The Weezer Cruise Day 1 - Carnival Destiny 19 January 2012

It has been a very very long time since Weezer toured in my part of the world and after years of rumours they still don’t look any closer to coming to Australasia.  This meant that if I wanted to see the band it was going to mean travelling great distances to see them.  In late 2011 it was decided that if they wouldn’t come to us we would have to go and see them.  A week after deciding this Weezer announced their Cruise.  So leave was booked, flights were paid for and travel plans were made.  Six months later and after many hours of travel we arrived at the Port of Miami to board the Carnival Destiny and start our Weezer Cruise. 

Day 1 19^th January 2012 (Sail Away - Miami, Florida)

After the formalities were cleared we made our way onto the ship and had a look around to get familiar with layout of the ship.  The venues we would be visiting over the course of the cruise were found we finally arriving on the Lido deck.  This would be the venue for Weezer’s sail away show and at this point of the day allot of folks were already in party mode.  This meant that by the time of the safety drill there were a number of cut people not terribly interesting in knowing what to do in an emergency.  You would think after the Cruise Liner incident in Italy that people might be a bit more receptive but hey if I get more leg room in my lifeboat then I’m not complaining.  Once the drill was completed we made our way up to the Lido Deck to find a spot for Weezer’s sail away show. 

 Weezer hit the stage not long after the boat had start making its way into open seas with a set of their most beloved singles and a few curve balls.  As a fan of who has never seen them live the “Hit’s” part of the set was a heap of fun and covered allot of material I was keen to hear live.  I know American fans who have seen them before might have wanted lesser played tracks but for me it was perfect.  It reminded me of seeing Iron Maiden on their Somewhere Back In Time Tour in 2008 where I got to hear so many classics at my first show.  The highlights were opener Hash Pipe,  (If You're Wondering if I Want You To) I Want You To which had everyone yelling along to the chorus, the Rivers-less Dope Nose which Scott sang while Rivers was descending the Water Slide and the summer classic Island In The Sun.  The biggest surprise in the first set was Blast Off! a track from the bands “Lost” album Songs From The Black Hole.  I have been a fan of this song since it was posted on Weezer.com many years ago.  The band did a great job on the song with the different characters parts being sung by different members of the band.  The band left the stage for a break before coming back to perform the Blue Album in its entirety. 

I have seen a number of bands play their classic albums and for the most parts they have been quite dull experiences (I’m looking at you Sonic Youth).  Thankfully due to the source material, the enthusiasm of the band and audience the Blue Album set was a blast.  Everything I loved about the album was on display and the band had a chorus of vocalists helping them along with every song.  The standout tracks were the driving No One Else, Say it Ain’t So and the wholly appropriate Holiday.  Weezer had absolutely delivered and the best thing was that we were going to get to see them again the following day. 

Weezer Setlist:

Hash Pipe

Perfect Situation

(If You're Wondering if I Want You To) I Want You To

Photograph

Dope Nose

Blast Off!

Paranoid Android

Island in the Sun

Beverly Hills

Pork and Beans

“The Blue Album”

My Name is Jonas

No One Else

The World Has Turned and Left Me Here

Buddy Holly

Undone The Sweater Song

Surf Wax America

Say it Ain't So

In the Garage

Holiday

Only in Dreams

We made our way back to our room and then headed out for dinner.  One of the things I really liked about eating the dining rooms was that you got to meet people from all over the world who at least had one thing in common Weezer. 

 Sebadoh on the Lido deck was the next stop.  I had seen Sebadoh in Sydney in 2011 and really enjoyed their set so I was keen to check them out again.  The set was very similar to the Bakesale/Harmacy set they were touring last year.  With Lou and Jason trading off strings of songs from Lou's poppier moments to Jasons Punkier tunes.  Again Brand New Love was a real highlight along with Rebound, Careful, Sister and Beauty Of The Ride.  No time for Encores as Lou had double duty with Dinosaur Jr in the Palladium Lounge shortly after Sebadoh finished.

Sebadoh Setlist:

"I missed the start of the set"
Got It
Love To Fight
Drag Down
The Freed Pig
Licence to Confuse
Sister
Drama Mine
Crystal Gypsy
Careful
Bird in the Hand
Two Years Two Days
Beauty of the Ride
Forced Love
Sixteen
Give Up
Brand New Love

We made our way to the Palladium Lounge and caught the tail end of The Antlers set.  They reminded me of Mercury Rev in allot of ways and put on a very slick performance.  I was particularly impressed by the keyboard player Darby Cicci  who was playing keyboards and Bass pedals at the same time. Cool stuff. 

The Antlers Setlist:

TBA

Dinosaur Jr were loud!  I have seen them before and was thankful I had done an Everglades tour in Miami and kept the ear plugs.  The first thing I noticed was how insane the audience downstairs was. I’ve had never seen a band make people lose their shit in such a relaxed environment.  There were people who were on some kinds of drugs swaying and flailing along to the music.  Also individual accolades need to be given to the fellow who decided to stage dive.  The problem with stage diving is that the Palladium Lounge is seated and there was lot of space between people in this area.  Needless to say he face planted on the back of some seats and we later found out most likely broke his nose. Then there was the couple getting intimate on some seats.  Fun huh!?!?  To the music the band were really tight though there was very little interaction between band members.  J Mascus soloed for most of the set while Murph and Lou pounded at their instruments.  Even though I’m not hugely familiar with the bands catalogue I had a great time and could still thankfully hear.

The remainder of the night was spent listening to some dodgy Karaoke in the Criterion Lounge and heading off to bed before our first for day at sea.

Setlist:

TBA