Death to False Metal

Death to False Metal
Compilation album by Weezer
Released	November 2, 2010 (2010-11-02)
Recorded	1998–2010
Genre	Alternative rock power pop
Length	32:52
Label	Geffen
Producer	Weezer Rick Rubin Shawn Everett Rivers Cuomo
Weezer chronology
Hurley (2010) Death to False Metal (2010) Everything Will Be Alright in the End (2014)

Death to False Metal is a compilation album by American rock band Weezer, released on November 2, 2010 by Geffen Records. The album comprises several previously unreleased tracks from throughout Weezer's career, with vocalist and guitarist Rivers Cuomo stating that the songs together make an album that should "logically follow Hurley".^[1] The album debuted at number 48 on the US Billboard 200.^[2]

The album was released simultaneously with the deluxe edition of the band's second studio album, Pinkerton (1996). The title comes from a phrase coined by Manowar.

Background and recording

Originally known as Odds and Ends, the album was first mentioned by guitarist Brian Bell during the summer of 2008. Vocalist and guitarist Rivers Cuomo states that the tracks are "great songs, great recordings, but for some reason they didn't make the final cut for a record. And like the Alone record, they span a vast period of time from the very beginning of our career in the early '90s right up to the present day."

Frontman Rivers Cuomo considers Death to False Metal to be Weezer's ninth studio album. Band webmaster and historian Karl Koch describes the release differently as "a special album, [...] sort of like Weezer's version of Rivers' Alone records."^[3]

The version of "Mykel & Carli" on the iTunes version of the album differs from the previously released version on the "Undone – The Sweater Song" single in 1994 and later the deluxe edition of the band's self-titled 1994 debut. It has been speculated by fans that it is the original 1993 recording of the song from the Blue Album sessions,^[4] with the more common previously released version known to have been recorded in the summer of 1994.^[5]

The album's opening track, "Turning Up the Radio", is the product of Rivers Cuomo's YouTube songwriting project Let's Write a Sawng, a process where the frontman curated a 15-step program where people were free to submit ideas such as titles, chord progressions and melodies to create a collaborative song through the video-sharing platform. The resulting song has seventeen co-writers and involves tracks recorded across various locations.^[6]

On September 25, 2014 it was announced that the album would be available on vinyl for the first time.^[7]

The cover art for the album mimics that of a religious tract from Jehovah's Witnesses featuring an artist's impression of a perfect planet Earth.

Reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	56/100[8]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[9]
Alter the Press!	4/5[10]
Billboard	[11]
Consequence of Sound	[12]
Drowned in Sound	4/10[13]
Hot Press	[14]
IGN	7.5/10[15]
InYourSpeakers	52/100[16]
Pitchfork	3.5/10[17]
Punknews.org	[18]

According to Metacritic, Death to False Metal has received mixed reviews, receiving an average score of 56/100.^[8]

AllMusic gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, saying "It's a wonder why a few of these cuts didn't pop up before this, but as a collection of outtakes, they hold together better than some of the band's proper albums."^[9] Drowned in Sound gave it a 4 out of 10, calling it "lineage of dumbed down music to even more dumb lyrics", citing songs such as "Blowin' My Stack" and "Trampoline".^[13] IGN gave it a 7.5 out of 10, citing "...the album feels a lot more cohesive than similar rarities sets, though a little more diversity would have made for a more interesting listen."^[15]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Rivers Cuomo, except where noted

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Turning Up the Radio"	Cuomo, Alfredo Robert Carballo, Paul Dutton, Patrick Gannon, Joshua Godinez, Daniel James Kelsch, Reshad Malik, Cameron L. Maris, Sam Mitchell, Taylor Morden, Daniel Powell, Lauren Sonder, Nishant Thakur, Justin Vail, Mike Danger, Kingsly Vanata & Ryan Wiesbrock	3:37
2.	"I Don't Want Your Loving"		3:03
3.	"Blowin' My Stack"	Cuomo, Brian Bell, Scott Shriner	3:44
4.	"Losing My Mind"		4:02
5.	"Everyone"		2:49
6.	"I'm a Robot"		2:31
7.	"Trampoline"		2:45
8.	"The Odd Couple"		3:07
9.	"Autopilot"		2:57
10.	"Unbreak My Heart"	Diane Warren	4:11
Total length:			32:52

International bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Yellow Camaro"	Brian Bell	1:54
12.	"Outta Here"		2:34

iTunes Store/Vinyl bonus track

No.	Title	Length
13.	"Mykel and Carli"	3:13

• "Unbreak My Heart" originally performed by Toni Braxton.
• "Yellow Camaro" exclusive Japanese track.
• "Mykel and Carli" unreleased version from the Blue Album's sessions.

Personnel

[19] Weezer Rivers Cuomo – lead vocals, guitar, keyboard Patrick Wilson – drums, percussion Brian Bell – guitar, backing vocals, synth, keyboard Scott Shriner – bass, backing vocals Additional musicians David Campbell – string arrangements, conducting Taylor Morden – guitar, synthesizer, backing vocals Design Andy Mueller – art direction Robert Pitt – cover painting, paintings Daniel Field, Karl Koch, Sean Murphy, Spike Jonze – photography

Production Chad Bamford – engineer Shawn Everett – engineer, Audio mixing Taylor Morden – engineer, producer Rich Mouser – engineer Rick Rubin – engineer Jim Scott – engineer Dave Collins– mastering Marc McClusky – mixing (tracks: 1 to 3)

References

1. "Weezer Set To Release "Hurley" Follow-up Album In November". KROQ FM. 2010-10-12. Archived from the original on 2011-01-11. Retrieved 2018-04-23.
2. "Weezer Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
3. "2010/10/12 Death To False Metal!". Weezer. 2010-10-12. Archived from the original on 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2011-07-31.
4. "Weezer Recording History Page 5". Archived from the original on 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
5. "Weezer Recording History Page 6". Archived from the original on 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2010-12-06. "Mykel and Carli (appeared on many foreign singles, plus the "Hear You Me!" compilation)"
6. Starko, Alane Jordan (September 19, 2017). Creativity in the Classroom: Schools of Curious Delight. Routledge. ISBN 9781315391601.
7. Haskoor, Michael (25 September 2014). "Weezer to Finally Release 'Death to False Metal' On Vinyl". Diffuser.fm.
8. "Death to False Metal Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved 2012-05-04.
9. "Review: Death to False Metal". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
10. Reid, Sean (2009-08-20). "Album Review: Weezer - Death To False Metal". Alter the Press!. Retrieved 2013-07-07.
11. "Weezer, "Death to False Metal"". Billboard. 2010-11-15. Retrieved 2013-07-07.
12. "Album Review: Weezer – Death to False Metal". Consequence of Sound. 2010-10-18. Retrieved 2013-07-07.
13. Wood, Marie (2010-11-11). "Weezer - Death to False Metal / Releases / Releases // Drowned In Sound". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 2013-09-22. Retrieved 2013-07-07.
14. Seoige, Eamonn (2010-02-11). "Death to False Metal". Hot Press. Archived from the original on 2010-12-28.
15. "Weezer: Death To False Metal Review". IGN. 2010-11-04. Retrieved 2013-07-07.
16. Bogen, Joseph (10 November 2010). "InYourSpeakers: Reviews: Weezer: Death to False Metal". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2011.
17. Cohen, Ian. "Album Reviews: Weezer: Pinkerton (Deluxe Edition) / Death to False Metal". Pitchfork. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
18. Pederson, Tori (8 February 2011). "Weezer - Death to False Metal". Punknews.org. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
19. "Death to False Metal - Weezer | Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.

External links

• Death to False Metal at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)
• Death to False Metal at Metacritic
• Death to False Metal at MusicBrainz (list of releases)