Weezer: Make Believe-

I think it was very appropriate for me to wait over three years to pass a resolute judgment on this album. If I had written this review last year or two years ago my rating would have been similar to Pitchfork's 0.4 shellac. Although it has proven to be a very polarizing collection of songs, it really should not be the case. Indeed many people have warmed a little bit to the album over the years. Like so many, I had an extremely negative opinion about the album in the weeks following its release. Yes, I have called it one of the worst albums ever. However, that was a very hasty and erroneous judgment.

You want to hear a really bad album? Close your eyes and choose an album from Nickelback's or Staind's discography. You want to listen to a really bad Weezer album? Listen to Red Album, because it is far worse than this effort (Again, it hasn't been too long since the release, and Weezer albums have a knack for being slow growers). Indeed, one of the biggest redeeming qualities of this album is the woeful Red Album, which adds a little more perspective to this album. Red Album is a poor effort by most anyone's standards, while Make Believe is merely a poor effort by those of Weezer; and the result still manages to satisfy at times. The unreachable Blue Album and the unique Pinkerton will obviously not again be touched, but I'm going to go out on a limb and call Make Believe mildly pleasant at times.

As with Green Album and Maladroit, the duds are a plenty. They range anywhere from horrifically disastrous (“Beverly Hill” is the most vapid, hyper commercial and god awful song they have ever recorded) to comical (“We are all on Drugs”) to completely forgettable and bland (“You Freak me out”). There are certainly highs, however. You won't find anything on par with Green Album's twin knockouts “Hash Pipe” and the legendary “Island in the Sun,” however the hits peak higher than those on Maladroit.

“Perfect Situation” is the type of slightly melancholy power pop bliss that gave Weezer all this goodwill in the first place. Afterwards, “This is Such a Pity” sounds like a kickass amalgam of any song by the Cars, anything off the Killers' Hot Fuss, and “Knowitall” from Phantom Planet's 2004 self titled effort. After these two album highlights we are left with nine cookie cutter songs that make for a nearly 35 minute mindless sugar-pop high. Although “Hold me” and “Peace” showcase Rivers' writer's block and sound excessively simple and similar, their choruses just blow you out of the water and make up for their foolishness. Thereafter we get four nauseatingly simplistic, homogeneous, and mediocre songs that would feel at home on an ABC family show. Track ten is the last good song on the album. Like the other two good songs on this album, “The Other Way” could fit in well on a past Weezer album and finally shows a little personality and soul. The last two songs on the album are too embarrassing to even write about, and aren't even worth a listen.

While Make Believe certainly isn't the unparalleled career disaster that some claim it to be, it is merely another sub par effort for a once incredible band. Whether you will choose to admit it or not, there are some pretty irresistibly catchy songs on the record which should not be ignored, even given the prevailingly stale feel of the album. However, as a whole, Make Believe is certainly less than the sum of its parts. Whether it is excessive pressure, lack of ideas, or wanton commercial ambitions, Weezer has just lost its edge over the years, and we all know they aren't going to be getting it back. Based on the current progression, in five or six years when they release two more albums, we will be looking back at this album with fondness.

TRC Minireview rating: 4.0