Michael Braun's Blog

I’ve been listening to a lot of Weezer lately. I got their first 3 albums from Lauren and have been enjoying the ‘Blue Album’ and Pinkerton quite a lot. Amusing side note: when I asked Lauren for her opinion on the albums she said, “Michael, that’s the music I listened to in high school.” Okay, so I’m behind the times just a little bit (those two albums came out in 1994 and 1996). But Rivers Cuomo is still releasing music today; Weezer just put out an album (the ‘Red Album’) and he released another collection of solo material. Lately, however, Weezer gets no love from critics (their latest effort has a 64/100 on Metacritic, better than their 2005 release, which has 52/100), and as I listen to their lyrics, I think I know why.

It’s the same problem plaguing Eminem. He had 3 albums hailed by critics, only to find his last release (2004′s Encore) not do nearly as well. The problem with both these artists is their maturity level. When they were young, they could release songs with ridiculous lyrics. Think Weezer’s “Pink Triangle,” which contains the line, “I’m dumb/ She’s a lesbian/ I thought I had found the one.” Or Eminem’s song “My Name Is…” – “My brain’s dead weight, I’m trying to get my head straight/ but I can’t figure out which Spice Girl I want to impregnate.” So immature, but coming from artists just starting out. Cuomo sings with such earnestness that you can’t help but feel sorry for him. Eminem has such a sneer in his voice that you recognize everything he’s trying to mock.

But lately, a decade or more after their first hits, both Weezer and Eminem are putting out songs with these same kinds of lines. I just keep asking myself, have they learned nothing in the past 10-15 years that would make their songs take a different tone? Both seem to have become parodies of themselves. Imagine if, in 15 years, Amy Winehouse is singing about people telling her to go to rehab. Her songs would no longer sound fresh or interesting. It’s the same for Weezer and Eminem. Our perception of their maturity level (or what we think it should be) is different from that expressed in their songs.

The converse is true as well. Think about those artists who come out with a very adult sounding voice and sing adult contemporary ballads. They don’t last long either. Michael Bublé is a good example. He’s just 33 but sings like he’s Frank Sinatra reincarnate. How about LeAnn Rimes, who released her first single at age 13? She is now completely irrelevant (at just 26 years old!). These artists ought to be singing about the experiences of youth. Instead, they act like tired, world-weary adults (the same people who make up most of their fan-base).

I’m torn on whether Eminem and Weezer are now irrelevant for good or whether they can stage a comeback. For Weezer, I don’t think Cuomo has anything left to say. But Eminem is quite the wordsmith and has shown (or faked) introspection before. And who knows, one great song with solid lyrics could catapult them back into the spotlight. There’s a time for youth and there’s a time for experience. Unfortunately, neither Weezer nor Eminem has quite figured out the correlation.