(thing) by syntax_ Mon Mar 26 2001 at 1:18:38

aka Corporate Sell-Out Tour 2001

This was Weezer’s first major headlining tour in years, and marked Weezer’s comeback as being in full swing. Ozma and The Get Up Kids were the opening acts. The tour webpage was at outloud.yahoo.com, but was not as useful for real info as good ol Karl’s Corner.

March 18, 2001 San Diego
The show had the feeling of part corporate conglomeration part good ol fashion low key Weezer concert. The last time I had seen Weezer was at a Canes Bar & Grill, so I knew anything would seem huge in comparison. I had hoped to scalp 4 extra tickets I had, but outside the concert was a huge buyer’s market, and I ended up just throwing them on the ground for the sake of charity.

Inside was the usual chaos of the merch stand, but Yahoo had also thrown in several booths to try to show off just how damn cool they are. There was a digital photo booth, a burn your own cd booth, a guitar booth, a Pepsi booth and another digital photo booth that had cardboard standups of the band. The guitar booth featured a few Gibsons hooked up to small effects amps and headphones. Fucking around on the guitars was a good way to pass the time before the music started.

The venue, Rimac was set up pretty freely. There were stadium seats around the floor for those who wanted to sit, and a large floor for those who felt like trying to make it to the rail. Of the many concerts I’ve been to (including “harder” bands such as Godsmack and Deftones), this crowd was by far the most aggressive. I guess too many people know how to get to the front at a concert. There were almost constant crowd surges, no room and soaring temperatures. I had been reading about crowd problems at previous dates on the tour, such as the force of the crowd moving the barricades against the stage, forcing security to jump up onto the stage to avoid being crushed. This was on my mind, as well as Roskilde (not that I thought that was going to happen, but as any crowd veteran can tell you, it can get scary). The worst was between Ozma and The Get Up Kids. Crowd surfing is always an option for instant escape if it gets too much, and I considered getting the hell out during The Get Up Kids. The torture was worth it however, because I made it to the rail halfway through Weezer’s set (during which the crowd calmed down).

As for the music, it was all good. Even after downloading a bunch of Ozma in preparation, I still didn’t recognize any of their songs except “Natalie Portman” and "Battlescars" (which was awesome). I wanted them to play “Apple Trees” but it didn’t happen. The highlight of their set was a heavy metal version of the Tetris Theme (“Korobeiniki,” available on Napster), after which they announced “that was a cover.” Heh.

The Get Up Kids opened with “Four Minute Mile,” which was great. They played a good set, but as I mentioned before this is when the crowd was the worst. They climaxed their set with a roadie pouring lighter fluid all over the keyboards and drum set and lighting them on fire. Thus began the great instrument smashing session, with bits of keyboard, guitar and who knows what flying into the crowd. During the chaos, 2 guys from Ozma ran across the stage with a red sickle and hammer USSR flag, which I didn’t like, but hey, got to love the fun that comes with the last stop on a tour.

After a long intermission, it was time for the big W. They followed just about the exact same setlist as they had the rest of the tour. I would have given anything to hear them play “Jamie,” but knew it was a long shot. As far as I know they have never played that b-side live, but I was screamin’ for it anyway.

The Setlist, as it actually appeared (I was next to a guy who caught one at the end of the show):

CLAM DIEGO

New Clam (A new song which started off very quietly)
My Name is Clam
El Clam
You gave your clam to me softly (“You Gave Your Love To Me Softly,” a b-side from the “El Scorcho” single)
The Good Clam
=====================================clam change (guitar change)
(slow) Clam Song (The Christmas Song)
Don’t Let Clam
Island in the Clam
Hash Clam (add G bridge) (first single from the new album)
=====================================clam change
CLAM: clam announcement! (This is on every setlist, but I don’t remember what it was at the concert)
In the Clam
Tired of Clams
Say it aint a clam
Buddy Clam
Undone, the clam song
Why Clam?
-------------------------------------
(As with every Weezer concert, there was an encore)
Only in Clams
Clam Wax America

The italics are mine. As with the entire tour, there seemed to be a word of the day, in this case, apparently it was clam. During the guitar changes Rivers switched between sticker-covered Stratocasters.

Weezer’s stage setup was made to look like a high school gym on prom night. A fake hardwood floor with the =W= at center court, 2 basketball hoops which doubled as projection screens, ribbons and great lighting. About halfway through the set a large curtain was released at the rear of the stage revealing a giant =W= made up of red white and blue light bulbs.

After the concert I succumbed and bought a black =W= beanie (in lieu of yet another black concert t-shirt), and pondered the “Corporate Sell-Out 2001 Tour” tour date t-shirts.

A great concert. “Hash Pipe” kicks ass.

I like it!

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