Why Pinkerton Is a Masterpiece | Keeping It Weezer | Retrospective

Ouch, my heart!
Check out WeAreWeezer!:
www.weareweezer.com/episodes/...
______
Twitter ► / zeepsterd
Tumblr ► / zeepsterd
________
Thumbnail by:
/ @frontporch
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porch
/ afrontporch
Thanks to Sshi for helping out Porch with the thumbnail!
Thanks to Gary for helping out on some research in this essay/review!
___________
MUSIC USED:
Weezer - Tired of Sex (Rough Tracking)
Weezer - Blast Off
Weezer - Tired of Sex
Weezer - Getchoo
Weezer - No Other One
Weezer - Why Bother?
Weezer - Across the Sea
Weezer - Across the Sea Cover
• Across The Sea - The W...
Weezer - The Good Life
Weezer - El Scorcho
Weezer - Pink Triangle
Weezer - Falling For You
Weezer - Tragic Girl
Weezer - Butterfly
Weezer - Longtime Sunshine
Weezer Longtime Sunshine - Ukulele Cover by Somantic Sweater
• Weezer - Longtime Suns...
Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."
In dedication to Weezer's best album.
Weezer lyrics, weezer pinkerton, weezer cover, weezer pinkerton review

[@PatoGuzmanAd]

love how for every rockstar stereotypical is like "yeah i'm a rockstar let's do hard drugs and break everything" rivers: yeah i have rockstar fame i think i'll go to harvard now

[@Remedy462]

He was a rockstar, but in his heart, he always knew he was a Bookstar!

[@RatherEmpty]

Blast Off! Is unironically the best start to any playlist

[@areeeeon]

Im excited for Keeping it Weezer: Raditude

[@DTheAustralian]

Honestly that’s be interesting. I don’t think I’ve seen a proper analysis of Ratitude, when positive or negative.

[@boyinaskirt6380]

Challenge accepted.

[@eppyfourtwenny4013]

its such a weird album, everybody calls it a sell out but i think rivers just wanted to jam out

[@artanmcmanusarchives]

The moon was shi-

[@Joseph-vc5vi]

If your wondering what I want to happen (I want that to happen)

[@Skarface182]

It's so weird that el scorcho wasn't an instant classic in my opinion, it's one of the more radio friendly songs on the album, like the good life

[@radiobread5624]

Well, except for the whole Half Japanese girls bit

[@seancolmes7527]

I agree - that chorus is very catchy. It thought it was a perfect follow up to the hits from the blue album

[@CariHelstrom]

i think the good life should've been a much bigger hit, every portion of the song is so catchy, the song goes hard although, i think getchoo would've probably been the best choice for a single

[@mrchiken1341]

@@CariHelstrom Getchoo? Really?

[@eoin8450]

@@CariHelstrom the good life probably my favourite weezer song

[@PrototheDodo]

I think what makes the album so great is it’s rawness. Its drums are TOTALLY blown out and distorted as shown in Tired Of Sex and Rivers feels so truthful and is actually giving his all. You can tell throughout the entire record that Rivers, Brian, Matt, and Pat are all giving it their all. It sucks that the entire album was hard panned called terrible and one of the worst albums of 1996 but luckily these recent years its been praised as a, as your video states, a total fucking masterpiece. Rivers and the band have also happily been playing it more and more and liking it more and more. Pinkerton is by one of Weezer best albums of all time and the album will always be one of my favorites.

[@theccarbiter]

these recent years? the general opinion of pinkerton changed like 3 or 4 years after it came out

[@lztrfilms8250]

This album captures the feeling of "being scared of becoming a rock star" perfectly. A feeling an emerging artist feels only once

[@CZsWorld]

I first got into Pinkerton in my early teenage edgy years. It became my favorite album. Now as a 27 year old I relate to it more than ever (besides Pink Triangle, haven't had that happen yet). I've listened to it 4 times this week. I've also been listening to Operation Space Opera's Songs From The Black Hole. Makes me wonder what things would be like if we how SFTBH from Weezer instead, but I'm glad we got Pinkerton. Would be interesting if you did a song by song breakdown of SFTBH too though! Almost every song on Pinkerton is a top 20 Weezer song for me, it's incredible. I still get goosebumps during Across the Sea and El Scorcho.

