Game knows game. Weezer and Oasis are solid proof. Oasis, the record-smashing Britpop heavyweights who set the record with the U.K.’s fastest-selling album (with 1997’s Be Here Now) and saw all seven of their studio albums reach the summit on the national chart, took time out to praise Weezer and its frontman Rivers Cuomo. Liam Gallagher in 2005 called Cuomo his “favorite rock star,” rare kudos for the famously surly singer.
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The love goes in both directions. “We think very highly of them as well,” Weezer’s Brian Bell tells Rolling Stone Australia. The Weezer rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, backing vocalist, and occasional lead vocalist, recounted a moment at a rehearsal space in London during the ’90s. The American indie band was taking time out in a common area when Liam strutted past and shouted, “Buddy Holly. Top tune, mate!”
“That kind of respect and accolade from someone that you revere,” Bell enthuses, “is the best thing you could possibly hear from somebody. Those kind of things matter by somebody you revere. So whatever he thinks of us, we think highly of them as well. If they think lowly of us, we still think highly of them.”
Bell has bought tickets for Oasis’ Live ’25 Tour date at Rose Bowl Stadium next month, having briefly entertained the idea of seeing the Brits play in Scotland to experience the “cultural phenomenon” in full.
Oasis isn’t the only beloved ’90s band hitting the road this year. Weezer have live dates across the Americas through November, then the indie rockers head down under for a headline stint on the Good Things festival tour, which visits Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane in early December.
“We’re doing great. We’re kind of having a renaissance in a way. It’s an exciting time for us creatively and in the band,” Bell explains over a Zoom call. “We’ve never got along so well, and everybody’s very happy. So it’s a good time.”
That excitement might explain the band’s impressively productive spell during the pandemic, during which Weezer released six albums, including the Van Weezer project and the four album saga, Seasons.
And an unexpected lift came last year, when Weezer’s self-titled collection (also known as the Blue Album) marched into Billboard 200 chart, at No. 87, following its 30th-anniversary deluxe reissue. Even a mysterious Weezer film is said to be in development. Cuomo got tongues wagging at Coachella earlier in the year, when he told the audience, “we’ve been busy making the Weezer movie back in L.A. the last couple weeks.”
Bell admits “it’s possible” that new music could be premiered on international stages this year. “Anything’s likely,” he says. “We’ll play hits and things that people want to hear, but we also want to really enjoy the experience as well.” There’s “one song” he says the band has been brewing, which could make a setlist for a show near you. “It’s a great time to be alive for us.”