EARLY REVIEW: Weezer's "Everything Will Be Alright in the End"

REVIEW:

Weezer's "Everything Will Be Alright in The End"

On Weezer's 9th studio album (Not counting 2010's Death to False Metal) Everything Will Be Alright in the End (AVAILABLE OCTOBER 7th), Rivers Cuomo promises a return to form, and as lead single "Back to the Shack" tells you, it is also an apology to fans for Weezer's past efforts (although I am one Weezer fan who doesn't need an apology.). If you have followed Weezer throughout this albums creation you can tell that Rivers' heart was in this album from the very beginning, he wanted to create something special, create something that Weezer fans would be proud of, and something he could be proud of. Does he succeed, does Weezer have another classic album on their hands?

1. Ain't Got Nobody- "I had another nightmare" a child opens the album up, "Go back to sleep honey, everything will be alright in the end" replies what we can only assume to be the mother. Guitars kick in chugging along to a great melody. The melody is catchy and switches enough to not be repetitive, unfortunately the songs title is sang over and over a bit too much, but it doesn't get in the way of ruining this very catchy song. When the solo kicks in, you can't help but smile, and the backing vocals at the end of this song are awesome and ends the first song on such a great note! 8.5/10

2. Back to the Shack- The first single from the album, a mission statement for the record, an apology to the fans. It opens with a cool guitar riff, and followed by some really catchy lyrics. They may not be perfect lyrics, but they are fun, and joyful and easily get stuck in your head. A lot of Weezer fans (mainly on the ATW forums) do not tend to like this song, it is understandable, but I find a lot of pleasure in this song, with the catchy lyrics, cool guitar riff, Scott's killer bass riffs, and that excellent guitar solo. It may not been the best choice off the album for a first single, but it is still an enjoyable song. 8/10

3. Eulogy For a Rock Band- A song about the end of a rock band. It is a unique idea for a song. A goodbye to long time rock bands (don't go away Weezer! We love you!). The okay verses follow a very beautiful melody that lead straight into an extremely catchy chorus, which I found myself singing for days in my head. The song is very straight forward, but it doesn't kill the song. Again we find ourselves with another great solo from Rivers (you're back!!). 8/10

4. Lonely Girl- This is classic Weezer, no denying it. From the sweet harmonies, to the very Beach Boys/ Beatles/ modern oldies vibe, this is Weezer. It has some great lyrics, it's melody is catchy, it has a perfect bridge. This is a song you would find on the Green album (and be the best one on there) or even on the Blue Album! The bridge is killer as well, with a bit of a Nirvana vibe going on. Let me mention the awesome drum fill after the bridge, the drums on this album in general. A+ Pat! Once again, another killer solo. 9/10

5. I've Had it Up to Here- Rivers seems to be doing tons of falsetto's on this album, and this song shows how amazingly well he is at it! The melody on this song just rocks, and again Rivers' vocal performance on this song is excellent! The bridge comes in softly, and sounds very similar to something Queen would of done, with perfected backing vocals and an excellent melody which leads directly into a perfectly fitting solo. 10/10

6. The British Are Coming- It opens with a military like drum roll, with some spoken words, followed by a cool acoustic guitar riff and humming and a piano riff, in comes that famous Weezer guitar fuzz. This song is odd, it is really about Paul Revere (although he did not act alone) and spreading the warning of the British coming, but I truly believe there is another meaning to this song, I just have no idea what it might be. It is an odd song no doubt, but it is Weezer and we shouldn't expect anything else! Lines such as "Punk ass redcoats trying to run the show" should not actually work in a song, but Rivers' knows how to make it work, and its goofy, and fun. Again, another song with a catchy and fun chorus and amazing melodies, Rivers' is great at writing melodies, and he has a really unique skill of writing such wonderful Bridges as this song has one, followed by one of the best guitar solos on the album! The lead guitar at the end of this song is beautiful. 10/10

