Toe Jam Mondays: Weezer Special – Death to False Metal
I hope everyone is enjoying Pinkerton Deluxe. It really is a great treat for Pinkerton fans. As promised, today I’m going to talk about Weezer’s “other†release this week Death to False Metal.
Unfortunately, I had to struggle to find the highlights on this one. The albums 10 tracks are “apparently†good songs that did not end up albums for various reasons. Essentially this is a compilation of tunes recorded by Weezer from the vault. Sounds pretty good on paper. I was pretty excited when I first heard about the project, however, my hopes began to wane as information was released about the 10 songs that were to make up the album. Most of the tracks are rejects from 2005’s Make Believe and 2007’s self-titled Red album. None of the 10 tracks go as far back as 2001’s Green album, let alone their critically acclaimed debut (“Blue†album) and Pinkerton from the mid-90’s.
In my opinion, the album falls pretty flat. A couple tunes of interest are the two songs recorded in 1998, at the same time Weezer recorded their cover of the Pixies “Velouria†(a great Weezer recording – check this out if you haven’t already). This session represents our first taste of studio Weezer since Pinkerton. Mikey Welsh had taken over on bass duties, and Weezer was “officially†back in the studio. This had promise.
The first song from the 1998 Velouria session is entitled “Everyoneâ€. Nothing too special about this one. Clearly a Nirvana (Bleach-era) influenced tune. Weezer actually played a secret show in 1998 under the name Goat Punishment where they played Nirvana covers. There is a really good bootleg of this album floating out there. Here’s the set list (majority of the set is from Bleach).
1. “Mr. Moustache”
2. “Aneurysm”
3. “Breed”
4. “Dive”
5. “Swap Meet”
6. “Blew”
Outside the refreshing Nirvana influence and the fact was that this was one of the first signs of post-Pinkerton Weezer, there’s not too much else to get excited for.
Weezer – Everyone
[audio:http://www.monstersvsme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/05-Everyone.mp3|titles=Weezer – Everyone]
The second song from the session is entitled “Trampolineâ€. Again, not the best Weezer I’ve heard. But I found this song sort of interesting as the sound is sort of an indicator as to where Weezer was headed in 3 years – the Green album.
Simple lyrics, simple melody, simple song:
Trampoline…
Trampoline…
Trampoline you’re on my mind.
Weezer – Trampoline
[audio:http://www.monstersvsme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/07-Trampoline.mp3|titles=Weezer – Trampoline]
The only other song that I found semi-interesting on Death to False Metal was their Toni Braxton Cover – “Unbreak My Heartâ€. This song was supposedly in the running for 2005’s Make Believe but never made the cut. It’s a pretty bland version of the song. I’d equate the song to when American Idol does “Whitney Houston†week and the country singing dude from the south is forced to do Whitney Houston. Not necessarily good, but interesting.
Weezer – Unbreak My Heart
[audio:http://www.monstersvsme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/10-Unbreak-My-Heart.mp3|titles=Weezer – Unbreak My Heart]
Overall, I found Death to False Metal a disappointment. Not terribly disappointing, as I have the bar set pretty low for Post-Pinkerton Weezer. I actually find it quite funny that Weezer released Pinkerton Deluxe and Death to False Metal on the same day. How is this even the same band? I think Rivers is up to some sort of social experiment or something. Rivers is pretty analytical. There must be a good reason for this.
What could have been…?
I’ve been a Weezer fan since the beginning. And I have a pretty good idea what’s in the vault. And I know there is better stuff than this. I thought I’d post a few songs from my collection to show you what I mean.
Check out this 1993 Rivers Cuomo demo “Hot Tubâ€. The word on the street that this was actually written for Tom Jones. Surprise, surprise, it never made it on a Tom Jones album. Regardless, it is a pretty interesting listen (more interesting than most of Death to False Metal). This isn’t really a Weezer track, more a Rivers demo. But listen to the outro. The outro alone can stand up to any Weezer track I’ve heard (especially when the acoustic kicks in at the very end).
Weezer – Hot Tub
[audio:http://www.monstersvsme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/17-h-hottub.mp3|titles=Weezer – Hot Tub]
How about this track recorded the day Weezer signed with Geffen back in the early nineties. Rivers maintains a very detailed catalogue of every tune or riff he has written since the early nineties in an Excel spreadsheet. The song below was written after Rivers wrote “Holiday†and right before he wrote “Buddy Holly†(both found on the Blue album). Each song in the catalogue is assigned a chronological number:
#163 – Holiday
#164 – Souvenirs, Novelties, Party Tricks
#165 – Buddy Holly
I can understand why this one didn’t end up on Blue Album. If they ever released a comedy polka album, this would definitely make the cut. Check it out. It is seriously comical. Or, knowing Rivers’ it is probably comically serious.
Weezer – Souvenirs, Novelties, Party Tricks
[audio:http://www.monstersvsme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/04p-souvenirs.mp3|titles=Weezer – Souvenirs, Novelties, Party Tricks]
I suppose I have made it clear that Weezer beyond 1996 just isn’t the same. That’s not to say they haven’t had any good recordings since. One of my favourite Weezer songs in recent years is a Red Album B-Side about a girl. Interesting. I can recall another B-Side from 1994 about a girl that I was quite fond of (Susanne anyone?). I would put this tune head to head with Susanne. I’ll stay away from acoustic Jamie though. Check out Miss Sweeny below!
Weezer – Miss Sweeny
[audio:http://www.monstersvsme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/1-Miss-Sweeney.mp3|titles=Weezer – Miss Sweeney]
That’s all for now. A couple extended Toe Jam posts to account for the Weezer overload this week. What this week’s releases tell me is that when Weezer is on, they are on, and when they’re not, the definitely are not.
Weezer is currently prepping for a small tour where they will be playing each city two nights in a row. The first night they play the Blue album front to back, and the second night will be Pinkerton. There hasn’t been a Toronto date scheduled yet, but if they add one, look for me there.
Hopefully the re-release of Pinkerton and the Blue/Pinkerton Tour will inspire a new batch of tunes along the lines of 94-96 Weezer. Some might say, “only in dreamsâ€.
Thanks Mon, thanks MvM. Please share your comments, I would love to know what you think.
I’ll be back…
* If you are a member or manager of the above band and you would like your track removed, please contact us and we will swiftly oblige. Fans – new or old – please support these bands by using your coffee money to buy their records.
Great read Bodds! I have to agree that Death to False Metal fell short for me too, but Miss Sweeny made up for it in this post. And Souvenirs, Novelties, Party Tricks? I had a smile on my face the whole time. I can’t believe he kept an Excel catalogue of all his songs, I think we could be friends. Once again, great read, I’m sure all the Weezer fans out there appreciate them.
P.S – Whats up with that cover? I agree, it must be a social experiment.
Lets all go to this tour