Weezer “Black Album”
Weezer had been pegged as one of the last commercially successful power pop bands, but Rivers Cuomo is not one to play it safe. As fast as he rediscovered his power-pop roots on Everything Will Be All Right in the End and The White Album, he has drifted into distractions with an album of cover tunes (The Teal Album) and with The Black Album, he’s once again pushing against his fan base. Cuomo just wants to get your attention, even if it pisses you off. So if you’re expecting another “Pork and Beans” skip this one.
But interestingly enough, the album is pretty decent. The lead track, “Can’t Knock the Hustle,” is classic pop songwriting with some faux Spanish flavoring, the chorus “Hasta luego, Adios” will stick in your brain for days. The highlight here is the earnest “High As a Kite” whose video is a parody of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. A few additional standouts include “Piece of Cake,” “Byzantine,” and the T-Rex influenced “The Prince Who Wanted Everything.” But you will suffer through electro-dance pop like “California Snow” and “Living In L.A.” Hardcore fans will definitely want to get this, but others will feel better with the earlier material.
KiDD “Chance Weekend”
Scottish bedroom-pop singer-songwriter KiDD is back. As part of several bands (The Wellgreen and Doctor Cosmo’s Tape Lab), he’s had a distinctive Nilsson meets Kinks influence on past works. With Chance Weekend, he gets more organic and sober with the downbeat opener “A Picture I Don’t Want To Paint.” He gets a little more optimistic on “Little One” and “Forget Me Not” with its soft-shoe beat, kazoo, and banjo accompaniment.
KiDD still has an eye toward simple compelling melodies, from the gentle folk tune “Tomorrow Sky” or the acoustic “Crazy George” with a myriad of effects against a sparse chorus. The catchy “Like A Bullet” sounds like an early Paul Simon hit, and another standout is the psyche-pop gem “Where Have They Gone.” In some respects, it feels like a collection of demos — but occasionally we get some gold. Check it out!