their progression, then there is little doubt as to whether to purchase Maladroit.
Weezer is currently working on their fifth album, currently titled "Album Five." The title for Maladroit came from a suggestion from the users of the message boards on weezer.com, and it is possible that they will find a name for Album Five in the same place. More information on Weezer's history and discography, along with information on this summer's national tour, can be found on weezer.com. One thing that they do not offer is a list of the prodigious amount of non-album material that they have produced since their formation on February 14, 1992. This can be found on unofficial Weezer sites like weezerfans.com.
Out of 10 thumbs up, I award Weezer's Maladroit 10 thumbs up. It may not go down in history as one of the greatest albums of all time, but Weezer fans will appreciate what it represents in the vast chain of Weezer's music. Non-Weezer fans might just find themselves tapping their foot or singing along to the tracks on Maladroit if they have the good sense to purchase it. Maladroit is adroit on many levels, but it is supremely musical. If one wants an easy listen, perhaps the Green Album is a better choice; however, Maladroit is a valuable addition to any music lover's collection.