On April 1, 2016, the nostalgia of Weezer fans across the world was relieved with the release of the band’s first self-titled record in eight years, “Weezer (White Album).”
The significance of this being their first self-titled album in nearly a decade cannot be overstated.

The band only names an album after itself if they consider it to be a special, high quality product.

And boy, is this album special.

This is the band’s 10th studio album. It is its fourth self-titled album. Each of these albums are officially titled “Weezer,” but are referred to by the color of the album’s jacket cover, including the original “Weezer album, known as “Blue Album,” 1994, “Green Album,” 2001 and “Red Album,” 2008.

“Red Album” was their last self-titled record. Since then, the music world has been longing for that classic sound from the three original color-themed albums. The producer of “White Album,” Jake Sinclair, made it his mission to bring back this sound that the fans love and miss so much.

Interestingly enough, Sinclair actually fronted a Weezer cover band growing up, so he knows a thing or two about the band and their style.

“White Album” features 10 tracks, five of which came out as hit singles leading up to the album’s official release, probably to reward the fans for their patience. These include “L.A. Girlz,” “California Kids,” “King Of The World,” “Do You Wanna Get High?” and “Thank God For Girls.”

The best part about each track is that if you’re someone who is not familiar with Weezer and listened to them, you would guess they were all from the band’s prime.
Despite members of the band being in their mid-40s and well past their prime, “White Album” evokes that classic sound and has sent Weezer fans into a time warp. Each track is fun to listen to and represents a unique theme; many of the songs are about the lives of ordinary people.

This theme behind it is what makes “White Album” so distinct from any of their previous works. Lead man Rivers Cuomo took a new approach to the writing process that is both intriguing and original, shying away from the commonalities of most songwriters.

Cuomo actually found the inspiration behind many of the songs by reaching out to strangers on Tinder and talking to them about their lives, mainly regarding their platonic relationships.

The stories he discovered in these conversations are portrayed in the meaning behind songs like “Thank God For Girls,” “L.A. Girlz,” “King Of The World,” “California Kids,” “Girl We Got A Good Thing” and “Wind In Our Sail.”

“King Of The World,” released as a single earlier this year, is about Cuomo’s wife and her life growing up in Japan. Although he didn’t find her on Tinder like his other subjects, he took her direct words and turned them into a lyrical masterpiece just like in the other tracks.

“Thank God For Girls,” another one of the hit singles, features lyrics that were written in 1996 in the making of one of the band’s original records, “Pinkerton.”

Aside from the singles in the album, which are more popular, the rest of the album is just as good.

“Girl We Got A Good Thing,” “Wind In Our Sail” and “Endless Bummer” are three feel-good tracks that portray that coveted classic sound. Each of them have their own special love theme and will make you want to sing along, a common effect of the album.

From the devoted producing to the immense hype and anticipation, “White Album” is evidence that Weezer’s presence in the music world is stronger than ever.

People have waited a long time for this and while it took nearly a decade for it to come to fruition, the wait was well worth it.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Photo provided GeekRockChick24 via flickr