Weezer Cover Nirvana, Jam With Fans at Tour Kick Off Show

On the first U.S. date of Weezer's "Troublemaker" tour, the sold out crowd at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts was able to observe two of the many bands the headliners have begat. The hooky Canadian power pop monster Tokyo Police Club and the emo-via-U2 Angels & Airwaves both contain a bit of Weezer's DNA (especially the band's 90s output). It turned the evening into an interesting example of reverse-evolution.

Photo Gallery: Weezer Kick Off The "Troublemaker" Tour in Lowell, Massachusetts.

Rivers Cuomo and his band took the stage — featuring two drum kits, multiple keyboards and a small trampoline that was removed in favor of a larger one— dressed in matching white jumpsuits. Four songs in, they switched to red jumpsuits and invited Tom DeLonge and Atom Willard from Angels & Airwaves to join them for a rousing rendition of "Undone - Sweater Song." Throughout the set, Cuomo leapt and yelped like a manic leprechaun.

The band mixed much-beloved deep cuts ("Pink Triangle") with more recent gems ("Pork and Beans"). The strangest moments of the night came during their covers of Oasis' "Morning Glory" and Nirvana's "Sliver," the latter of which came after Cuomo played the Cobain-saluting "Heart Songs" on a record player. At the end of the night, Weezer invited about 30 fans (many from the nearby Berklee College of Music) to jam with them on "Island In The Sun" and "Beverly Hills." One of them even played a didgeridoo. As Cuomo remarked to guitarist Brian Bell earlier in the night, "That was pretty dope."

Set list:
"Dope Nose"
"Hash Pipe"
"Dreamin'"
"Undone - The Sweater Song"
"Automatic"
"Say It Ain't So"
"Suzanne"
"Troublemaker"
"King"
"My Name Is Jonas"
"Pink Triangle"
"Pork and Beans"
"Keep Fishin'"
"Perfect Situation"
"El Scorcho"
"The Greatest Man That Ever Lived"
"Morning Glory" (Oasis cover)
"Island In The Sun"
"Beverly Hills"
"Heart Songs"
"Sliver" (Nirvana cover)
"Buddy Holly"

Related Stories: • Weezer Among Bands Releasing Memory Card Albums
• Weezer Cast Fans in "Troublemaker" Video
• Weezer Announce Tour With Tokyo Police Club and Angels & Airwaves

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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