Customer Reviews
Got Some of it Back 
2008-08-31
Thank the geekish rock gods for this one. The Blue Album: Amazing. Pinkerton: Amazing. We all know what happened after that... Dispite some very good individual tracks on The Green Album and Maladroit, they clearly didn't showcase what Weezer could do (I really liked both cd's, to be honest). Make Believe really re-raised the bar, with great tracks like, Perfect Situation(one of my favorites), Hold Me, and We are all on drugs. The second half of the cd is a little weaker, but still catchy. If you dont have this, get it. If you're one of those "Hey I only like Pinkerton and the Blue album fans", get over it. Those two are amazing, hands down the best Wezzer has to offer, but those days are over. We might still blow our car speekers to them, but Wezzers moved on. Oh, and once again this is a great cd =]
Really Cool 
2008-07-17
Weezer is back! This album is a great little break between Maladroit and TRA. It is so soft it seems more like an intermission for me between two rockin albums. Just because its an intermission doesnt mean it doesnt rock songs like Hold Me Perfect Situation and Peace are all really good. [...]
Underwhelming 
2008-07-03
I remained one of Weezer's bigger defenders through Maladroit, but Make Believe really has me questioning whether Weezer will ever be a relevant and exciting band again.
For those of you not familiar with Weezer's history, here is a rundown: Their first album was a massive hit with a combination of geeky charm and sunny guitar-rock hooks. Their second album was panned by fans and by critics after its release, but it gradually grew a following after time until it was considered a classic about five years after its release. Meanwhile, Weezer had been on the down-low, but decided to come out of their retirement in the wake of their growing legion of fans. The next album contained a few hits but was dismissed by some as a shallow. Similar criticism grew with their next album; people missed the charm, honesty, and quirk of the first two albums. I remained in the growing minority who appreciated Weezer's material and held high hopes for the coming release.
Unfortunately, Make Believe is a step in the wrong direction for the band. Blazing guitar hooks are less prominent than ever and interesting lyrics are essentially nonexistent. From the perspective of Weezer's career, it falls flat; no song matches Dope Nose or Hash Pipe, let alone Buddy Holly or El Scorcho. Even giving the album a fair chance on its own, it doesn't really work. It's too polished to be good alt-rock, too whiny to be good pop, too bright to be good emo.
The best songs on the album are charming on the best of days and annoying on the worst of days. Beverly Hills has its creative moments and a winning chorus, but grows old quick. Self-consciousness and doubt about crushes is a long-recurring theme with songwriter Rivers Cuomo, but when he approaches the topic in Perfect Situation, it just feels tired, in spite of the memorable soaring vocal riff. The best song on the album might be We Are All on Drugs, which rocks hard and shows actual thought on the part of the band.
Weezer displays a new approach and sound on this album that really has the potential to work could work. I would embrace this polished, new-wave feel if only they could write good songs to go along with it. But nearly every track is a snoozer, and so the album and the sound come across as snoozers, too.
The Way Weezer Should Be 2008-07-01
I am not a Weezer fan. I had heard Beverly Hills, Island in the Sun, and Buddy Holly before I listened to this album and I was unimpressed with their style, but then from the first chords of the "Perfect Situation" guitar solo I knew that this band was capable of things. The music is definitely softer than their previous work and they were able to nail that soft sound. This album is one that doesn't get lost in my ipod, I just keep listening to it.
3 years later and I still don't get it... 
2008-04-24
I'll make this review short and sweet. I am a HUGE fan of the Weeze and I appreciate all of there work from the blue album to even maladroit but this album is un tolerable. As far as I'm concerned this album never was made. Maybe its because I was expecting another Maladroit which was by far there best work they put out in awhile. As one critic best said it "its one of those bad albums a band puts out" "and this is one of them". I'm sorry but as catchy as Beverly Hills is I hate that song maybe if they left it out the album I'd love it but I can't stand it. Just stick with there first four albums for now and completely skip this one you'll be glad you did. I am really hoping there new red album will be a step in the right direction for the Weeze and not another disappointment like this album was.
What Happened Rivers? 2008-04-23
Taking three-years between albums has made Weezer grow slower and more sober. But on its fifth disc the Los Angeles quartet is no more secure about its place in the world than it was a decade ago in longing tunes like "The World Has Turned And Left Me Here." Singer Rivers Cuomo, still struggling with adolescence at 34, is all apologies. "All I have to do is swing and I'm the hero/ But I'm a zero," he sings on "Perfect Situation," and "I am terrified of all things/ Frightened of the dark," on the lighters-aloft power ballad "Hold Me." The band, meanwhile, keeps things from getting too heavy by punctuating the songs with a familiar rush of bouncy new-wave melodies and fizzing power-pop riffs resulting in the hair-flinging metal of the future D.A.R.E. theme song and album high-point, "We Are All On Drugs."
--Aidin Vaziri
This is the Weezer I remember. 2008-01-15
Weezer is now "old school", but I for one am happy that they retained their nineties sound & style. There's a little more hip-hop floating around in there, but not enough to turn me off (and I can't stand hip-hop). Brings back the good ol' days. Makes me feel like I'm not a mom with two kids running around. By the way... they like this CD too.
I LOVE Weezer, but... 2007-12-28
This is my least favorite album from them. The only songs I care to listen to are "Beverly Hills", "This is Such a Pity", "Hold Me", "Perfect Situation" and "We Are All On Drugs" (or in other words, all of the radio singles). Everything else is just not worth listening too, IMO. I own every album and most of their CD singles and I love the first 4 albums (Maladroit is quite good, after a few listens), with my favorites being Blue and Pinkerton. Green is very pop, but still rocking.
Lets hope their new album in 2008 will be better than this one. I was honestly expecting more out of them, especially with Rick Rubin producing...maybe they should have had Ric Ocasek produce it instead.
Make Believe - Aptly titled 2007-12-18
I purchased this album on the strength of Weezer's earlier albums and for that i was greatly disappointed. "Beverly Hills" is a catchy tune but pales in comparison to tunes like "Buddy Holly," "My name is Jonas," and the "Good life" from earlier works. It is closer akin to "Island in the Sun" than any of those and this can be said for the whole album. Weezer's ability to write great catchy hooks with some catchy lyrics that are very radio friendly has been the band's banner for some years. So whats the problem with "make believe"? Well for starters its pretty empty. Its short like all of Weezers albums seem to be, (With the exception of Maladroit) but the other albums seem to be filled to the brim even though they run only 30 or so minutes long. The earlier albums are like a can of soda that is shaken up and waiting to spew forth as soon as a person opens it. In other words this album is missing the energy, heart, and determination of earlier works. Heck it's not a bad album but its just not as good as those either. However, that being said i'm not one to compare everything to a band's greatest works and as a stand alone album "make believe" is a good listen and any fan of poppy guitar rock should pick it up. However, the songs are standard bubble-gum issue and easily forgotten.
Mediocre-- skip it 2007-11-26
It's not horrible. Just like Chek cola isn't horrible. It's just not Coke. For a band that's had such depth and creativity (see Blue Album and Pinkerton) this is a comparatively weak effort. Most of the tracks (Peace, Pardon Me, Perfect Situation, Hold Me, etc) seem sincere and open, which is a step in the right direction, but they're overworked, dull, and a bit whiny. They just aren't catchy or interesting. Other tracks (Drugs, Beverly Hills) just seem like halfhearted, blatant attempts at hit singles. I think 'The Other Way' is the only really good song on here. I think they tried, for the most part, but Weezer seems kind of lost. Spend your dough on Pinkerton and the 2 disc version of The Blue Album, not on this.
