“Death to False Metal” gets off to a swinging start with “Turning Up the Radio,” which is, thankfully, a low-key affair. Weezer sheds its high-flying gimmicks and just shreds. The same sense of self-restraint is found throughout the album. In “Losing My Mind,” Rivers Cuomo’s voice croaks as he sings, “I hope nobody bothers me/Because I’m so tired/and empty./Life means nothing anymore,” and the rippling guitar fits the somber mood. Elsewhere, “Odd Couple” bounces along (but never off the wall).

However, moderation is limiting by design, and some tracks don’t do enough to warrant attention. “Everyone,” with lyrics like “Everyone, yeah!/Suck a thumb!” is merely tolerable, while “Autopilot” and its synth-y style never gets off the ground.

What this all boils down to is that the album’s best song was written by the band’s fans. Search “let’s write a sawng” on YouTube to see how hundreds of thousands of viewers shaped “Turning Up the Radio.” What does it mean when Weezer’s fans write better songs than Weezer? More importantly, what do you do with a band that usually releases A-sides that are worse than its unreleased B-sides? As much fun as it is to jam through “False Metal,” you’ll listen to it with a sense of dread, because it’s becoming more and more clear that Weezer doesn’t know what’s best for Weezer.

For fans of: The Rentals, Oasis, Pixies
Tracks to download: ‘Turning Up the Radio,’ ‘Losing My Mind,’ ‘I’m a Robot’

Jimmy Eat World is 17 years old this year, but while all his friends are applying to college, learning a trade or enlisting in the Army, little Jimmy is having a hard time finding his way. He knows he should grow up, but he’s still putting out the same angsty emo music he was listening to back in middle school, just dressing it up under the guise of maturity.

In fact, the best cuts off “Invented” come when Jimmy Eat World chucks the façade and gets back to its power-pop roots, as on “Coffee and Cigarettes.” The band can still build swelling arena rock with the best of them, even if the production is a bit too polished and sterile. Yet there’s something disconcerting and, dare we say, dishonest about a band of 30-somethings singing about the problems of teenagers. (Are you listening, Weezer?) Too often, though, the band finds itself fumbling through over-serious, down-tempo bore-fests. If you’re looking for the next “The Middle,” come back when the band’s through its growing pains.

for fans of: Motion City Soundtrack,

tracks to download: “Coffee and Cigarettes,” “Action Needs an Audience”

The album’s first track, “(If You’re Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To,” takes wing as well. Like the pooch from the cover, the song excels so much because in most logical worlds, it wouldn’t. The guitars and drums stack up like a homemade tower of popsicle sticks, leaning with the wind during the verses and catching flame at the top like a lighter when the chorus hits. Frontman Rivers Cuomo’s and Butch Walker’s lyrics carry the flame and piece together a narrative that doesn’t strive to be cohesive or glamourous. It rambles the way a pre-teen does when he or she is entranced by and afraid of his or her strange, new feelings.

With the first song, Weezer is out to prove that “The Red Album” was not aberration—the band has vehemently wiped “Make Believe’s” gloss-pop from their set-lists, and I hope most of that gets wiped from my memory, too.

In the album’s subsequent numbers, Weezer reconnects with its funny bone. “I’m Your Daddy” comes straight from the soul of that guy who puffs up his chest at the clubs. Cuomo sings, “I would like to give a demonstration/ Of what it is I do/ I’ll take you out to dinner at Palermo’s/ We’ll split a cheese fondue,” and I can see the hair gel now.

“The Girl Got Hot,” with its sweeping “whooaaaaas” and bouncing guitar riffs, embodies the speaker’s blank stare in the face of this “goodness me” hot girl. That means the song is devoid of meaning, but man, is it silly. And catchy.

Strangely enough, it’s a song titled “Can’t Stop Partying” that carries the album’s deeper meanings. From its synth-laden beginnings, the song’s voice tries its hardest to give off the “I’m the party-goer type!” vibe. The point, however, is that this is Weezer playing this song, and the nerd-lords of alternative rock realize that even with all their fame and fortune, they can’t throw a gig that doesn’t eventually turn into a “shindig.”

With the urge to reinvent always present, Weezer is admirable for nearly always staying true to its geeked-out roots. Of course, there are songs where the band strays too far; “Let It All Hang Out” and “In the Mall” are both catchphrases stretched thin. And to the dismay of the “Pinkerton” fans out there, Cuomo’s lyrics are rarely personal and are certainly not torn from his heartstrings.

