Posted on 09/14/2005 2:58:41 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Is it the end of the road for the college rock favourites?
Weezer have fuelled rumours of an imminent split, admitting that they have "no idea" if the band will exist in a year's time.
The college rock veterans have just released a fifth album, 'Make Believe', but according to guitarist Brian Bell, it could be their last.
"We have no idea if we're going to be in a band next year," he said this week. "That's the fun of being in Weezer. That's why we put out albums every three years, and we have these dark periods where we don't know if we're even going to be a band anymore."
Rumours of the band's imminent demise began to circulate after supposed clues were left in the liner notes of 'Make Believe', particularly a passage from Shakespeare play 'The Tempest'.
It reads: "This rough magic / I here abjure, and, when I have required / Some heavenly music, which even now I do / To work mine end upon their senses that / This airy charm is for, I'll break my staff / Bury it certain fathoms in the Earth / And deeper than did ever plummet sound / I'll drown my book."
Crucially, this was the final passage from Shakespeare's final play, widely regarded as the playwright saying goodbye to his fans, and when questioned, frontman Rivers Cuomo was equally enigmatic.
He told MTV: "When we were putting the album together and finishing up the artwork, I didn't know what was going to happen in the future and I told everyone that. I told them, 'Let's commit to this year, and see what happens'. And that was one of the reasons why I put that quote in there, because I thought it's a really nice way to say goodbye, if it is a goodbye."
Bell continued: "When I saw that quote, I thought the same thing. I was studying Shakespeare at a university during the making of 'Make Believe', and it did spark some concern, and I asked Rivers about it. We never directly say, 'So, does this mean this is our last record? What does this mean?' But I knew he took Shakespeare too, and maybe it struck a chord with him."
The band are no strangers to taking extended breaks, having gone on 'hiatus' between 1997 and 2000 when Cuomo went to study at Harvard University.
And they say Shakespeare is not relevant ping
ping
I smell a First Annual Farewell Tour in the offing.
They may be a college band, but this 40 year old loves Weezer's music. I went to see them on their last tour. I sat in the parents section.
Interesting.
his brother keeps in semi close contact with the family - and his grandma still lives in town
Thanks for the ping.
I'll have to check it out - sounds very interesting!
"Oh brave new world/with such people in it".
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