Album Review: Weezer - "Weezer" (Gold Album)
Produced by the hip hop/post punk adjacent superstar Kenneth Blume, Weezer's twentieth studio album, the Gold Album, reminds fans what makes the band so special still to this day. Warts and all.
For over thirty years, the L.A. based rock band Weezer has infiltrated our minds, our bodies, and ultimately our spirits. Led by the ever rambunctious, nerdy, and quirky Rivers Cuomo, the highly influential group have been at it for so long that they've attained a legendary status that very few bands from their era could amass. They're far from that initial Blue Album and Pinkerton era of stone cold classics from the 90's, but they can still crank out a solid record or tune if they want to. Many can agree with my opinion when I say that I have a love/hate relationship with the band. Who doesn't, really? I love a bulk of their work and some of their records (especially the two I mentioned earlier) are two of the best rock albums of the 90's and of all time. Heck, I even enjoy low career points like Make Believe and Raditude from time to time. I'll admit it! But with every high water mark comes an embarrassing nosedive in the group's ever growing catalog. Even in recent years, the group had a smartly introspective, lush concept record called OK Human in 2021 (one of their best in years) but followed it up with the 80's rock clunker Van Weezer. Weezer will always hold dear to my heart, leaving a little space in between just in case.
Weezer's new album, the new self-titled album that's labeled as the Gold Album, is notable for a few reasons. One, this is their twentieth studio album, which is an impressive feat for any artist. Two, this is heavily produced by Kenneth Blume (aka Kenny Beats), who has amassed a following thanks to producing hip hop acts like Freddie Gibbs and Vince Staples, along with rock acts like IDLES and more recently, Geese on their fantastic 2025 album Getting Killed. Also, Weezer have never collaborated with Blume before, so knowing some of his past work already, I was very curious to hear how the new record would sound. Throughout the record, Gold sounds more raw and tasteful than more polished, recent records like Van Weezer or Pacific Daydream. There are a variety of moments where Weezer hearken back to their glory days. This is pretty common in recent Weezer records over the past decade (think "Back to the Shack") but some of the tracks do tastefully evoke that early era. "C.E.O." blatantly takes its influence from Blue Album classic "Undone," where you can immediately hear the slow jangly guitars matched with the dry conversation in the background cheekily poking fun at fans/artists wanting to hear/make the old stuff again (making out another 90's jam, wish I could do something new" / "there's something special about their early shit"). It's done in a tasteful manner, as if you're also in on the joke along with them. The song itself is an album highlight, despite it simply being a silly "Undone" retrospective/parody.
There are other unexpected surprises like "We Might as Well be Strangers," where Rivers duets with Karly Hartzman of the young, buzzed indie band Wednesday. It's a pretty highlight that has both sharp guitar playing and hooks. It's few and far between when Rivers duets with someone else on record, so it's nice to find that on here. "Shine Again" is a fun, bright nod to golden, anthemic classic rock in its triumphant chorus but otherwise plays like a solid meat and potatoes Weezer rocker. "Say Yes" starts out as an interesting number, evoking classic 60's/70's glam pop like ELO but then rapidly goes into a chugging Weezer certified chorus. It's an otherwise solid Weezer tune and one of the better songs in the track listing. "The Show Must Go On" is one of the catchier, radio-friendly cuts that could've been fit onto Maladroit or the Green Album. With many Weezer albums, you're going to get some baffling, head-scratching lyrical blunders and the Gold Album is certainly one of those albums. With all the solid production and loud guitars and abrasive noise, you still can't ignore lines like opening line from "Hoop Dreams," where Rivers sings, "bought a toaster just to make some toast / first I had to scan a QR code." Or Rivers whinily singing "I don't wanna go nowhere" repeatedly on "Nowhere." Or Rivers recalling someone making fun of his name on "Don't Make It Weird" ("some people call me River / and they tell me I don't got any flow").
With all the props to Blume and Weezer for the solid production and mixing choices, the Gold Album is one of the nicest sounding Weezer albums since the White Album from a decade ago. There are plenty of tunes here that scratch that itch for the "new Weezer that sounds like old Weezer" demographic of fans. Fortunately and unfortunately, this is still Weezer we're talking about, so we're going to get some hiccups and low points along the way. There aren't enough consistent highlights to make the Gold Album a gold standard in the Weezer catalog (sorry, I had to do it). It stands in the middle of the pack when it comes to Weezer albums, but it's one of the better ones if I'm being honest. When they make highights like "C.E.O." or "We Might as Well Be Strangers," I'm still knocking on the door and seeing what's on the other side. There might not be a guarantee that it's going to be a Blue Album, a White Album or a Pinkerton, but there's a good chance you're going to get a decent array of Weezer cuts that will remind you why the band is so influential and memorable in the first place.
My Rating: 6 / 10
Favorite Songs: "C.E.O.," "We Might as Well Be Strangers," "Shine Again," "Say Yes"
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