[@UrScum]

YET??? LMAO YET??

[@acharmlessman]

bro wants to get his heart broken by a lesbian girl 😭😭😭

[@pepemota9345]

bro i see you in every weezer video i swear LMAO

[@e7thstar]

When you start talking about falling for you I got overly emotional and started tearing up. This album means more to me than even I thought I did

[@e7thstar]

It*

[@obikenobi9775]

I relate to Falling For You on such a personal level it’s honestly weird. But yeah I feel the same, just a couple of months ago I was sitting in my bed listening to that exact song and sobbing my eyes out because someone I knew kinda abandoned me, and I had feelings for that person. I’m glad that Weezer is such a cult and that there is so many people who have shared experiences and can relate over this masterpiece.

[@kristupas8667]

hey, finally found a dude who overanalyzed this album, just like myself. maybe more people will appreciate this masterpiece after this video

[@eppyfourtwenny4013]

I'll just add, I've been rejected by a Lesbian before and that song immediately turned from laughable but good to full on relatable depression level. Never had any other song do that to me before.

[@andreabertero264]

Man I know I’m late, but gosh the same exact thing happened to me. It’s just crazy how a song can be so relatable in a moment like this.

[@FilthyTea]

@@andreabertero264 love your profile picture btw

[@andreabertero264]

@@FilthyTea thanks man!

[@wuvens]

🤣

[@Remedy462]

Hey don't feel bad man, everyone is a little gay, maybe she is a little straight now? 😽

[@lordsubl1me]

falling for you hands down the most underrated pinkerton song

[@raph2954]

i think its no other one

[@n3rd39]

This is my favourite album of all time. It means so much to me. In a time of pure darkness, I thought I would never get out. Caught in my head, I thought I would never see a light. Personal problem after personal problem, it was neverending. But one day during the summer this year, my friend sent a song to me, it was "The Good Life". This song struck something within me, Rivers' loneliness struck something within me. For the first time in awhile, I had a good feeling in my gut. At a time where I had constant self doubt, self hate even, this made me feel like myself again. For the next months, I would go through Weezer's entire discography. I loved most of their albums and they spoke to me. I know I'll always be a nerd but these records made me happy to be titled that. Thank you for this video, it was very well done and it really tapped into why I love both this album and band so much. Thank you.

[@zeepsterd]

Thank you so much man. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I hope you enjoy the new one in the series coming out very soon 🙏

[@Jeremy-th5pt]

Is it just me or does Pinkerton feel more like their first album? I'm not a huge weezer fan, but do like them. And always thought I was their first record.

[@Remedy462]

You are their first record Jeremy. We all are. ;)

[@brig.badger2896]

Great stuff, I love this album and I’ve been waiting for this vid for a while. I will say the B-Sides are some of the best parts of the album, just wish they got more attention.

[@theguyfrommaladroit2303]

Oh my god this review/analysis is one of the greatest I’ve seen for Pinkerton. I love this album. You have earned a like and a sub my guy. The vibe of this video and the depth of how far you go into things is amazing. This is the best video I have seen in years.

[@zeepsterd]

Thank you!

[@hammo3702]

15:03 just a small thing but in El Scorcho the only reference to a red head is in "Oh, the redhead said you shred the cello" meaning that the half-Japanese girl and the red head are different people.

[@hotrodjones74]

I just heard this album for the first time today. It was truly a masterpiece. So honest and so raw.

[@moonboogien8908]

I was 16 when this album dropped, and resonated allot with me at the time. I loved it.... But it seemed no one else I knew even liked it. I'm glad it's getting the love it deserves now.

