If It's Too Loud...

Photo via Facebook We're kind of embarrassed to be bringing you the B-side/cover from Razor Braid's latest single, but we simply can't resist a cover song this great. The Brooklyn band have released a new version of their first release, "Nashville, Again," and you really should listen to that because it's simply great. But their version of "Buddy Holly" is what we're going to focus on since we're hacks. As much as I loved Weezer in the 90's, I was a full fledged music snob and rolled my eyes at "Buddy Holly" because it was THE hit song that was everywhere. Razor Braids have taken it upon themselves to inject new life into the ultra-hit song I'm still burned out on nearly thirty years later. Their version drops the geek cool aesthetic and just makes "Buddy Holly" truly cool. It's more dream pop than post grunge, and the breakdown (the "Bang bang knock on the door" part) needs to be heard, because they ...

Forgotten Fridays is an occasional feature here at If It’s Too Loud... where we go back and find the lost records of our glory days. We played these on our college radio shows, put them on countless mix tapes, and then forgot they existed. We go back and remind you of their existence, and help decide if they were any good. Chopper One is the band that features original Weezer guitarist Jason Cropper, who left the band during the recording of The Blue Album  and was replaced by Brian Bell. He is also credited as a co-writer on "My Name is Jonas." After leaving Weezer, Cropper formed Chopper One with his wife, Amy Wellner Cropper. In 1997 the band released Now Playing , their debut and final album, which featured the minor hit, "Touch My Fuzz." After Chopper One, Cropper did time in Fliptop and 22 Jacks. He sang the theme song for the massively underrated Andy Richter Controls the Universe , and has done some producing and recording for other bands. When it was ...

Now we're getting somewhere. Album of the Week : Artist : Better Oblivion Community Center Album : Better Oblivion Community Center Quick Description : Surprise album from Conor Oberst from Bright Eyes and blog favorite Phoebe Bridgers. Why You Should Listen : Both artists are solid in their own right, but together? It's magical. Overall Thoughts : A surprise release from Conor Oberst and Phoebe Bridgers, this is probably my favorite release of the early year. Oberst is at his best since the Bright Eyes album Cassudega back in 2007, and Phoebe Bridgers is arguably having the most undersold creative year for a musician in some time. These songs balance the tightrope of urgent and present near-perfectly, and the two artists compliment each other so well in their sounds that it is almost as if they were meant to work together from the start. Given that Bridgers is a Saddle Creek artist and Oberst guested on her awesome debut, this collaboration was probably inevitable...

Photo by Renee Carey The Relationship formed back in 2007 as Brian Bell's Weezer side project. (I could have sworn it was much earlier, but that was his previous side project, Space Twins.) Listening to The Relationship, it feels like Weezer is his job that pays da bills, and The Relationship is where he gets to artistically express himself. To be fair, The Relationship isn't groundbreaking. Their latest song, "Break Me Open," is a classic song in the style of The Relationship. It's a throwback to a throwback. In the mid to late 90s, there was this resurgence of bands playing music reminiscent of the groovy 60s and early 70s, and wearing vintage polyester shirts to match. That's what "Break Me Open" reminds me of. If you're looking for vintage Weezer (or whatever it is they do now), you're not going to find it here. This is pure southern California groove. Plus, it lets Brian Bell let loose on a guitar, and that's always welcome. Yo...

We try to stay fairly positive over here at If It's Too Loud... and just bring you the best new music that we stumble on. We don't want to do the snarky music critic thing and mock hard working bands trying to make it just because we think we're funny. But every so often a band we used to love releases something so horrible that we're forced to warn you about how bad it is. Once again, that band is Weezer. I used to love love LOVE Weezer. They're the band most people most closely associate with me still to this day. They just released the first song off their upcoming 11th album. That song, "Feels Like Summer," is awful. Just plain awful. They're a band that's been around for 20+ years and they're not even targeting teens and 20-somethings anymore. This sounds like a play for tweens, like they're trying to get on a Disney Channel or Nickelodeon show. It's the kind of song that you see a band on stage playing instruments, but you don...

