Went to the San Jose State Event Center Arena to see Weezer on Monday with Claire, Ted, and Julie.
We had a quick nosh at Asqew in downtown then walked over to the Arena. This is not the shark tank, mind you. This is on SJ State campus and is more like a basketball stadium than anything else. As a concert venue, it’s not bad if you’re standing. The seats can feel far away.
The openers were:
The Relationship: side project band of Weezer guitarist Brian Bell. Their debut album is coming soon. One of their songs “Thought I Knew” was recorded with Brian + the rest of Weezer and is on the newest (red) album. They played the Relationship version of the song, and I think the Weezer one sounds better.
Tokyo Police Club: a rocking band that I don’t remember except for the synth player who totally stole the show. Not only was he insanely enthusiastic about playing the tambourine, he also played his synth with his face seemingly right above his fingers, and he occasionally swung his arms wildly when playing one handed. Julie said he was warding off spirits.
Angels and Airwaves: not-so-side project band of Blink 182 guitarist Tom DeLonge. I always thought these guys were kinda so-so, mostly dependent on heavy overuse of a reverb pedal on their electric guitar and a singing style that bordered on face meltingly precocious. It ended up being an okay set leading off with their bigger radio releases, but the sound mix was bad (not enough vocals, too much bass) and it never really got better. I blame the wireless mics and a drunk sound crew. Universal opinion was unfavorable.
Weezer’s set took a little for me to warm up to. I’d never seen Weezer live, so I didn’t know what to expect. I still don’t know if the way they were changing up the lead singer on a lot of the songs was something they do normally or if it was just for this last record. I will complain that the singalong chorus of “Perfect Situation” sounds better on the album vs. the video and since they performed the video version I am forced to dislike it actively. They played a good mix of old stuff and new stuff, though I would have liked to hear a few of the non-single tracks “The Good Life” and “Miss Sweeney” spring to mind. They did play all the hits, as well as some fun ones: “Susanne” was done as a doo-wop a capella style, covering Pink Floyd’s “Time” & “Breathe” was awesome. They ended by bringing up local band and orchestra folks–seemingly all college students– to play along with Island in the Sun and Beverly Hills. What a fun band.
I wonder if the Weezer band members switched instruments on the recordings, as they switched to different instruments during the concert. I suppose that could happen over time to mix things up. The last time I’ve seen this at a concert was Dismemberment Plan…though that turned out to be their last show. Rivers said something to the effect of “see you next year!” which either means they’ve got another tour planned, or a new album coming up, or both.
Also as an encore song, Weezer also played a cover of Nirvana’s “Sliver” and it sounded pretty good. Interesting choice!
We got a little taste of The greatest man that ever lived at 7:30 in the morning, what a wonderful way to wake up! Thanks you guys!!
I was at the show on Monday. Angels and Airwaves were annoying, trying to sound like Mogwai but without the musical chops. As I tried to escape the ear poison, my only refuge was the “smoking section”. I wish there was such a thing as a “fresh air section”.
This was my first Weezer concert. I LOVE the red album, especially (everybody get) dangerous. Unfortunately, they did not play it. I was extremely happy with “hash pipe” and “dope nose”. I look forward to the kick ass chaos the Weez will create in ’09. They get extra points for selling coozies. By the way, I looked for Alan, Julie, Ted and Claire. The venue was bigger than I thought. Rock on Peeps!
JILL! I can’t believe you were there too- it is really too bad we did not run into you- it would have been fantastic. Next time we will coordinate better. I loved it- so much fun and totally worth spending the whole rest of this week trying to catch up on sleep for. I thought Weezer was great live, who knew they were all talented enough to switch up their songs and still sound great. The crowd rocked, everyone there was a Weezer fan, which provided some great energy. I REALLY hope they keep their word and come back next year!!! Nothing is quite like Rock’n’Roll.