Weezer
“Tired of Sex” (Live in Seattle WA 2011)

It feels weird rocking out to Weezer when your girlfriend, who’s in the other room, has written what seems to be the definitive essay that problematizes what I would call ‘Weezer fanboy-ism’. But as I trawled the private torrent tracker this morning, I saw Blue & Pinkerton Live In Seattle, WA was topped the chart. I had to download it, just because, you know.

(One parallel note. It’s sort of interesting to compare/contrast Weezer with Louis C.K. here. They both released a high-profile live show, for download, for a low price. You can buy the official Weezer bootleg here. Like, when I was a high school student, and later an English major, (but not when I was a philosophy graduate student) I thought everything was connected. I love Thomas Pynchon. I can’t help but connect the sexually fucked-up Cuomo with Louis C.K., all multiplied by the leverage of on-line distribution. The point? Not sure. The internet is good for selling sex and what ails you for sex, maybe.)

So, I’m posting “Tired of Sex” because, to be honest, the first disc of this bootleg, the ‘Blue’ half, was not very good. “Say It Ain’t So” was pretty good. The guitar tones were good. I like how Weezer has basically zero clean Fender sound when they play live, so that makes some of their stuff sound more interesting. But it wasn’t until Cuomo & Co. started into Pinkerton that they really showed any life. I don’t think this is an accident.

I don’t know what it’s like to create a calling card that’s also a millstone, or to document publicly your most miserable, low, and risible moments. But I have a feeling it feels good to let them out. After the proper coaxing and decades-long veneration has been paid, of course. (A State Farm sponsorship doesn’t hurt.)