Valentine's Day sucks. We spend weeks getting faux romance crammed down our throats and then we're stuck spending a ridiculous amount of money to prove we're in love on a day that means nothing to anyone. Plus, most romantic music is outrageously terrible. You know what's better than romantic music? Break up music. Which is what the 2017 If It's Too Loud... Valentine's Day playlist consists of. I might have leaned a bit too heavily on old timey country, but is there anything better for the negative sides of love than classic country? Aside from that, there's a ton of 90s alternative, which my knowledge of sad sack 90s alternative shows what my romantic life was like back in that decade. [Note: There might be two Lemonheads songs, but one is an 80s Ben Deily song and the other is a 2000s Evan Dando one, so it's completely different.] This is perfect for anyone that doesn't give a crap about the most forcibly romantic holiday of the year or that enjo...

So far, the line ups for the 2017 festival season have been... let's just say disappointing. With the exception of Shovels & Rope's High Water Festival , it just seems like every other festival has given up on even trying. Festivals aren't being curated anymore, it's just grab every band that you can. Plus, I don't even know half of the bands on the line ups, and even though we're old guys here, we're not THAT out of touch. Well, god bless the 2017 Boston Calling festival. Just when it seemed like they were giving up on the old guys and just going for what the kids ages 12-22 were listening to, this morning they released this line up. There are a ton of If It's Too Loud... approved bands, plus not only a mixture of old and new artists, but an actual diverse line up . No genre feels like it's just an add on: everything is equally represented (ok, maybe not country, but we can deal with that). Seriously, check out the line up below. Classic alt...

Another busy release day equals another two-parter. Album of the Week : Artist : Bleached Album : Welcome the Worms Quick Description : Well-crafted indie power pop. Why You Should Listen : Bleached's first album was a favorite of the year for us a few years back, and this is even better. Overall Thoughts : I admit to being a little cold to the lead single, "Keep on Keeping On," upon first hearing it. When I brought this album up, though, it just lodged itself into my head and didn't let go, and took 9 of its friends along for the ride. This is a great power poppy, 80s-alt-tinged record that just scratches all the right itches, and really has no business being as good as it ended up being. A solid follow-up to their first album, and one I'm really loving. Recommendation : Best album of the week, no doubt. Artist : Weezer Album : Weezer/The White Album Quick Description : Tenth album by the alt-rock band. Why You Should Listen : You think their po...

With TT the Bear's closing forever this Saturday, I wanted to share some of my favorite memories of the iconic Cambridge rock club. Some of my most cherished musical memories took place within its walls. It is going to be missed greatly. Back in 1997-1998, Rivers Cuomo played some small, side project shows in the Boston area. The band had a rotating line-up, but this one in particular stands out. Weezer drummer Pat Wilson came out to join the band for this show, and it also included soon to be Weezer bassist Mikey Welsh. To show how far Weezer had fallen out of the mainstream post- Pinkerton , tickets were available to see half of Weezer at a 300 person club. By this point the casual fans had strayed off (an earlier show at TT's in October had some fratty guys asking where the mosh pit was before the band started) and this was just filled with die hards. It was a short eight song setlist, and of course it consisted of Weezer favorites such as "Getchoo," "No O...

Via Facebook For anyone who doesn't know, last week is was announced that Cambridge, MA club TT the Bear's was closing this summer after over 40 years. This might be the first club closing to truly upset me. By the time I was regularly going to shows (1996?), The Rat was catering to mostly punk and hardcore bands, and Avalon and Axis were always the bigger, corporate clubs (even though they've been replaced by the even more corporate and gigantic House of Blues). TT's had an equal love of national and local bands, and felt like a home base to bands like Letters to Cleo and Lady Lamb the Beekeeper even as they got too big to play a 325 person club. For an example of how great this place was in the late 90s, check out the ad to the left. Jennifer Trynin, Allstonians, Velvet Crush, Boss Hog, Bikini Kill, and a Squirrel Nut Zippers/Magnetic Fields double bill in less than 2 weeks??? Plus, it was the site of the legendary Pixies/Lemonheads pairing on "nu muzik"...

