An oldie but a goodie. Everything's coming up Muppets! more ›

Weezer closed out the Riot Fest festivities at The Congress last night with two sets; one focused on a mixture of hits and a second comprised of a run through of the band's classic debut, The Blue Album. The show opened with a dedication to one of the band's previous bassists Mikey Welsh, who passed away in Chicago the day before (and who, we're told, was originally supposed to join the band onstage). As sad as that opening sentiment was, the band soldiered on to play a hugely rewarding set. more ›

Officials suspect his death was a result of a drug overdose. more ›

Chicago's premier punk festival Riot Fest announced most of its lineup today and this year promises to be as amazing as years past. more ›

While we actually have some nice things to say about Weezer's latest album Hurley, it can't be a great sign when the first massive tour Weezer is mounting after its release is a sentimental revisiting of the band's first two albums. Of course that should have been obvious when it was announced a few weeks ago that the band was going to be releasing a deluxe re-issue of Pinkerton, huh? more ›

Look, we're not even going to try and review the new Weezer because what's the point. Rivers Cuomo can still write the killer riffs but the dude SERIOUSLY needs to enlist the help of an outside lyricist at this point. The problem with, oh, roughly the last decade of Weezer's recorded work is that each album would make a really strong EP with a bunch of silly B-sides, and Hurley is no different. However let's set that aside, and the band's repeated denials that the album was named after a corporate sponsor (even though it was), and let's just enjoy this commercial tie-in sure to promote the premier of Jackass 3-D ... something so silly even we couldn't make it up. more ›

Sure, we're still pulling together the last of our Lollapalooza coverage but there's still plenty of music to take in, including this, "Memories," the new track from Weezer ahead of their new LP, "Hurley," out on Epitaph Records on September 14. What do we think? Uh, ask us when we've had some sleep and gotten coffee into our bloodstream. But we're sure you'll share your feelings in the comments. more ›

After our earlier zany mash-up diversion, you might have thought we'd go with something a bit less off-the-wall for this diversion. You thought wrong. In the wake of Tankboy's Weezer review from yesterday and our never-ending love of small, furry animals, we are happy to post these videos. more ›

We've decided to cease apologizing for Weezer. The band is what it is. If you're looking for Rivers Cuomo to ever attain the heights of Pinkerton or The Blue Album you're always going to be sorely disappointed. And Jesus if the man doesn't make it hard to even enjoy his music when he throws garbage like Weezer Snuggies and duets with Kennny G into the mix. more ›

Yup, here it is, the inevitable "Best of 2008" music list (a later post centering on the top local offerings is forthcoming). In order to spare our readers the pain of reading through yet another list that tries too hard to impress with obscure releases or toe the party line on Stereogum / Pitchfork approved artists, we continue our personal decade-plus tradition of merely listing what we actually liked in 2008. That means that the albums below are the one we kept finding ourselves turning to when we wanted to kick back and enjoy some tunes. Sure, there was more artistically challenging stuff released this year than some of the selections below -- and we certainly do appreciate that sort of thing -- but our year end list reflects which music ultimately did for us what we think rock and/or roll is ultimately meant to do to any listener: it grabbed us by the heart and/or crotch and wouldn't let go. more ›

We're geeks, so sue us. We are tickled by the cameo-filled video below, and aren't afraid to admit it. We're also not afraid to admit we still love Weezer, even if their last album did totally blow. more ›