Yeah Right

Wut

This story (and other coverage) is focused on what Lady Gaga did in this situation. But we are burying the lede, folks. Fred Durst hosts a weekly jazz show? Fred Durst...of Limp Bizkit...hosts a weekly jazz show?!?

Weezer Stats

I got bored recently and made a spreadsheet of all the Weezer shows (27 full band, 1 Rivers Solo) I’ve been to and crunched some numbers (excluded were the 8 side project shows I’ve seen). Ride or die:

• I’ve heard Weezer perform 103 different songs live, 17 of which were covers (7 of which are from their covers album, The Teal Album).
• 48 of those songs I’ve only heard once.
• The worst song I’ve heard is easy to pick: “I’m Your Daddy” (thankfully, this is one of the songs I’ve only heard once).
• I have never heard my favorite Weezer song live (“I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams”). They’ve played in on both Weezer cruises, but I was assigned to a different theater show onboard. At least I’ve gotten to hear 15 other b-sides.
• I have heard my 2^nd favorite Weezer song (“Only in Dreams”) five times. It is shocking to me that they do not play this more, considering how often they play other non-single tracks from The Blue Album.
• I have heard my favorite Weezer single (“The Good Life”) 14 times. That’s better.
• Before I crunched the numbers, I figured that I had probably heard “Beverly Hills” and “Island in the Sun” the most times. If I never heard either song again, that would be fine. Especially BH. Turns out “Buddy Holly” came in #1 on a bit of a technicality: on the current leg of the Pixies tour, Weezer is playing “Buddy Holly” twice each night – as a barbershop quartet and the regular version. Had they only played it once per night, BH would have come in #2. The full top ten: 1) “Buddy Holly” (27), 2) “Island in the Sun” (26), 3) Tie: “Hash Pipe” and “Say It Ain’t So” (24), 5) “Undone” (23), 6) “My Name is Jonas” (22), 7) Tie: “Pork and Beans” and “Beverly Hills” (21), 9) “Perfect Situation” (20), 10) Tie: “El Scorcho” and “If You’re Wondering If I Want You to (I Want You to)” (18).
• I’ve heard all the songs from three Weezer albums: Blue, Pinkerton, and Everything Will Be Alright in the End. Otherwise I’ve heard songs off of every Weezer album (studio or not - even Christmas with Weezer) other than Death to False Metal.

Download These Songs Now (And Thank Me Later)

In the Valley Below – “Rise”

Jenny Lewis – “Heads Gonna Roll”

Lady Lamb – “Deep Love”

The Black Keys – “Lo/Hi”

Stephen Malkmus – “Come Get Me”

Concert Reviews

Weezer at the Black Cat – The week that the new Black Album came out, Weezer played two private radio-sponsored shows: a Sirius Alt Nation show at the Black Cat in DC and an iHeart Radio show in NYC. After failing to win tickets through all of the available channels, thankfully the band’s team (thank you, Karl Koch!) came through and got 20 fan clubbers on the band’s guest list, myself included. I’ve obviously never seen Weezer at a venue as small as the Black Cat. Even the intimate sows on the Weezer cruises had higher capacities. So that was awesome. We were able to get pretty close on #scottside. No opener, just a quick introduction from someone at Sirius. Thank goodness that the Sirius show as in DC and not iHeart Radio, because the band clearly adjusted their setlists to the different audience. The NYC show the next day got more pop-rock Weezer singles (“Beverly Hills” etc.) and we got b-sides from the Blue Album and Pinkerton. Hallelujah!

They kicked things off with my favorite Weezer single “The Good Life” then went into “Susanne” and “You Gave Your Love to Me Softly.” At this point it was like I died and went to heaven. Never, not even on a Weezer cruise, have I seen them start a show with Pinkerton, Blue Album b-side, Pinkerton b-side. Hot damn. Seeing the setlist after the show, they were supposed to play “High as a Kite” third (the best song off their new album by a wide margin) but apparently there were technical difficulties with one of the instruments they needed for that song. The two tracks from the new album that we got later in the set were “Living in LA” and “Can’t Knock the Hustle.” I saw the live debut of CKTH in December and this was similar. “Living in LA” was much, much, much better live than on the album. The loud crunchy guitars really elevate it live. We also got a Teal Album song and Praise Weezus it was not “Africa!” We got “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” instead. “El Scorcho,” “Say It Ain’t So,” “Island in the Sun” (first time they’ve played it full electric in a long time, and “Buddy Holly” (Barbershop version) rounded out the short set. I was (correctly) worried that it would be a short set because it was a radio station gig, but at least the setlist was outstanding. And it was free. Dilly dilly.

The Beths at Union Stage – This was a great lineup start to finish. DC’s Bad Moves opened the show and Bad Bad Hats co-headlined. The BBH singer’s banter is hilarious. Usually people who talk too much in between songs annoy me, but I just  want her to keep going. The Beths’ stage presence was improved from their fall show at Songbyrd, though they were still endearingly awkward (especially when they pause to introduce themselves). Plus any chance to hear the songs on Future Me Hates Me is a delight.

Cowboy Mouth at Hill Country BBQ – I snagged a friend’s extra ticket to this, having never seen Cowboy Mouth and enough people have raved about them over the years. It was a lot of fun and was appropriately timed on Fat Tuesday (they are from New Orleans), but I’m not convinced Cowboy Mouth is actually a good band that I would  like sober. But considering that, this was the ideal venue and time to see them in. If nothing else, they are an awesome party band. The drummer is the lead singer (did not expect that) and he slowly chants “the name of the band is…” and the crowd yells "COWBOY MOUTH!" at lot during the set. I was drunk enough to get into that, especially considering I did not know any song other than “Jenny Says.”

File Under: Awesome

Veers delivers two (one and two) solid Buzzsession performances. 

Cool Cover Alert

Eddie Vedder takes on A Star Is Born

Song of the Week

I'm in the middle of a stint seeing Weezer three times in three weeks in DC, NYC, and Baltimore. That is certainly a reason to smile, so let's make "Smile" the Song of the Week:

Cool Cover Alert

YUNGBLUD and Halsey take on Death Cab's best song

File Under: Funny

Rejected Vampire Weekend album names

Hat tip: Kasey

File Under: Interesting

The oral history of Office Space