It’s a little daunting to flip over to classic rock stations expecting to hear KISS and The Eagles only to be treated to the swelled-up guitar harmonics of “Say it Ain’t So” by Weezer. To think that 30 years have passed since their eponymous debut album (affectionately now known as “The Blue Album”) takes a lot of mental time-bending, especially considering the longevity of their popularity. After their second album Pinkerton didn’t match the commercial success of its predecessor, the band fell into nearly a half-decade of obscurity – members going into side projects and pursuing academic endeavors. Considering the seemingly reclusive nature of frontman/main songwriter Rivers Cuomo, many expected the band to be relegated to a JD Salinger-like level of cult status celebration for two of the albums that most define the 90s but in 2001 they came back with “The Green Album” and broke through again with a commercial run that continues to this day.
On September 28, the band celebrated three decades of “The Blue Album” with a stop at The Moody Center. They brought along alt-rock pioneers Dinosaur Jr and psychedelic folk stalwarts The Flaming Lips. Sharing nearly a century of experience between the three bands, it was a culmination of what it means to be at an alternative rock show. J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr and Wayne Coyne of Flaming Lips both gushed at how this was the biggest place either band had played in Austin up until now, and the fact that both bands have spent the better parts of the last 3-4 decades playing through Austin is just a testament to how alternative rock can not only survive but thrive even without selling out arenas.
