Weezer (Blue Album) was made on May 10, 1994,and consists of 10 songs. Once it was released to the public, it reached fast acclaim, gaining a spot at number 16 on the Billboard 200. It was eventually certified platinum five times in the United States and remains Weezer’s bestselling and most popular album. However, my first introduction to the band Weezer wasn’t through their music, but a meme.
It has become a running joke on social media to poke fun at the Weezer (Blue Album). Why? I couldn’t really tell you. Nevertheless, this joke soon became a trend of people making their own Weezer album cover; drawing their favorite characters in the exact same position as the band members with one of the Weezer songs playing in the background. I came across many images like these, and my curiosity was piqued enough to want to listen to the band myself, thus bringing me to Weezer (Blue Album).
The album starts with “My Name is Jonas,” which is a very upbeat and good song to set the scene to the album you’ll be diving into. The song also doesn’t sound like most rock songs I’ve heard, which is attributed to some of the pop elements Weezer uses. The singing in the song is soft and quiet; however, the instruments used help bring a sense of rock within the song. As the album progresses, the two stand-out instruments are drums and guitars which surprisingly didn’t clash with the soft tone of voice from the lead singers at all.
My personal favorites from the album are “Buddy Holly,” “Undone – The Sweater Song,” and “Surf Wax America.” Compared to most of the songs, which sound like they could have deeper and more upsetting undertones, “Surf Wax America” stays an upbeat and fun song consistently throughout its runtime. I find the lyrics to “Undone” the most relatable and the easiest for understanding the potential message. “Buddy Holly” even has its own guitar solo in the middle of the song, which ended up becoming a “Weezer trademark.”
After finishing the album, I would say that it is versatile in terms of the mood you would want to set. It can be useful for regular background music for hanging out with friends or studying, keeping you awake but having parts you’d like to sing along with. I can also see the album working on a party playlist or being a staple for long car drives. While I adore my three favorite songs more than the others on the album, I wouldn’t say there is a song I dislike. I believe every song has fun parts that make it catchy and easy to get stuck into your head, only getting better as the album progresses. It’s no surprise that it was the beginning of the band’s rise to fame.
