Album Details

• Artist: Weezer
• Album: Pinkerton
• Label: Geffen
• Year of Release: 1996
• ME Rating: Indie Classic
• Reviewed by: green_clash on 2007-06-27

I think I'm Rivers Cuomo. Granted, I've never had a room full of Asians and went "Okay, whoever’s not gonna sleep with me should get out now" but come on, that's pure Cuomo. But to my point, River's got problems that any average loser can relate to and in the infamous words of the greatest and best song in the world, "El Scorcho", "Goddamn you half Japanese girls, do it to me every time". Wait, that's the wrong one. "How stupid is it? I can't talk about, I've gotta sing about it and make a record of...". That pretty much defines Weezer's reason on Earth but it's very apparent on this album. In 1996, River's was pissed. Even with a critically acclaimed record under his belt, he still wasn't satisfied. So Weezer made this heavy and gloomy album known as Pinkerton. Well at least River's wasn't the only one mad. People were upset that this album didn't have the poppy sound of it's predecessor, "The Blue Album". According to critics in '96, if the sequel to a great album doesn't sound exactly like that record, then it's instantly mediocre.

In reality, the songs on "Pinkerton" are among Weezer's best. The music perfectly reflects the honest feelings sung by Rivers. And the emotional lyrics are easy to relate to, and that gives the album a lot of appeal. Songs like "Why Bother?" see Rivers deciding whether he wants to take his chances with a girl that'll end up breaking his heart, or just forget about her. A lot of the songs on the album can be taken as humorous, but they're very gloomy and dark. Take for example, "Tired of Sex", the opening number on the album. Cuomo reads off a list of girls that he's slept with which seems obnoxiously funny, but the message he's conveying is darkly heartbreaking. He goes on talking about fifteen year old Asian girls in love with him, getting back into the good life, and finding out that the girl he loves is actually a lesbian. And River's never seems like he's whining, possibly because the songs aren't about trying to get the girl, but dealing with problems while with the girl. As far as the instrumentation goes, it's usually heavy, consisting of lots of feedback. The lead guitar is uniquely distorted, giving the solos a nice distinct feel. All but one song contains smashing drums, grinding guitars, and screaming vocals. The final song, "Butterfly", is the lone acoustic song. River's lightly strums the simple guitar part and half-whispers the touching words. Funny how Weezer goes out on their heaviest, loudest album with their quietest song to date.

The album "Pinkerton" is loosely based on "Madame Butterfly" which is an opera about a sailor named Pinkerton. This sailor goes from port to port sleeping and using different woman. River's thought he was sort of like this pimping majesty while on tour. The CD may seem like an abrasive departure, but this album wasn't that dramatic of a change. It's the same catchy Weezer seen on "The Blue Album", but it's more sour than sweet. It's more direct, unlike talking about lying naked on the floor after your sweater was torn up. After the ho-hum reviews on the album, River's was torn. He spent the next year or so in seclusion; lying in a dark, black room writing the songs that would appear on the super-sugar coated "Green Album" five years later. This has been and always will be my favorite Weezer album.

User Reviews and Comments

Review:

on 2011-06-17 CharlesMartel Said:

One of the benefits of being able to surf the net, download music and watch videos on YouTube is that you get to hear music which would never have crossed your radar. One of the disadvantages is that you begin to identify certain albums which are very highly praised and curiosity overtakes common sense and you rush out and buy it. Now sometimes I have done that and ended up with a cracker. Other times I have done that and ended up with "Pinkerton".

Quite why I went out and bought this I do not know. But on first listen I decided that it was one of those purchases which should best be put down to impulse buys and left alone. The aficionados call it emo - I just call it whining. Now whining can be OK (in small doses) but whining over music which is not particularly good is unforgivable. And the music on here is not particularly good. At times it borders on the atrocious. So what do I do with this album now that I have got it? The answer was to play it and play it and play it again and see if I can find something in it. After all, all those people who have given this album such critical acclaim can't be wrong, can they?

Oh...wait. "OK Computer".

But there is hope yet. Is there? Maybe after so many listens I am slowly getting used to this, or maybe it is not as bad as I thought it was when I first heard it. It is sloppy work in places but maybe that is a deliberate production technique. Furthermore, the guitar and the vocals leave something to be desired. Still, there are some good tracks on it and "Tired of Sex" is definitely a new concept that is worth exploring in the cloying and sickening world of pop. I am not sure though about the fascination with Oriental women though.

Sadly though, any attempt at a deeper listen will always disappoint. Like the Libertines, with whom a slightly unfair comparison was my initial reaction, there is little behind the music except a feeling of middle-class kids trying to pretend they're not really middle class. First of all, the apparent lack of ability to act coherently as a unit is covered up by making the guitars noisy to the point where it almost becomes indescribable fuzz.

Then there are the lyrics. An overdose of whining about Oriental girls and how shit it is not to be getting laid regularly is so puerile. But then again, I guess that is what emo is all about. Then again, I am not a teenager so perhaps that is why. But then again, I was a teenager, and can remember those sorts of feelings. But I didn't just whine about it and feel sorry for myself, I went out and got laid. And then to open with a track like "Tired of Sex" and whine about how, despite getting laid regularly, there is no love just straightforward, hard at it in the back of the Ford Fiesta bonking. Christ, some people are never satisfied.

Maybe it provides comfort to teenagers who can't get away from their PC's long enough to get a life, but it gets on your nerves after a while. This then, is the world of emo, a term which like many, I had often wondered what it was all about. I too had seen those kids hanging around shopping centres in their scruffy clothes, piercings and general listless demeanour. Now I know why. They listen to "Pinkerton" and think it relates to them on a personal level. In truth, it can be alright in small doses. But it does grate after too many listens.
Rating: 5/10

Review:

on 2007-07-12 dscanland Said:

Yeah, OK. Sure. "Rock on Emos"
Rating: 9/10

Review:

on 2007-07-12 TellAllYoureFriends Said:

THIS ALBUM IS LIKE EMO BEFORE EMO WAS INVENTED LIKE IF EMO DIDNT MEAN YOU HAD LONG HAIR AND RODE A SK8 BArd IT WAS LIKE WHEN EMO REALLY MEANT TSOMTHING TO LIKE PEOPLE AND SHJIT YOU KNOW LIKE WHEN EMO WAS MORE THAT HOT TOPIC AND DONT GET ME WRONG NEW EMO AND HOT TOPIC R GREAT BUT LIKE IT REEALLY MEANT SOMTHING WHEN WEEZER DD IT WRITING PINKERTONZ WAS LIKE FUKIN JHEASUS COMING DOWN AND SAYING ROCK ON EMOS \ AS Always ROCK ON 0io
Not Rated

Review:

on 2007-07-01 green_clash Said:

I've been listening to the Blue album a lot lately. It's such a close match, you know. But I find myself skipping "Buddy Holly" and sometimes "Surf Wax America". They're great songs, but they were my favorite tracks back when I was a wee boy listening to them and they've gotten a little old. But come on, you don't like "Only In Dreams". One of my favorites next to "My Name Is Jonas".
Rating: 10/10

Review:

on 2007-06-29 dscanland Said:

I still like the Blue Album better. Great review, BTW.
Rating: 9/10