7. Da Vinci- Once again we have something that shouldn't work in a song, and that is the ridiculous whistling at the begging and after the first chorus, and again it works to perfection. The melody again is great, upbeat, and fun. The bass line is also fun. The chorus is excellent, and charming, with absolutely nerdy goofy lyrics that actually work. There is also an awesome bass drum fill after the first chorus after the whistling. The ending has an awesome piano that comes in and ends the song perfectly. 9.5/10

8. Go Away- This song is a duet with Best Coast singer Bethany Cosentino, a first for an official Weezer album. The lyrics are wonderful for the fact that it tells a great story between a guy and girl. The guitar tone on this song is 100% classic Weezer. It unfortunately falls victim to a repetitive chorus with only "Go Away" being the only lyric in the whole chorus pretty much, although I wish it would of been filled with more, I think it fits the sweet, and quick vibe of this song. The bridge is yet again another perfect bridge from Cuomo. It is a very basic "verse chorus, verse chorus, bridge, chorus" with no solo and doesn't really do anything different to change things up, but I fully enjoy this for the sweet, simple, emotional back and forth story between boy and girl. 8.5/10

9. Cleopatra- Cool harmonica/acoustic guitar intro similar to such songs as "My Name is Jonas" and "In the Garage". The verse lyrics are wonderful, but is again another victim of a repetitive chorus. The bridge is fun and the lead guitar in the bridge is fun and the cool Egyptian guitar before the second portion of the bridge which is being called the "counting bridge" in which the guitar get heavy and chug about while Rivers' sings "5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, you're older, you're colder". The guitar solo is awesome as can be, I don't like the tone they went with with the guitar sound during the solo, but it is nonetheless a badass solo. Also the kick ass drums that lead into the second counting bridge are killer. 8/10

10. Foolish Father- This is by far the most Pinkerton sounding song on the album. The lyrics are absolutely beautiful, which fits perfectly to the beautiful melody and emotionally driven vocals by Rivers'. The build up into the guitar solo is fun, and the solo is great and emotionally powerful and fitting, The build up after the solo into the chorus is excellent! When the last chorus comes in Brian join in with perfect call and return backing vocals. Then comes one of the most emotional powerful moments in the entire album. A choir kicks in singing "Everything will be alright in the end" bringing a great emotional ending to the song, 10/10

The Futurescope Trilogy-

I. The Waste Land - These next three songs are mainly instrumentals, and they are here to show the talent of the whole band, and damn does it show! "The Waste Land" introduces kickass guitar leads, a sweet melody and amazing drumming. This is a fun instrumental. 9/10

II. Anonymous- A beautiful piano kicks in to some humming, the guitars build up and then comes in Rivers' on vocals. The lyrics are simple, and really aren't the focus on this song, again it is mainly an instrumental. The guitars on here are killer. The song suddenly turns into a very cheesy 80's hair metal sounding song and I am 100% okay with it and 100% on board for it. Rivers' vocals are awesome, and kick ass on this song...but his guitar work, even better! The melody is fun, badass and everything you'd want from a "badass" Weezer song. Pat just destroys on the drums here. 10/10

III. Return to Ithaka- First off that guitar tone is sex to my ears. The dueling guitars are sweet. Impressive guitar work from both Rivers' and Brian. Rivers' is definitely channeling his older days of metal with actual shredding towards the end of the song closing the album on a killer note. Again, Pat killing it on drums. 10/10

THE FUTURESCOPE TRILOGY- 10/10

So did Weezer bring a classic album in 2014? They sure did. Filled with amazing, catchy songs, sweet melodies, and killer guitar and drum work, Everything Will be Alright in the End, is an album Rivers Cuomo and Weezer should be proud of. Is it better than Blue or Pinkerton? Only time will tell. I don't see this replacing Blue as my personal #1 Weezer album (and #1 album overall), could it take out Pinkerton from #2? It is possible. I know Weezer fans, calm down, Pinkerton is a masterpiece, I know. Doesn't mean it can't be replaced by a new Weezer masterpiece. Again, it is something time will only tell. Fans will find pleasure in this album, and I feel it will grow on fans who won't care for it much, and become another classic in their Weezer collection.

