WEEZER - review added 22nd November 2010
Album Review: Death To False Metal (2010)
For fans of: Alt Rock... and life to real metal (or in this case rock)
"Death To False Metal" is the second of Weezer's songs-from-the-vault albums. It's a concept which basically involves plucking a load of songs that didn't quite make it onto their main albums, then shoving them onto a full LP. In principal it sounds like it should be crude and a recipe for disaster.
However, whilst not everything is successful, many of these tracks are deeply enjoyable. A lot of them didn't make it to full release earlier because they had the wrong vibe for the time, not because they were in anyway poor. As the band says, the songs were, "...either too weird, too punk, too pop or too heavy metal, and just didn’t fit." The songs range in birth-date from the late 1990s to the late 2000s.
The sound is broadly upbeat Weezer, with all their standard punky pop undertones...though grunge, teeny pop, and a rock cover of a Toni Braxton's 'Un-Break My Heart' pop up.
Good:
Considering this is little more than cutting room floor material, the quality of sound is comparatively excellent. It's a surprise how 'together' the album feels too. If you didn't know better it would be easy to imagine this as a full studio release. Some of the songs are actually better than the tracks these guys produced on the main albums.
Not So Good:
The vocals, whilst generally great, are shaky or strained in places. It can probably be put down to the demo status of some of these tracks, but it wouldn't have taken too much work to redo them. Enough with the covers of 'Un-Break My Heart' by the way. The one here is pleasant, but I've already heard the song enough times this year (see Serpentine).
The Songs:
Stand out moments? 'Turn Up The Radio' is achingly catchy. 'I Don’t Want Your Loving' is interesting and accessible. 'Losing My Mind' is slow and introspective, but it draws the listener in. 'I’m A Robot' is frankly awful, sounding like a bad impersonation of S-Club-7. Eek! 'Trampoline' shouldn't work, but does in a big way. 'Odd Couple' is superb fun, and I suspect the best thing here.
In Summation:
This is a genuinely enjoyable album. It may lack a bit of spit and polish, but don't let the 'rejects rejuvenated' concept put you off. There are a few gems on 'Death To False Metal' and it would be sacrilege to miss them.
Entertainment/Enjoyment:
Musicianship:
Vocals:
Song Writing:
Production:
Overall:
Check out... All of it, although tread carefully...
Track List:
01. Turn Up The Radio
02. I Don’t Want Your Loving
03. Blowin’ My Stack
04. Losing My Mind
05. Everyone
06. I’m A Robot
07. Trampoline
08. Odd Couple
09. Auto-Pilot
10. Un-Break My Heart
Label: Universal
Artist's website(s): Weezer | MySpace | Facebook