However, songs like “I Don’t Want To Let You Go” and, if you can believe it, “Love is the Answer,” are beautiful in a way that is both understated and childlike. If these songs represent how close Cuomo will let himself explore his own demons, I’ll gladly take it.

Of course, even in the lesser songs, Cuomo’s voice shines, the same way it did in the band’s shy debut 15 years ago. “Raditude” is sort of like a Road Trip flick. It starts out strong, with a full tank of gas and delusions of grandeur, and while the family celebrates when they make it to their destination, they can’t completely forget about all the potholes and…malls they hit on the way.

Rating: 4/5
For fans of: The Rentals, The All-American Rejects, The Get Up Kids
Tracks to download: ‘(If You’re Wondering If I Want You To)’, ‘The Girl Got Hot’, ‘I Don’t Want to Let You Go’

Student Union (SU) recently dropped Eleven Magazine, the student-run Washington University publication for indie music reviews, from its rolls.

In addition to its new autonomy, the organization has gained its own bank account and expanded readership.

“We would love for it to stay a part of SU,” said senior Vidhyarth Hariharan, co-president of Eleven Magazine. “We don’t see any type of fundamental misalignment in terms of that Eleven is not changing the work it does, the content, the way we operate.”

Eleven has operated as a registered student group on campus for the past three years, providing readers with reviews of the latest alternative music and allowing its writers the opportunity to get in touch with big-name artists and labels.

Last year, Jon Fritz, former president of Eleven and a 2009 graduate, approached David Cohen, SU vice president of finance, to request the magazine’s deregistration as a student group so that it could become independent. In the process, Fritz started Eleven Media Group LTC.

Fritz expressed interest in expanding the magazine’s circulation to the greater St. Louis area. He even set up a separate bank account for the group.

Cohen said the issue would be brought up first thing in the fall with the Student Group Activities Committee (SGAC).

Months later in August, however, Eleven’s current members approached SU to inquire about their frozen account. According to Cohen, group membersseemed to be unaware that SU had dropped the group’s official SU status.

Junior Dayo Adesokan, Eleven’s current co-president, quickly appealed to reverse the de-affiliation for this fall.

According to Cohen, the entire process was “a little all over the place.”

“There was a very bad transition that occurred…The old execs did not communicate with the new ones,” said junior Jasmine Berg, co-chair of the Student Group Activities Committee. “It’s really unfortunate that students still on campus now want their group to continue the way it used to.”

By then, however, SU had come to the realization that Eleven would be violating four SU regulations—the barrier keeping the group from re-registration—namely its for-profit status, ownership of a separate bank account, distribution to non-University readers and profiting from uncompensated student writers.

SU had allocated $7,737.60 to the group last spring for fall 2009.

Along with the monetary support, Eleven will also lose other advantages SU had to offer, including the ability to easily reserve space, access to the print media room in the Danforth University Center and quick access to distribution spaces.

Despite the initial miscommunication and loss of resources on Eleven’s part, there is no ill will on either side.

“All we’re doing is having the people who graduated help us get connections to labels and increase our distribution scope,” Hariharan said. “There is no resentment on Eleven’s behalf [toward] SU. We understand their decision, although we do wish they had seen this as an opportunity unprecedented in Wash. U.’s history to support a student group that’s growing and trying to become better.”
SU, for its part, said it would be happy to help Eleven become a sanctioned group again should it ever decide its independence is not the best option.

“If they want to be a profit-earning business, there are some give-and-takes that have to be made,” Berg said. “There are some policies that we want to abide by, and if they want to return as an SU group and want to abide by its policies, then we can work with them to be recognized again.”

Sophomore Ehi Okoruwa, another co-chair of SGAC, echoed Berg’s sentiment.

“It’s just following policies; it’s not like we have a vendetta against the execs or anything,” Okoruwa said. “We think they’re a good group.”

Despite losing its privileges as an SU group, Hariharan said the pros of going independent far outweigh the cons.

“The increased advantages of the outside group are instrumental—their job is to get Wash. U. students in touch with people who can make stories possible,” Hariharan said.
Eleven’s Web site now lists the magazine as “St. Louis’ Intercollegiate Music Magazine,” a name fitting for the group’s efforts to create a wider constituency.

The group said it is not worried about another music review publication dominating the University scene.

“Eleven almost has a monopoly on media and music coverage in St. Louis for Wash. U. students,” Hariharan said. “This is still Wash. U.-oriented.”

As for now, the magazine has upcoming interviews with Weezer, among other big-name artists.

Cohen along with other SU members expressed their hopes for the organization.

“I really do want them to succeed,” he said. “But I think inevitably when you start a new entity, there will always be some bumps in the road that you have to work out.”