Review Summary: A goofy but messy affair
A while back I wrote a review for Raditude, Weezer’s 7th album. My opinions on the album weren’t exactly glowing and I feel I was a bit harsh. My opinions on the album have changed slightly and I feel a re-review is needed. With that, let’s see if Raditude is truly as Rad as it claims.
The red album had been an interesting excursion for Weezer. With its trips into prog rock, rap and funk metal, it certainly confused many a fan upon its release. Still, the band were ready to record a follow up and just a year later, Raditude was released to the public. Unlikely previous records, the song writing duties here, while still handled by Cuomo, now feature outsiders of the band. Butch Walker, who helped produce the record, co-writes two tracks. The All American Rejects’ Nick Wheeler and Tyson Ritter help with one track and Jermaine Dupri helps on two also. Do the extra co-writers help these tracks? Eh, sorta. More on that later.
The record begins with the pleasantly bouncy and catchy ‘(If You’re Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To’, an acoustic guitar led stomper with goofy but care free lyrics and a lovely chorus. It’s a neat start to the album and a good example of Rivers’ ability to craft great pop songs. Things take a little dive with the creepy but admittedly fun ‘I’m Your Daddy’, And while a flawed track with its cheesy drum machine opening, it’s still a good track if you look past the lyrics. ‘The Girl Got Hot’ however is heavily questionable. Lyrically, it takes a nose dive and while lyrics haven’t always been some of the group’s strongest points, they’re particularly weak here. The ‘ooh-woah-woah-oh’ hook is a good sing along but incredibly banal. The real... highlight of the record is the infamous ‘Can’t Stop Partying’. What started as a mellow Emo guitar ballad on Rivers’ Alone 2 album has morphed into a bizarre club banger, with synths, bass drums and a verse from Lil’ Wayne himself. “Ok bitches, Weezer and it’s Weezy”, Cuomo and Wayne harmonise. It’s a stunningly surreal track and while certainly not good, it’s still a huge guilty pleasure admittedly. ‘Put Me Back Together’, co-written by some of the All American Rejects as previously mentioned is a lovely track, starting off as a soft guitar track before building into an explosive finale with some genuinely heartfelt lyrics. It’s a great track and a standout here. The same can’t be said for the clunky and boring ‘Trippin’ Down The Freeway’ which sounds as if it’s falling apart at the seams and has some truly bizarre lyrics. The next track is debatably the worst thing Weezer ever released. ‘Love Is The Answer’ is a trial to get through and one of the sappiest, weird and downright bad tracks the group ever recorded. While the Indian flair is a nice touch with the sitars and tabla, with some pleasant backing vocals, the lyrics are absolutely one note and the whole thing comes off sounding incredibly tacky and a little condescending. It’s awful.
‘Let It All Hang Out’ is a blaring hard rock and while not brilliant, is still a very fun and catchy track that stands as another highlight. The record takes another sharp drop with the absolutely abhorrent ‘In The Mall’, penned by drummer Pat Wilson. While the dirty guitar riffs are catchy, the lyrical content is horrific and Rivers sounds flat and bored while singing. It’s a sight to behold. Thankfully the album ends on a nice note with the Doo-Wop inspired ‘I Don’t Want To Let You Go’ which ends with a pleasant vocal harmony climax.
The bonus tracks on the deluxe edition are actually pretty damn good. ‘Run Over By A Truck’ is an excellent piano banging rap rock song and the (admittedly over polished) gem ‘The Underdogs’ is an uplifting soft pop song.
All in all, is Raditude good? No. Is it bad? Yeah. But is it enjoyable? Absolutely. While there are some true stinkers here, the care free party hard nature of the record makes it difficult to truly hate, and it’s certainly not the worst album the band ever made. Still, the lyrical game is weak and several tracks sound flat and uninspired. A very mixed bag, but one you’ll probably have fun with.
Standout tracks:
(If You’re Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To
Can’t Stop Partying
Put Me Back Together
Let It All Hang Out
