With Weezer hitting Nikon at Jones Beach June 30 in support of their new California-inspired, self-titled “White” album, amNewYork breaks down the top five summer themed songs from the Rivers Cuomo fronted alt-rock band.
‘Island in the Sun’
One of the true standouts from the “Green” album, which served as their comeback record after a five year hiatus, “Island in Sun” highlights the importance of the summer getaway. Catchy intros and cheery choruses paint the perfect vacation from the outside world, but subversively hints at darker forces at work that drive our narrator to flee to paradise.
‘Holiday’
Nothing says summertime more than a road trip and Cuomo invites us all on the journey with him. This hidden gem from their classic “Blue” album welcomes listeners to join them on the road with a tribute song to Jack Kerouac himself, whose work heavily influenced Rivers at the time he was writing songs for the album.
‘Pork and Beans’
Summertime needs catchy pop hits to carry us through the dog days and this song finds Weezer embracing — and rejecting — that notion at the same time. Supposedly challenged by their own record company to write a radio hit, Cuomo penned a song that both accommodated their request and simultaneously bashed them for their insistence that Weezer stay cool and relevant at the same time.
‘Wind In Our Sails’
There is no better soundtrack to the summer than the Beach Boys and Cuomo does little to hide his appreciation for their influence in his music. The best example of that is “Wind In Our Sails” off the “White” album, that feels as if it’s been pulled straight out of the 1960s.
‘Surf Wax America’
Weezer’s “Blue” album was both groundbreaking and cathartic for Cuomo as it helped exorcise many demons surrounding his relationship with his father. But for every tune like “Say It Ain’t So” or “My Name Is Jonas” that deals with his past, Rivers breaks free with a simple, pleasurable tune rejoicing in his love for the surf, sun and waves. And at its core, isn’t that what summertime is all about?
If you go
Weezer are peforming with Panic! At The Disco on June 30 at 7 p.m., $25-$75, Nikon At Jones Beach Theater, 1000 Ocean Parkway, Wantagh, 516-785-1600