OVERALL FINAL SCORE:

9.8/10

ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS:

• Pat kills it on drums throughout this record. He is a great drummer in general but he shines through on this one.
• The guitar solo in British, and Ain't Got Nobody
• The biggest highlight in the whole album to me is the bridge in "I've Had it Up to Here". Pure beautiful music and melody.
• Rivers' great falsetto throughout. 
• Ithaka's awesome ending.
• The boy girl duet is charming on "Go Away"

MUST LISTEN TO

• I've Had it Up to Here
• The British Are Coming
• Lonely Girl
• The Futurescope Trilogy

BoJack Horseman Review

"BOUND TO STIRRUP LAUGHTER"

I turned on BoJack Horseman, the new, and first (ADULT) animated TV show from Netflix, not expecting much and by the fourth episode I knew I was right to not expect much. I always give a show the four episode trial as most shows tend to get better after a few episodes, but with the lack of anything to watch, I decided to keep on going and watch more episodes of Bojack. It then hit me like a bucking (pun intended) bullet to the head that, well, hey (no pun intended) this show is actually really good.

What sets this show apart from other adult oriented cartoons like Family Guy, American Dad, and South Park, is it isn't so overly offensive, which is a fresh of breath air from a cartoon for adults (don't get me wrong, I love shows that are offensive), or at least it doesn't try so hard to be offensive, *cough* Family Guy *cough*. Also unlike the shows I mentioned, BoJack Horseman actually has a cohesive story, which, I at least didn't realize til around the fourth episode (shows how much I was interested at first).

BoJack Horseman attempts to make you laugh, and it succeeds, but I would be lying if I told you it was non-stop laughter, joke after joke, because it isn't, and that is a good thing for a show like this. It is definitely witty, it is smart, and it is definitely hilarious. It perfectly pokes fun of celebrity culture, and has very clever jokes, and the world of BoJack Horseman is constantly weird, and fun, and based in a world where humans exist, but also animal people (the best I can explain it) which adds some great visual jokes, such as a Giraffe getting into his car, an old lady Armadillo almost getting hit by a car who has an excellent reaction. A lot of the jokes are also continuous throughout the series, a lot like Arrested Development. 

As I said in that last paragraph, I'd be lying if I said it was constantly funny, and that that was a good thing for this show, a show that is an adult animated comedy that isn't constantly funny may sound like the point of the show is ruined, but it isn't because on top of the humor the show has tons of heart, and most the characters are excellently written and emotionally broken. BoJack Horseman, voiced by the always hilarious Will Arnett, is a washed up celebrity from an old 90's family sitcom, who is writing a novel based on his life, and his ghostwriter,  Diane, voiced by Community's Annie, Alison Brie, who follows him around to get a good idea of who BoJack is, a very dark, depressed character, who doesn't really realize that he is afraid to be alone, and just wants to be liked. A really good scene that really stood out to me as showing the great humor, and yet emotionally driven story BoJack has to offer, is in the second to last episode "Downer Ending" where BoJack takes tons, and I mean, TONS of drugs thinking it would help him write his novel. He ends up having a ridiculous trip that not only is hilarious, but dark and actually kind of heartbreaking as he comes to a certain realization.

BoJack Horseman might be a bit hard to swallow at first, and it may even be a bit hard to swallow in general for some. The animation is a bit weird, the characters are weird, and the overall concept is, well, weird. The humor may not offend some as much as most adult cartoons do, but it has the wittiness, and smartness of great shows like Arrested Development,  which also stars Will Arnett, and Community, which also stars Alison Brie. The humor is excellent and witty without trying too hard to offend the audience for shock, and the added character depth and heartwarming and emotionally driven character moments make BoJack Horseman a real fresh of breath air in a genre filled with a lot of overlay offensive material.

BoJack Horseman also stars:

Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad)

Paul F. Tompkins (Tenacious D)

Amy Sedaris (Strangers With Candy)

Patton Oswalt (The King of Queens)

Stanley Tucci (The Hunger Games)