Weezer: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert
April 1, 2019 | Robin Hilton -- This is probably the loosest you'll ever see Weezer. Known for meticulously produced and electric live shows, frontman Rivers Cuomo and the rest of the band settled in behind the Tiny Desk for an entirely acoustic set without the in-ear monitors, click track or vocal separation they usually employ to stay locked-in and tight for bigger performances. The result is surprisingly intimate, with songs that feel lived-in and rumpled, like an old flannel shirt from the '90s.
Weezer opened with one of the band's rarer songs: "Longtime Sunshine," a 1994 track that's only appeared as a Rivers Cuomo home recording on bootlegs and compilations, and on the deluxe edition of Pinkerton. Then the band performed a stripped-down version of its electro-pop song "Living in L.A.," from Weezer's new self-titled "Black Album," followed by another deep cut, "Across the Sea." It's a song Cuomo originally wrote in his early 20s, inspired by a fan letter he'd received from a young woman in Japan. While beloved by many Gen-Xers who'd first heard it on 1996's Pinkerton, the song's lyrics haven't aged terribly well.
Weezer returned to its newest material to close the set with "High as a Kite," from the new album. A song of innocence and escapism, Cuomo sings about daydreaming and how he wants to disappear which is exactly what the band did once the song was over, but not before Cuomo told the crowd, "We are Weezer, from the planet Earth. Have a nice life!"
SET LIST "Longtime Sunshine" "Living in L.A." "Across the Sea" "High as a Kite"
MUSICIANS Rivers Cuomo: lead vocals, guitar; Brian Bell: guitar, vocals, keys; Scott Shriner: bass guitar; Patrick Wilson: drums
CREDITS Producers: Robin Hilton, Morgan Noelle Smith; Creative Director: Bob Boilen; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Beck Harlan, Kimani Oletu; Associate Producer: Bobby Carter; Production Assistant: Adelaide Sandstrom; Photo: Amir Alfiky/NPR
April 1, 2019 | Robin Hilton -- This is probably the loosest you'll ever see Weezer. Known for meticulously produced and electric live shows, frontman Rivers Cuomo and the rest of the band settled in behind the Tiny Desk for an entirely acoustic set without the in-ear monitors, click track or vocal separation they usually employ to stay locked-in and tight for bigger performances. The result is surprisingly intimate, with songs that feel lived-in and rumpled, like an old flannel shirt from the '90s.
Weezer opened with one of the band's rarer songs: "Longtime Sunshine," a 1994 track that's only appeared as a Rivers Cuomo home recording on bootlegs and compilations, and on the deluxe edition of Pinkerton. Then the band performed a stripped-down version of its electro-pop song "Living in L.A.," from Weezer's new self-titled "Black Album," followed by another deep cut, "Across the Sea." It's a song Cuomo originally wrote in his early 20s, inspired by a fan letter he'd received from a young woman in Japan. While beloved by many Gen-Xers who'd first heard it on 1996's Pinkerton, the song's lyrics haven't aged terribly well.
Weezer returned to its newest material to close the set with "High as a Kite," from the new album. A song of innocence and escapism, Cuomo sings about daydreaming and how he wants to disappear which is exactly what the band did once the song was over, but not before Cuomo told the crowd, "We are Weezer, from the planet Earth. Have a nice life!"
SET LIST "Longtime Sunshine" "Living in L.A." "Across the Sea" "High as a Kite"
MUSICIANS Rivers Cuomo: lead vocals, guitar; Brian Bell: guitar, vocals, keys; Scott Shriner: bass guitar; Patrick Wilson: drums
CREDITS Producers: Robin Hilton, Morgan Noelle Smith; Creative Director: Bob Boilen; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Beck Harlan, Kimani Oletu; Associate Producer: Bobby Carter; Production Assistant: Adelaide Sandstrom; Photo: Amir Alfiky/NPR