Weezer: Self-titled Red Album

I have always had fun listening to Weezer. Of course I remember growing up with the Blue album and singing along to Buddy Holly and My Name Is Jonas. Their second album, Pinkerton, was in my opinion a masterpiece. Later they followed up with the much more light hearted Green album. And then came out with the lackluster albums Maladroit and Make Believe. I for one still enjoy all of their albums. Weezer can create some of the most catchiest songs known to man wheter you like them or not... Beverly Hills for example. Well Weezer has now followed up Make Believe with their 6th album entitled... well its self titled and nick named the Red Album.

This cd feels more like a throwback to old school Weezer. The first song Troublemaker feels like an instant radio hit with its fun sing along chorus and ridiculously entertaining lyrics. Escpecially to those who are Weezer fans. The second song and arguably the best song Weezer has ever written is entitled The Greatest Man That Ever Lived is so much fun! The song clocks in at a little under 6 minutes and what a 6 minutes it is. The style seems to change every 30 seconds to another type of music. From the first style feeling a bit Hip-Hop to then straight up Rock, and yes there is some awesome accapella to some chill acoustic pop. Not to mention the lyrics are so entertaining. Pork And Beans was the first single off the cd and of course its got a catchy tune. Heart Songs will let you feel what Rivers (lead singer) feels when he draws inspiration to write his next song. He quotes artists from Micheal Jackson, Abba, Bruce Springsting and Nirvana. One of my other favorite tracks is Dreamin'. The song is just classic Weezer. Trakcs 7,8 and 9 are a real turn for Weezer. Rivers lets the other band members take the lead vocals. The first of the 3 is called Thought I Knew is my least favorite. It sounds like a song from Uncle Cracker... but a good song from Uncle Cracker (which is rare) on the other hand Cold Dark World and Automatic actually work for me. They keep the Weezer flare with a different perspective on vocals. The album ends on a solid Weezer effort. The Angel And The One is in the same vein as Only In Dreams and Butterfly.

All in all this album is awesome! I cant say enough about how much I love this band and their latest effort. Despite that one song Thought I Knew, it was not enough to ruin the album for me because the song is still listenable. If you love fun upbeat catchy music BUY this album.

Grade: A-

For Fans Of: Weezer, Weezer and Weezer

Cute Is What We Aim For: Rotation

Never can I remember a record label delivering so many bands that so many people either love or hate... from the likes of Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco and Cobra Starship comes another band off of Fueled By Ramen... Cute Is What We Aim For. And like the previous bands I mentioned there is a ton of mixed feelings about these guys. The sophmore album from this band is entitled Rotation which after listening to the album in full a few times, I still dont quite understand the title.

The cd of course starts out like most pop punk bands with a catchy as hell song called Practice Makes Perfect. Quickly followed up with another great song called Doctor which is a ton of fun to listen to which seems to gather a bit of influence from The Used. The third track is where the band completely loses me. The song Navigate Me is a song about sex... and not that its a problem but its hard to take the song seriously with a line like "And I'm going to start from your waist up through your navel"...? What? Ooooh so poetic! "Cause my minds on a mission, with enough ammunition, and the proper position." The lines just seem to be bragging that this guy just had sex for the very first time and he wants everyone to know how good he thought he was. Literally this song almost ruined this cd for me... thats how much I disliked it. Well I am happy to tell you that I do have a feature on my cd player called 'skip' and thats what I will be using when I listen to this cd. Dont get me wrong... this cd got much better for me on the following tracks. Songs like Loser, Do What You Do and Denial will surely get your toes tapping and Hollywood in my opinion is the solid stand out track. This song starts out with big trumpets and a big band feel. Sure the song gets a little politiacl from a guy who in my opnion probably is just against President Bush because its whatevery one else is doing, but I forgive him for that because this song is that much fun.

This cd will most likely not make it into my top albums of the year but there are some really fun tracks on it. The cd is very listenable and for the most part a step in a better direction from their first cd.

Grade: B-

For fans of: Panic! at the Disco, Cartel and Fall Out Boy

Capital Lights: This is an Outrage

If you are reading this and you know me personally then you know that I have a taste for any band that comes off of Tooth and Nail records. They seem to consistently sign bands that deliver solid albums. With a history of bands like Anberlin, Mae, Emery and the Classic Crime they seem to know good music. Well Capital Lights is no different!

The first track titled Outrage is a catchy song that has a huge hook in every sense of the word. It will remind you of bands like The Academy Is.. and Cartel while keeping the song all their own style. Other stand out catchy songs include Out of Control and Work It Out. My favorite tracks of the album are Miracle Man which is a song that will help you enjoy the summer with its roll down the window and sing along chorus. While my other favorite song titled Mile Away has a feel between Death Cab For Cutie with a shot of Green Day influenced vocals. The cd is solid from start to finish. If you are looking for social commentaries or political agendas this album is not for you. But if you are looking for a cd that you will want to sing along with to every song anda cd that will keep you smiling... check out Capital Lights!

Grade: B+ border line A-

For fans of: Relient K, This Providence, Yellowcard or any Tooth and Nail lover