Review | Weezer’s Voyage to the Blue Planet
The Band Celebrates 30 Years of Their Iconic ‘Blue Album’
“Beverly Hills, that’s where I want to be … rollin’ like a celebrity.”
Whenever Weezer’s “Beverly Hills” came on the radio when I was a kid, I would air guitar and drum in the backseat of the car as though my life depended on it. The way the band’s songs were recorded, it was hard not to. The brash, loud sounds of the live sounding instrumentation, the tastefully simple melodies, and their conversational lyrics were perfect sonic fodder for a little burgeoning music nerd. Through the airwaves, Weezer became a huge part of my childhood and love of bands. Their music dominated the ’90s with platinum records and chart success, with their rock/emo-meets-pop sound.
Not too far from The Hills themselves, I went to see Weezer at the new Intuit Dome in Inglewood this past week. Celebrating 30 years of the band’s iconic self-titled LP (a k a The Blue Album) on their The Voyage to the Blue Planet tour, they created a show where (dressed as astronauts) they are on a mission throughout the set list to play The Blue Album in full.
The show started with the stage set up with a rocket ship in the center, along with a giant screen behind them displaying space imagery. There was a countdown on the side screens, and once it hit zero, the ship lifted to show the band underneath. The band exploded into “Anonymous” as the crowd roared. They played a string of hits, including “Pork and Beans,” “Island in the Sun,” and “Beverly Hills.” During “Island in the Sun,” the audience screamed “hip, hip” along with the band, and during “Beverly Hills,” the lead singer and guitarist swayed in unison back and forth, beaming as they played in tandem with one another.
The band then played a string of cuts from their album Pinkerton as they entered the Pinkerton Asteroid Belt, with highlights including “Pink Triangle,” “Across the Sea,” and “Why Bother?” After “Across the Sea,” the band then grabbed a blue flag and stuck it into the stage, announcing that they had found their way to the Blue Planet.
Weezer played the entire Blue Album top to bottom, and the audience loved it. Most people around me knew every word, and each song was filled with raucous, joyous energy as audience members jumped with joy and clutched each other’s hands as they sang the words to each other, laughing. And there was blue everywhere: Streamers flew through the air, the seats all lit up blue, and the blue lights flashed across the venue. During fan favorite “Say It Ain’t So,” the band looked the most excited of the night, genuinely enjoying watching audience members scream along.
After “Buddy Holly,” lead singer Rivers Cuomo punched both fists into the air in excitement. And during “Undone — The Sweater Song,” the band dropped silent during the chorus, letting the audience take over. It elicited a huge response from the crowd, as fans beamed while singing, “If you want to destroy my sweater, hold this thread as I walk away. Watch me unravel, I’ll soon be naked, lying on the floor.”
Toward the end of the show, I turned around to see an ocean of middle-aged men mimicking the same drum solos I did as a kid. A united community of fans in their own private worlds, it was a celebration together of the music that we’ve explored inside ourselves; embodying each band member as if you were part of the group. I wondered how many other people were tapping into that same kid. It was a blast being her again for a night.
