“Thank God For Girls” Review

Weezer has been the penultimate band for teenage angst for the better part of two decades dating back to the Blue Album. As an example, I recently attended a festival where Weezer was headlining and watched three teenage boys begin bellowing out “Perfect Situation” at the top of their lungs after a high pitch squeal when the first chords come from the speakers.

In the last few years, their music has become a little, um, let’s say weirder than it used to be. Hurley and Raditude both had a couple good singles but I wouldn’t go putting them up on a pedestal or anything. The same can be said of Everything Will Be Alright in the End. It was a very good album with a couple excellent singles, but it just didn’t live up to the days of Pinkerton and the Blue Album.

The new single from the band, “Thank God for Girls,” seems to fall somewhere in the in between. It is definitely quirky, but hey this is Weezer – you should expect this by now. However, it also has something to the rhythm and melody that reminds me more of 90’s Weezer than it does anything else.

Let’s start with the weird lyrics though. There is no denying that these lyrics are weird. However, let’s look at some old Weezer lyrics:

The choo-choo train left right on time
A ticket costs only your mind
The driver said, ‘Hey man, we go all the way’
Of course we were willing to pay

That doesn’t quite compare to this:

I’m levitating like a magnet turned the wrong way around
I’m like an Indian fakir trying to meditate on a bed of nails with my pants pulled down

But, it does show a history of the quirkiness of Weezer lyrics and the former comes from their most critically acclaimed album, the Blue Album. Weird and quirky is their business and in their latest single, business is good.

The video doesn’t help matters either as it is a rather unusual looking gentleman eating a canola very sloppily and showcasing their odd lyrics. This may not have been their best strategy especially when past videos include their zany “Pork and Beans” video with former YouTube stars and “Gone Fishin'” which included the Muppets. On the other hand, this is just a lyric video and there may be another more theatrical video to follow.

The thing that gets me fired up for the single and what can be assumed is an upcoming album is the actual music. “Thank God for Girls” has that gritty edge I loved in Pinkerton. It may have been masked by unusual lyrics, but the grungy guitar licks and heavy smattering of bass takes it to the next level.

I am excited for this album and those that are criticizing the song may need to take a step back and realize that this is Rivers – he likes weird.