[@Log707]

Pinkerton is in my opinion an album that that have to relate to in order to get, once you understand the lyrics and the feelings behind it, the album opens up and becomes a truly beautiful statement. That's something that the critics didn't understand and unfairly attacked it and the effect that had on rivers was devastating.

[@curly_wyn]

GOOD. Critics recognized that this album not only sounds bad production-wise, but is lyrically vile and disgusting. If Rivers confessed to being sexually attracted to teenage Japanese girls, yeah, he should feel bad.

[@wojosquad4680]

@@curly_wyn im guessing you are a Blue Album Stan bet you the kinda dude who can only handle softer sounds because how the hell is this Badly Produced because it isnt over produced like the Blue Album, im just asking?

[@glonn]

Perfect analysis. It took me about four unenjoyable listens and then it completely clicked. It’s become an album I have to listen to every day.

[@LHydock]

You’re probably one of my favorite channels on KZbin. I love just about any broad topic you discuss, whether politics, year-end reviews, or Weezer. Heck, I probably wouldn’t be into Weezer had it not been for your videos allowing me to consider checking them out. Love your work, keep it up 👍

[@julioerquicia971]

I’ve always had that same thought about this album having a weird connection with evangelion. I feel that rivers and Shinji share a lot of similarities, thank you for noticing that too.

[@Remedy462]

That would be depression, a lack of emotion connection, and family issues my friend.

[@Memekey928]

Falling for you has got to be my favorite Weezer song. My favorite part of the song is the 3rd to last line of “Holy sweet god dang you left your cello in the basement”. I don’t know what it is about this part but it just sparks so much happiness and the feet-tapping feeling. The guitar, the drums, the way Rivers sings it, everything is perfect in that part and I always find myself drumming when it comes on. Your statement stands with me. Falling for you is one of the best songs in Weezer’s discography!

[@blacksabbath7243]

This is quality

[@xinthisdiaryx]

I was born in 89’ and I remember being a little kid in my older brothers car and he would play Pinkerton and I loved it so much, I was already a fan of the blue album. At the the time I didn’t understand it was the Pinkerton album but I’ve always loved it, I never understood why people hated it.

[@mannmedic5648]

Dude! I quite literally made the Evangelion connection just the other day before first seeing this! Crazy that you did as well, though I highly doubt that it’s true lol. Crazy shit man, I thought only I would think about that

[@pentexsucks43]

My soulmate...

[@Remedy462]

Get in the robot Cuomo...

[@mazoku6793]

Great job on this video man! Pinkerton is one of my favorite albums and it was really interesting learning about the inspiration of each song on the album.

[@pphaguss]

Thanks for making this, dude. I made a video pretty much just like this around a year and a half ago but I scrapped it and didn’t post it, so thanks for putting this out there.

[@__greg__]

Been a fan for many years, and there’s still learned so much from this video. Thanks and well done!

[@wmvnotmp4]

This video is so good thank you 🙏

[@zeepsterd]

Thank you!

[@emaam]

When it comes to pink triangle. I think that song is so good at conveying the ideal of falling in love with somebody you know will never reciprocate that love That it becomes almost a universal anthem for that idea. Like as a Jewish person I've fallen in love with Muslim hijabis I'm more than one occasion and while the song isn't directly about that it's still speaks perfectly to the kind of head space I was in during those crushes

[@juangomez1784]

When I first discovered Weezer 6 years ago I fell in love with the blue album. Then I heard several of their other albums including Pinkerton and I absolutely hated it, but recently I decided to give it another listen and I finally realized how amazing this album really is.

[@Remedy462]

Raw, furious, beautiful, creepy, cringe, and fascinating. A very interesting album, definitely an experience. Liked it alot like The Come Down Machine by The Strokes.

[@harley6659]

This album got me through my teenage years. Really, really did. It’s amazing that complete strangers can make something so personal and raw and record it and send it out into the world and some other dude with completely different views and problems can resonate so much with it.

