Weezer
Weezer (Green Album)

THE REVIEW

In 2001, Weezer released what would become the album marking their definitive breakthrough: "Weezer", commonly known as the "green album", not to be confused with their other eponymous album (the first, referred to as the "blue album").

It is first and foremost an absolutely essential album to understand the artistic journey of the band, which began with their first album and continued with the controversial "Pinkerton", initially shamefully criticized and later even elevated to a masterpiece of the band. In the humble opinion of the writer, the truth about "Pinkerton" lies somewhere in between, because the true peak of the American group's production is precisely this "green album".

It is incredible how nothing in this work is out of place: the six-string alternates melodic caresses with distorted slaps, the vocal lines are simple yet astonishingly perfect, the band is technically absolutely on form and more inspired than ever. Cuomo writes all the tracks of the album entirely and is in such great shape that he defines the Weezer sound once and for all in the album's brief half-hour duration.

The tracks are ten potential singles, none excluded: two songs in particular stand out remarkably, chosen specifically for radio rotation. One is "Hash Pipe", which three years later would be shamefully plagiarized by Gwen Stefani for her "What You Waiting For?": the guitar immediately dishes out a muted and heavy riff, on which Cuomo's falsetto vocals rest, soon giving way to an impeccable refrain where the melody is absolutely perfect and fitting. Significantly, it's worth describing how Rivers conceived it: practically drunk early in the morning.

The other is "Island In The Sun", destined to become one of the greatest hits of the stars and stripes band, presenting itself instead as a soft semi-acoustic ballad that suddenly bursts into a decisive chorus. The video clip is also well-known, where the band plays amicably with various animals.

But it is the notes of "Don't Let Go" (that the record company was pushing to present as the first single) that open the album, quickly followed by the other extract "Photograph": the two tracks add a British rock flavor typically early Ash style to the typical atmospheres of the old "blue album" (at the time, even "Free All Angels" by the Northern Irish had been released just days before).

Tracks like "Crab", "Glorious Day", and "Knock-down Drag-out" (mentioning the best) continue in the same vein, building bridges and underpasses between pop punk, college rock, and British pop rock, in a whirlwind of engaging melodies and roaring guitars.

An objectively beautiful album, which propelled Cuomo and his band's careers to new heights (one and a half million copies sold) and delivered us a band destined to become a reference point for anyone who loves high-quality pop rock.