Weezer's co-headlining tour with Pixies comes to a triumphant close in Phoenix

Ed Masley | The Republic | azcentral.com

Weezer and Pixies took two very different approaches to bringing the final night of their summer tour to a raucous conclusion at Ak-Chin Pavilion in Phoenix.

Black Francis of Pixies was content to let the music do the talking, throwing himself into the process with the throat-shredding intensity required while leading his bandmates through 21 songs without saying a word.

Rivers Cuomo of Weezer donned a captain's hat and jacket to ride a scooter to the middle of the venue, where he played a two-song unplugged set that started strong with "Island in the Sun" and ended with a rousing singalong on the A-ha MTV hit, "Take on Me."

It was a co-headlining tour, and there are those who would argue that Pixies were the rightful headliner, citing alternative-music scripture ("And Pixies begat Nirvana, who in turn begat Weezer").

In practice? It's hard to imagine Pixies following the circus Weezer brought to town. And that's no slag on either band.

Weezer's hit-filled performance was playful, engaging and goofy, a crowd-pleasing triumph that made the most of Rivers Cuomo's quirky cult of personality.

Cuomo never stopped working the crowd, from the time he hit the stage in a cardigan and tie on a set designed to conjure memories of their video for "Buddy Holly," a "Happy Days" tribute set in Arnold's Drive-In.

It even began with a piped-in announcement from Tom Bosley saying "'Happy Days' is filmed before a live audience." And when the song was over? A cannon shot confetti streamers out into the crowd.

Pixies' Planet of Sound

Pixies had no fancy sets or costume changes, although there did appear to be a color scheme at work. Guitarist Joey Santiago dressed in white with bassist Paz Lenchantin in red and Black Francis in black.

But they were strictly business – no shenanigans save for Santiago using his Panama hat as a bottleneck slide in the midst of a jaw-dropping solo on "Vamos."

They weren't phoning it in, though, rocking with conviction through a feedback-laden hit parade that started strong with "Gouge Away" before making its way through such classics as "Monkey Gone to Heaven," "Gigantic," "Caribou," "Here Comes Your Man," "Where is My Mind?" and "Debaser."

They even dusted off their take on Neil Young's "Winterlong," their contribution to "The Bridge: A Tribute to Neil Young."

You could hear the effect of the tour on Black Francis' voice in the raspy croak of "Wave of Mutilation," but that didn't stop him from screaming his head off on "Crackity Jones" and "U-Mass" or hitting the high notes on a haunted "Caribou."

Santiago was brilliant throughout, as expected, and drummer David Lovering kept the momentum right where it was meant to be as they powered through 21 songs with no time out for pleasantries.

As the only Pixie who wasn't around when they threw down the blueprint Nirvana would take to the masses in the early '90s, Lenchantin is in the unenviable position of doing what she can to fill Kim Deal's iconic shoes.

Deal left the fold in 2013 after joining the Pixies reunion in 2004 and you can definitely feel her absence. But Lenchantin does an admirable job in a role that must feel like a thankless task at times.

The end result was everything a Pixies fan could've gone in expecting, an unhinged explosion of artful abandon that's somehow managed to retain its edge – and relevance – three decades down the road from "Surfer Rosa."

Weezer wildly entertaining

Weezer's set was total entertainment from the time they hit the stage with "Buddy Holly," playing six career-defining singles in a row, including a truly transcendent performance of "Undone – The Sweater Song," before swapping out the Arnold's Drive-In set for a garage clearly based on the lyrics to "In the Garage."

There was even a poster of "my favorite rock group, Kiss" with a Dungeons & Dragons poster to complement the Dungeon Master's Guide in Cuomo's lyrics.

With that, the stage was effectively set for the opening track from the self-titled "Blue Album," "My Name is Jonas," which was followed by a Pixies-referencing "El Scorcho" and, finally, "In the Garage."

From there, they dusted off the first of several covers, the Turtles hit "Happy Together," which segued into Green Day's "Longview" before seamlessly transitioning back to the chorus of "Happy Together" to brilliant effect.

Blessing the rains down in Africa

After taking a scooter ride into the crowd, Cuomo made his way back to the stage in time to bring the concert to a close with "(If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To" and two more recent singles, last year's "Feels Like Summer," which featured some Kiss-worthy pyro, and Toto's "Africa."

That oddly faithful cover put them back at No. 1 on the Billboard alternative-songs chart for the first time in a decade after a fan-initiated social-media campaign convinced them to record it, and Cuomo knew enough to close the set with it.

"Only one place left we can go," he shouted, asking the crowd if they knew which continent he was talking about as a setup to say "No, not Europe."

It was such a Cuomo moment in a night of Cuomo moments.

Then they came back for a two-song encore.

"Let's do another 'Blue Album' jam," Cuomo said before leading his bandmates in "Surf Wax America" before signing off with a medley of "Say It Ain't So" and Black Sabbath's "Paranoid."

Why "Paranoid"? Because they're Weezer.

Cuomu's guitar work was stellar throughout – in part because he's got one of the most distinctive tones in modern rock and in part because he often brings the same melodic sensibilities to playing solos as he brings to writing songs while still allowing room for flashier indulgences.

Of course, there's more to Weezer than the Rivers Cuomo Show.

Brian Bell is no slouch on guitar, more than earning a turn in the spotlight with that talk-box solo on "Beverly Hills." And drummer Patrick Wilson is a proper force of nature, with bassist Scott Shriner rounding out a formidable rhythm section.

But the thing that ultimately sets a Weezer show apart from most is the joy they invest in performing those songs. It's as contagious as the hooks themselves.

Weezer setlist

Buddy Holly

Beverly Hills

Pork and Beans

Undone - The Sweater Song

Hash Pipe

Perfect Situation

My Name Is Jonas

El Scorcho

In the Garage

The Good Life

Happy Together (The Turtles, with a snippet of Green Day's "Longview")

Island in the Sun

Take On Me (A‐ha cover)

Burndt Jamb

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

Feels Like Summer

Africa (Toto cover)

Encore:

Surf Wax America

Say It Ain't So (with a snippet of "Paranoid" by Black Sabbath)

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