[@placeholderband19]

This is becoming one of my favorite series. I thought it was huge, only to see it's decently tiny. This will blow up soon, it's the type of thing to. Keep up the great work man

[@zeepsterd]

Thank you so much! I'm glad people love this series.

[@SpiritBuddy]

This video was beautifully done!

[@NicRadGaming]

great video m8 makes me appreciate the pinkerton album much more

[@angel_aeon]

Such an excellent video on my favourite album!

[@charlesnoonan5543]

saw your breaking bad iceberg video and it’s cool to see that you’re a weezer fan too. cool content bro

[@ruusterboi4597]

God, this channel and this album are so good

[@chrisbridston3438]

Absolutely best weezer doc on KZbin period .. even better then their official video release .. 👏 👏 were the black hole covers official ? Also.. I had thought u had done more than two of these lol.. PLEASE OH PLEASE make one for each album.. especially OK HUMAN.. which comes very close to Pinkerton .. thank u again .. u have a talent for this stuff

[@mountainhitrecordsthejungl5485]

This video made me love Pinkerton even more!

[@abcdefg98753]

i like the font pinkerton is written in on the album cover

[@blakesilenzi4146]

Such a well made amazing video man this has to be my 3rd time watching

[@zeepsterd]

Thank you so much!

[@marriedwithchildrenpodcast9804]

This was great! Thanks

[@MattRanks]

Really nice video man!

[@zeepsterd]

Thank you!

[@silentbug6980]

Getchoo is my favorite Weezer song ever

[@emmajelinek]

i love that this video was uploaded on valentines day

[@coconut6431]

Holy poop this video is underrated!

[@zeepsterd]

Thank you!!! Be sure to share with your friends :)

[@clip_county]

I’d love to see more keeping it weezer, they’re my favorite band hope to see more videos.

[@zeepsterd]

The Green album script is wrapped up! Just need to get around to recording audio and editing it soon!

[@clip_county]

@@zeepsterd I’m super excited!

[@saltyboi6993]

@@zeepsterd it’s funny that I literally just commented in hopes for a green album video without seeing this comment 😂

[@aidansuchan7041]

can’t wait for the green album vid😬

[@channelrashaadytplaysttvyo462]

no

[@PrototheDodo]

Actually would love this as the green album era is the most interesting era imo Edit: LOOK WHAT FUCKING HAPPENED!

[@aidansuchan7041]

yay i finally got it

[@Sticks_And_Glue]

This was an enjoyable video

[@andreveach7520]

Been a FAVORITE since release

[@saltyboi6993]

I hope you do Green, and keep on going in order

[@ValerieTheBat]

Rivers in Drag at 17:43 is making me realize that he looks like a cute twink crossdressing (which is something I fancy for) or an odd psychopath when he was doing these photos.

[@mauswaffles]

look up the photos from his “Alone I” compilation’s booklet

[@ValerieTheBat]

I’ve seen all of those photos from that compilation and it felt like looking inside Rivers’ mysterious diary. @@mauswaffles

[@mauswaffles]

@@ValerieTheBat yeah it is strange. i meant the one of him in the chair specifically

[@trucings9013]

Beautiful..

[@theactualTVB]

Pinkerton is a good album

[@toalladepapel]

props to you for including tragicl girl, as it's technically the unofficial 11th song

[@imredeak6694]

Great video, love the analysis and Pinkerton is definitely my favourite Weezer record, it truly feels like Weezer to me - raw, unfiltered and real. Any chance you have a copy of the interview at 14:33 in audio form? Can't seem to find it online and I want to hear Rivers' stories from that brief era post-Pinkerton

[@0hstarv1ng67]

im still looking for it, does anyone know where I can find it

[@Aidanxme]

lol I love Neon Genesis Evangelion, but that theory is definitely reaching. Especially since the song is in fact not about a red head.

[@be4272]

Simply one of the most underrated albums ever.