Now that Weezer have recently released their first good album in 13 years, it's now safe to start re-exploring some of the side projects and related bands. Brian Bell's side project, The Relationship, has a new single coming out on April 8. The A side, "Oh Allen," can be listened to now. I always liked his previous side project, Space Twins, but had never really paid attention to The Relationship. That's going to change with this new song. It's just pure upbeat power-pop that draws heavily on the 70s and 90s, which are obviously the two golden eras of power-pop. It's reminiscent of bands like Fountains of Wayne, Cheap Trick, and Big Star. The Relationship aren't revolutionizing anything, but if you like your rock and roll with big, fuzzy guitars and catchy as hell choruses, this is for you. The Relationship also features Nate Shaw of U.S. Bombs on guitar. "Oh Allen" will be out on Burger Records April 8. You can listen to it below. For m...

I hate Christmas music. It's pretty dull and repetitive. But, this weekend you'll be subjected to work holiday parties and family and/or friend's holiday parties. Then next week someone will insist on putting Christmas music on in the background while you're wrapping presents and then opening presents. How many times can you be expected to listen to Mariah Caery's "All I Want for Christmas?" As an alternative, here is the If It's Too Loud... 2014 Christmas Playlist. It features some lesser known songs from The Sheila Divine, Emmy the Great and Tim Wheeler, Jessica Lea Mayfield, a cover of Wham's "Last Christmas" (the greatest worst song ever recorded), and we had to end with "Christmas in Hollis." Enjoy!

Every time a new Weezer album comes out, I anticipate it mostly with trepidation. I'd love for it to be the greatest album ever made, but I've been burned by a new Weezer album far too many times. I mean, "Pork and Beans?" "The Girl Got Hot?" The only good song Weezer have released since the not-too-bad Green album was "Perfect Situation" back in 2005. All the advance press for Everything Will Be Alright in the End  says that it's a return to form, but anytime a band has been around for more than 10 years, every album is supposed to be a return to form, and it all ends up being more of the same drivel the band has been releasing. So how is Everything Will Be Alright in the End ? Here are my thoughts as I listen to it for the first time. 1. "Ain't Got Nobody" This is actually a good song. The lyrics tend to be on the cheesier side. "Ain't got nobody to really love me?" That'sbad, but "Ain't got no on...

Whenever Weezer releases new music, I can't help but get just a little bit hopeful. Weezer fandom is like that relationship that has gone on far too long, and you've been miserable for well over a decade, but those 3 years at the beginning were so amazing! Maybe we'll go back someday! Even though you know it will never happen. Anyway, Weezer released some new song snippets that aren't totally horrible. "The Waste Land" is reminiscent of the slower, more plodding side of Black Sabbath, but in a totally weenie way. Personally, I'd love to see Rivers connect more with his metal roots because that would seem more honest and genuine than the vast majority of what they've released in the past 13 years. "Ain't Got Nobody" is much more uptempo, and has potential but could also just be mindless drivel.  Sigh. Someday I'll just give up and stop listening. Until then. check out the snippets below.

Being a Weezer fan for 20 years is kind of like having an ex-girlfriend that you had  to break up with. You had a great few years, but then, even though you have some amazing memories together, you had just grown apart irreparably. But, unlike a bad break up, you don't have friends checking to see if you want to spend $65 to hang out with your ex every year or so. Sure, you might pull out some old memories and reminisce every so often, but you could never go back. Over the weekend, Weezer had their Weezer Cruise. They debuted a new song, "Back to the Shack," that isn't terrible. Maybe. I don't know. Whenever there is a new Weezer song kicking around, I always expect the worst, but there is a little part of me that is hopeful that Weezer is back instead of whatever they have become lately. The song has lots of references to the past ("Rocking out like it's '94") which makes sense since this year is the 20th anniversary of the Blue Album. Rive...