I will preface this review by saying; I grew up on The Blue Album and Pinkerton. They were classics and set a very high standard for Weezer albums to come. Raditude, like every other Weezer album following their first two, does not evoke the same magic feeling that The Blue Album and Pinkerton do. To Weezer’s credit the musical landscape has vastly changed since The Blue Album. Their garage rock sound has become more of the norm in the mainstream music scene.

Raditude is a middle of the road album. There are some very catchy pop songs here but nothing to write home about. I give Weezer credit. Their songs still have characteristics that make them uniquely Weezer. They are a bit more subtle on Raditude.  Weezer’s sound is very polished on this album. This works for some bands, Weezer is not one of them. With the exception of a few tracks, you lose the endearing raw garage rock sound that was a staple of their older albums.

My biggest issue with the album is that it blends in rather than stands out.  The songs on Raditude sound like they are desperately trying to fit in with a younger audience. It is like when that strange older uncle added you as a friend on Facebook to prove he was with it. It just doesn’t work. I grew up listening to Weezer and was hoping for something a bit more grown up.

Score:  4

Scale

1 –3: I was impaired in some way when I bought this album (it’s embarrassing)

4: A few decent tracks, nothing memorable. Selling it back to the record store

5: Some great tracks, a solid album

6: One of the better albums I have listed to

7: These are very few and far between. Flawless from top to bottom