[@user-ue9wp7jc3h]

I love it, Papa

[@adamlangdon2245]

In the late 90s, when C.J. Stout gave me this CD for my birthday I too easily found in it all the magic and amazement that could be found in this record. Listening to said album for decades, I have not grown weary nor bored, to the contrary I have yet to cease in my discovery of the utter brilliance of Cuomo and the boyz ... it Is impossible to ignore the absolute perfection. Rivers lists his sexual conquests and subsequent losses as a matter of fact that should serve as a lesson. It must be fun to be a rock star.!! Go.!!. Be a rock star if you can if even for a little while! You only live once!

[@ianfryer]

The day it came out I knew Pinkerton was a masterpiece. Not a single Weezer fan I knew didn't like it. We LOVED it. I still think its one of the best rock albums of all time.

[@epitaph4606]

I think the take on The Good Life are interesting, because for me it is kind of inspiring. I listened to the song a lot in a very transformative point in my life. The angered screaming I see as an act of defiance and action

[@robbieclark7828]

Love getting ads for antidepressants on this video

[@jotapeflores]

realmente Pinkerton é o melhor album do weezer. Antes, a unica musica que eu ouvia desse album era The Good Life, mas com o tempo fui ouvindo e gostando das outras, sendo que agora todas fazem parte da minha playlist

[@Remedy462]

Kawaii Senpai! ✌️😚 Lol, I just had too my man!

[@jotapeflores]

1 ano dps retiro oq disse, blue album e mlhr 👍👍👍

[@bentowerner]

​@@jotapeflorespinkerton é o melhor slk

[@jotapeflores]

@@bentowerner 9 meses dps e quase n escuto mais weezer, gosto dos 2 álbuns igual agr

[@bentowerner]

@@jotapeflores qq vc ta escutando

[@kylehowser5572]

Loved this! May I ask what interview was being referenced during this clip? I'm doing a research project on Rivers and that interview would be perfect

[@zeepsterd]

Thanks! kzbin.info/www/bejne/jZXFl4xmbKx1a80

[@onlyhereformoney175]

"I'm fascinated by asian girls" my man out here's cultured as fuck

[@raptorskilltor4554]

River cuomo was surely the Shinji of his generation

[@aninjathtpwndu]

Sure, when you spell out the desperation it's an angstfest. But from being enamored with the Violent Femmes S/T album first Pinkerton felt downright well-adjusted. Still an amazing album

[@pizzapakemt]

who else listened to this during their middle school years and can finally fully relate to the album while currently in their late 20s???

[@matthewgarfinkle4311]

Does anyone know exactly what line in across the sea was taken from the letter? it mentions it but nothing specific

[@rike94]

All hail Pinkerton

[@ringer1324]

I had no idea about that tired of sex story massive whiplash I forget sometimes rivers wasn’t always the way he is now

[@allzeenamesaretaken]

This album was a masterpiece

[@rmessenger23]

The best Pixies album the Pixies never wrote..

[@gryffindork567]

The Evangelion part is amazing

[@topa1798]

exactly!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@theccarbiter]

“Asooka”

[@colehowy]

My girlfriend watched this and can't stop talking about it! I don't know if that's a good thing...

[@thebassin1308]

I haven’t got a gf yet time to listen to this album again

[@num5949]

LMAO the drag pics

[@MedalionDS9]

The first time I heard El Scorcho was watching the music video in 1996 on Muchmusic in Canada (the MTV equivalent up there at the time) and I liked the song a lot... never understood why so many people found the song and album so weird... I thought... isn't all alternative rock a little weird and filled with anxiety? Apparently not because it was seen as Weezer's fall from grace in the mainstream for a bit.

[@Xoslug]

The underrated song on the album is butterfly

[@jpzxyz]

Nice review. Sad the world wasn't ready for Pinkerton. I think the music world needed Weezer during the height of the emo years.

