Tickets There Likes: Weezer – Weezer (The Blue Album)
When I was younger I was a big fan of Blur and Oasis but it wasn’t until I heard Weezer’s ‘Blue Album’ that I actually became a fan of Indie music. Although my interest has become less and less evident over the last few years, Weezer opened the door to many great acts. I had heard Hash Pipe and Buddy Holly (same as the rest of the English speaking world), but had never listened to one of their albums until I started first year of college and it was passed over from Bob’s (my roommate) magical tube (sounds bad don’t it) of music. He had this plastic case with roughly a hundred burnt CD’s and no matter how many times you went through it, something new always popped up.
He recommended Weezer while he was in the grips of their buzz and I started with their debut. The damn thing was so good I couldn’t stop listening to it for around two/three months. The time it took me to walk to college from home was the exact length of the album (with a few minutes loitering to finish Only In Dreams off). I can’t say anything astonishing about it other than it’s just a great record. All the songs are catchy, fresh and heavy in their own way. Unlike the weird eco-conscious geek culture that’s taken over music at the moment, Weezer did geek rock well.
Rather than sing about the problems in the world, they kept it simple. I’m pretty sure Rivers would have trouble writing about anything other than Love but so what, he does love brilliantly and makes it more realistic. Tracks like The World Has Turned, Undone, Say it Ain’t So and Only In Dreams are classics, pure and simple. No-One Else, Surfwax America and In the Garage are the cream of the bands album tracks while My name is Jonas and Holiday are just damn good fun, don’t read into them.
I should take special time to mention that Say it Ain’t So and Only In My Dreams are two of the bands and the genre’s greatest assets. The Harmonies, melodies, riffs and full on force of those two songs is incredible especially in comparison to the other songs on the record. Rather than churn out standard ballads on an album of heavier material, the band mix the loud guitars, tension and melody so well it makes the songs stand out a mile without decreasing the albums overall quality
I never took as fondly to Pinkerton (although I do love it) and I after a couple of goes I gave up on Green and Maladroit and never bothered with the last two. After Buddy Holly being as close to pop perfection an indie band with loud guitars can get, Beverly Hills just seemed to piss all over their legacy, but who am I to judge? When I release one song in the same league as any of their stuff I can gripe, but until that day I’ll keep it shut.
'Ticket's There' - Irish and International Music Blog 
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