A Nerd Rock Icon’s Take on Vivaldi

Weezer’s concept album SZNZ (2022) was deeply inspired by Antonio Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, published in 1725. Frontman Rivers Cuomo crafted visions for each section, blending works from Vivaldi into modern rock songs. Released in four catalogs—SZNZ: Spring, SZNZ: Summer, SZNZ: Autumn, and SZNZ: Winter—the record is a seasonal journey through the year’s changes. With help from producer Suzy Shinn, Weezer stayed true to their roots while embracing new sonic directions. The Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter records were released on each solstice.

La Primavera! Mood for the SZN

The opening chapter, SZNZ: Spring, is a burst of optimism. It sets the stage for the project. “Opening Night”, begins the set with a melody from Vivaldi’s “La Primavera”. It is greeted by Irish flutes and mandolins. The single, “A Little Bit of Love,” plays an infectious melody and upbeat rhythm. Weezer has been famous for their beautiful vocal harmonies, and this track is among their best since their breakout 30 years ago. Shinn mixes layers of several instruments:

• Acoustic Guitars

• Electric Guitars

• Drums

• Piano

• Flutes

• Horns

• Mandolin

• Mellotron

Other tracks like “The Garden of Eden” and “All This Love” produce vibrant arrangements and uplifting messages. There is joy and possibility throughout, as SZNZ: Spring is a fitting introduction. “The Sound of Drums” features a xylophone, which was famously used by The Beach Boys. However, it is rarely heard in rock music.

• Best track: “All This Love”

• Worst track: “The Sound of Drums”

• Best moment: Bridge section of “Angels on Vacation"

Cuomo's Cruel Summer

Shifting into SZNZ: Summer, moods shift to anguish. Accompanied by Vivaldi’s “L'inverno”, Cuomo and company pick up electric guitars and blast down the door in the opening track “Lawn Chair”. “Blue Like Jazz” is a hard rock song with a swing tempo; it is the band’s first song in compound meter since the triumphant “L.A. Girlz” in 2016. “Turning the orange into yellow, into blue,” Cuomo paints an emotional picture.

• Best track: “Cuomoville”

• Worst track: “Records”

• Best moment: Guitar outro on “What’s The Good of Being Good”

Falling Into A Gem

Cuomo and company shift into soup mode, taking the biggest set of swings on the Vivaldi-inspired campaign. The band aims to create a dance rock album – something have admittedly failed to do in the past. Interviewing on Conan O’Brien’s podcast in Fall 2022, Cuomo claimed that SZNZ: Autumn was meant to be inspired by the following bands:

• The Strokes

• Franz Ferdinand

• Duran Duran

Hear the full interview between Cuomo and O’Brien here.

Weezer exchange their guitars for synthesizers in “Can’t Dance, Don’t Ask Me”. The song is infectious and unique; you cannot help but dance, even if Cuomo refuses to. The next six songs to follow plant seeds of anxiety and moodiness. “Get Off on The Pain” plays with multiple tempos, and the bridge is pulled directly from a poem by Thomas Hardy. Synths and guitars blend beautifully on the track.

Read “I Look Into My Glass” by Hardy.

SZNZ: Autumn outro is “Run, Raven, Run” – a five-minute epic. Its soaring chorus and instrumental outro are nothing short of perfect. Coughing as he sings to crescendo, Rivers sang the last lines of the song while sick with COVID-19.

• Best track: “Run, Raven, Run”

• Worst track: “Get Off On The Pain”

• Best moment: Best moment: Second half and outro of “Run, Raven, Run”

Freezer Weezer

SZNZ: Winter brings closure to the album’s journey. This record has a somber tone, reflecting the solitary of the season. The melancholic opening track, “I Want A Dog”, is a standout. The record gets quirky in “Iambic Pentameter”. Cuomo sings about his complicated relationship with his mother, asking her to “figure out what the hell is inside this messed up head”. He sings that “seasons come and seasons go.”

“Dark Enough to See the Stars”, which is also inspired by a well-known melody; the swinging rhythms remind the listener of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” (which Weezer covered). Cuomo’s lonely anthems continue with “The One That Got Away”. Singing to the lover he no longer shares life with, the singer states that “I’m sad without you, I still dream about you.” The SZNZ project wraps with “The Deep and Dreamless Sleep”; the song details a life that is coming to an end. It is a chilling contrast from “Opening Night”. Roaring with a memorable guitar outro, the entire project finds an emotional conclusion. The SZNZ come full circle.

• Best track: “I Want A Dog”

• Worst track: “The One That Got Away”

• Best moment: Outro of “The Deep And Dreamless Sleep”

Songs for Every SZN

Weezer’s classically inspired project produces vibes for each season throughout year. It is unique in the history of rock music, providing glimpses of Cuomo’s genius. Many people have a favorite season– some like Fall because of colorful leaves and football Sundays. Others like Summer so they can lay on the beach. There are countless reasons to have a favorite time of year. But, when someone asks me what my favorite season is, I tell them: Weezer’s.

Click here to listen to my favorite songs from each album.