[@osbaldomendoza1058]

The Best of weezer

[@Williamyarbrough]

Ive been in lots of different bands, played with some famous folks and even know a couple of the Weezer guys. I was in love with their Blue album sound and it helped convert me from the hardcore metal-head that I was at that time in 94 to accept “modern rock” and eventually “grunge” and other types of music. I remember when Pinkerton came out in 96. I grabbed it upon release and slammed it into my 12-disc CD changer in my car and prepared to be carried away by geeky-sensibilities and chunky guitar rifts. Thats not what happened. WTF is this ? I was quickly scanning through the disc. I grabbed the CD case and looked at it to clarify that it was Weezer i was listening to. I put the case back down and kept scanning through tracks. I heard parts of every song and I went back through them again. I hated it. OMG what happened ? This is terrible. What a sophomoric slump! What garbage! Rivers cone on man, really ? I decided I would listen to it all completely later at home with headphones and try not to judge it so harshly. I got home, hit the bong and prepared for blastoff. It still sucked, and whats with all the crappy background noise and feedback. Hell I can even hear what sounds like a Korean TV commercial being amplified by a guitars overdriven pickups. I put the CD away and left if as DOA for another few years. I’m kept playing guitar and drums for local bands in Memphis and started writing my own songs. I discovered the Green album and it sounded so much like the Blue album I thought that Weezer was back! But the more I listened to it the more I come to realize all the songs sounded the same. They were all short, compressed, easy to listen to and boring as hell. The album went on to be a return for Weezer but I hated it more than Pinkerton. I know this is getting to be a long post but as I was writing my own songs I stumbled onto a video about the failure of Pinkerton and a live 96 performance of some of the songs on Pinkerton. I wanted to know what went wrong so I watched it and the concert. The live songs were amazing! I was puzzled. Why did I hate it so badly? I went and grabbed the CD and hit the bong and strapped the headphones on and got ready for blastoff. This album is awesome! Jesus what was I thinking years ago ? I figured it out after listening to the album non-stop for days on end. Back in 96 when Pinkerton came out I was looking for the Blue Album Part 2! I wanted more of the same. My ears were listening for familiar sounds, and Pinkerton was so far out of the norm, and still is, that I rejected it for not giving me a hit of that familiar drug. Now, years later as I listened again I heard the album with a “songwriters ears” and not a “Weezer fans ears”. I realized what Rivers was doing and I saw the album for what it was and now its probably my favorite album of all time.

[@scoldedegg]

Hash pipe and say it aint so 2 of the greatest songs of all time

[@schoolhouserockenjoyer]

*I SEE HIM IN MY EYES* *SEE HIM IN MY EARS* *SEE HIM IN MY BLOOD* *SEE HIM IN MY TEARS*

[@Jeremy-th5pt]

Rivers just filled out the application and was accepted into Harvard? That easy, huh?

[@threeruneblade]

It kinda helps when you apply to the musical program and have published a widely critically acclaimed multi million-sales album that had a music video released with the most popular operating system of all time.

[@carmynconnerley11]

What was the show called in the video playing during when he was talking about "falling for you"

[@user-ue9wp7jc3h]

After listening to Pinkerton. His Darkside didn't seem so dark😊

[@lukeroberts3464]

Is there segue on the track across the sea to falling for you or pink triangle to falling for you?

[@Skiz13435]

I like watching your videos about weezer bc you're a nerd like rivers 😁

[@muuuunmun7049]

27:19 what version of longtime sunshine is this? it's SO beautiful!

[@loosescrew472]

it’s in the description. it’s a cover of the song.

[@acedluffy2094]

I love pinkerton but I think the best one is I just threw out the love of my dreams out of all the other songs

[@MikeSparksMusic]

1:49 Did Rivers predict the name of the processors in the Macs?

[@Shaymin0]

10:23 LOL Rivers no offense but that's easily the funniest part of the story.

[@umemurastudios3348]

Having Pink Triangle happen to you really is sad.... it happened to me

[@slotheez]

juiced

[@bigmoneyben08]

this album is good in a way that hurts. that's the only way i can put it