18 A lost classic, Weezer's Pinkerton was released in 1996 to less than stellar reviews and lukewarm commercial performance. Nonetheless, the album has provided inspiration to an entire generation of socially awkward teens and young adults. Let's examine this controversial classic and decide if the recent reevaluation by many outlets of the triumphs of this album is warranted.
The year is 1996, and it has been a full two years since the onslaught of the eponymous "Blue" album. Pinkerton is a very different beast from the poppy and summery sounds of "Blue". A comparison between the two reveals as deep stylistic differences that not surprisingly, alienated many of those who found "Blue" so damn lovable. Pinkerton is an album drenched in sexual awkwardness and frustration. As a 13-year old in 1996, I was easily attracted to the laments of Rivers Cuomo who appeared to pine for the love of "half-Japanese" girls and an 18 year old with a fondness for delicate stationary.
The first thing that strikes you about Pinkerton is the sheer "squelch" of the countless waves of feedback and crackles that appear to almost acoustically mimic what appears to be Cuomo's fragile psyche at this point. Distortion is heavy, and Matt Sharp's equally fuzzy bass cuts through the layers of nasty guitars laid on by Cuomo and guitarist Brian Bell. "Tired of Sex" suggests the emotion decay left by nights of loneliness and meaningless sexual encounters. As the albums continues into its slight but emotional 34 minutes, we are treated to several other songs concerning sordid tales of obsessiveness (Getchoo), sexual frustration (Why Bother?), and the fear of loneliness (No Other One).
The true highlight of the album happens just after the 10-minute mark. "Across the Sea", a fan-favorite is a heart-wrenching tale of someone who receives fan letters from a young woman in Japan after she hears him of the radio. In what one can only assume to be at least a semi-autobiographical tale, the band produces what I believe to be their magnum opus. The songs, introduced by a fragile piano intro, kicks into a roaring and harmonious heart-tug about the possibilities of undiscovered love. "Across the Sea" might be one of the few Weezer songs that could definitely be seen as "Emo", but only in a lyrical sense.
The singles hit hard next. "El Scorcho", a cautionary tale about half-Japanese girls is a catchy number and perhaps the only "radio" song on the otherwise murky album. "The Good Life", a catchy number about the fleeting nature of fame its "benefits", was initially the song that drew me to buy this album. The song, and the equally lovable video show the more poppy side of "Blue" era Weezer and was a minor hit. "Pink Triangle", a promo only proposed single is a "Chasing Amy" of a song about unrequited love for a lesbian woman, shows another failure of Cuomo to "get the girl". The album closes with stunningly fragile "Butterfly", an acoustic song that acts as a closer and appears to be about the delicate nature of love for the fairer sex, and how quickly this love can turn to ugly feelings of jealously, obsession, and other feelings of despair.
Pinkerton is an absolute masterpiece and the most important album of the 1990s for me. The band would come back in 2001 with the "Green" album and various other follow-ups that would eschew a much more poppy sound. Weezer could never hope replicate Pinkerton, it is the diary of a man falling off the edge. The story of someone broken by love, and that comes from the heart. And if that is Emo, I guess Weezer produced one hell of an Emo record.
Rating: 10/10
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