Entertainment

Andrew’s Judgmental Album Reviews: Weezer – SZNZ: Winter (2022)

Weezer have finished their Seasons journey! Do they end strong or does it peter out at the end?

Published

2 years ago

December 26, 2022

So we’ve been on this Weezer journey since Spring. The warmer months they seemed to nail the vibe as well as have some catchy songs. Autumn however, was a train wreck. Do we get a Winter album that encapsulates the feelings and tones of the season; or just a quirky album of mediocrity?

Weezer is: Rivers Cuomo (vocals/guitar), Patrick Wilson (drums/backing vocals), Brian Bell (guitar/backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass/backing vocals)

Artist: Weezer
Album: SZNZ: Winter (2022)
Label: Atlantic/Crush
Total Track Time: 21:35

I Want a Dog it’s god a bit more of a rock theater vibe musically, but a colder month should be a little heavier. As for the song, its pretty straight forward. Some of the lyrics throw in despair and cynicism, but the hook seems to be that he just wants a dog. Dogs are great, so no issue there. Iambic Pentameter comes off like a song about someone struggle to get their point across. Granted some of the imagery comes off a bit on the pretentious side, that almost makes the overall desire to wish to communicate more poignant. “I wish I could say it all to you in iambic pentameter (Pentameter), I’d improvise high notes like Thelonious when he’s jammin’ it (Jammin’ it), I’d let it all out, And there’s no doubt you would help me understand, What the hell is inside this messed up head, And you’d always be here for me” – see, simple concept, complicated by nerdy images. Basketball is a weird metaphor using a team game and shooting the ball to get across a desire for companionship and being afraid to take his own shot with someone. While not terrible, its definitely not what I was expecting with the title of basketball, “I was counting on you, you’re the one who gets me, When I try my best, you shoot a cannon of confetti, I’ve been growing colder, you’ve been getting bolder, But I believe I still have a shot”. So far the album has been a weird amalgam of optimistic depression. Wanting a dog to connect with, wanting to be able to communicate better and now wanting companionship.

Sheraton Commander is a little bit of an interlude where Rivers is a bit disenfranchised returning to his college stomping grounds. This one is less about want, and more sullen reminiscence. Dark Enough to See the Stars returns to the feelings of solitude, but its masked in a somewhat more up-tempo almost as if musically masking the emotions that people tend to naturally do. Everyone deals with fear, solitude and depression differently, and unless you ask, they’ll see mostly normal. “It’s dark enough to see the stars, I wonder who and where we are, Solitude is all I know, And as the years pass by it grows” – while not an untouched topic, I appreciate the arrangement and everything that went into this song. The One That Got Away almost sounds like its got aspects of Musetta‘s waltz in it, but as for the song…we’re still on the depression kick. The title leaves nothing to the imagination, he’s pining over an ex that got away. The Deep and Dreamless Sleep seems to basically be many people’s answer to grief and pain, a drug induced sleep. Xanax, Ambien, or of course the non-prescribed type of pills. The instrumentation gets a little more into an arena rock vein as the song comes to an end, symbolizing slipping into the deep and dreamless sleep.

Now as much as I’d love to have a similar complaint to Autumn, all of his despair makes sense for Winter. Winter is painful season for many, you start to remember who’s not around anymore because of the added pressures of “family events”, which only get compounded if you lost someone around the season. So for as happy go lucky as Winter is for some, I think focusing on the loss, pain and solitude feelings is a larger umbrella that Weezer did fairly well with. Is it as good as the first 2? Not at all. But it’s still clever, accurate and written much better than Autumn.

Weezer ended strong after having a shaky third album.

Final Judgment: 6.9/10

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

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Bandwagon Nerds #163: The 2022 Streamies, Volume 1

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The guys discuss the season finales for The Boys & The Acolyte, break down the final Deadpool 3 trailer, and speculate as to the Avengers possible future.

Published

4 days ago

July 22, 2024

PC Tunney

BWN returns this week just in time for the biggest two-week stretch in Nerdom in a very long time. This week saw the season finales of The Boys & The Acolyte. While we have come to expect the unexpected with The Boys, the Season 4 Finale pulled the rug out from everyone with one of the more shocking closing sequences we have seen in a while. Where this leaves us for the final season is anyone’s guess, but the guys try to make sense of it here. Meanwhile, Dave & Tunney touch on the season finale of the much-maligned The Acolyte. Did anything come out of the finale to redeem the series or, more importantly, warrant Disney giving it a second season? The final trailer for Deadpool & Wolverine dropped this week as the biggest movie of the summer comes our way this Friday. The guys discuss the final trailer and speculate as to how much of a gate Deadpool & Wolverine might draw. All that plus more layoffs at Warner Brothers, disappointing news for the Halo franchise, and with San Diego Comic-Con also happening this week, is Marvel poised to bring back some familiar faces to herald in the next wave of Avengers movies?

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Entertainment

Musical Chairs S4: E2- Randy Newman & The Doors [071624]

Musical Chairs returns for Episode 2 of Season 4. This week, the guys cover Randy Newman and The Doors!

Published

1 week ago

July 16, 2024

David Ungar

Musical Chairs returns for another excellent installment as we take a look at two more tremendous acts from the annals of music history. This week, Patrick chose Randy Newman. Equal parts songwriter and performer Randy Newman is one of the most celebrated songwriters of this, or any other, generation. In the later part of his career, he composed no less than nine Disney-Pixar films, and he has been nominated for 22 Academy Awards! Dave, meanwhile, chose one of the most iconic and controversial bands of all time…The Doors. Led by one of rock’s all-time great frontmen, Jim Morrison, The Doors redefined music in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Despite being under constant scrutiny…. including being banned in many parts of the nation… The Doors became legends and their music continues to be extremely popular even today. Tune in this week and learn a few things about two hugely important fixtures of musical history!

Today’s hosts: Dave Ungar (@AttitudeAgg) and Patrick O’Dowd (@WrestlngRealist)

Episode 2 of Season 4 of Musical Chairs focuses on Randy Newman & The Doors

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The rebirth of Chairshot Radio will see a rotating cast of hosts delivering you a new show EVERY day. Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment is the umbrella under which we seek to invade your earballs. So sit back, relax and LET US IN…

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Created in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts, including POD is WAR, Women’s Wrestling Talk, Chairshot Radio daily editions, The #Miranda Show, Badlands’ Wrestling Mount Rushmores, The Outsider’s Edge, DWI Podcast, Bandwagon Nerds, the Greg DeMarco Show, 3 Man Weave, Five Rounds, Turnbuckle Talk, The Reaction and more! You can find these great shows each week at theChairshot.com and through our distribution partners, including podcasting’s most popular platforms.