Voyage to the Blue Planet

Last updated

Voyage to the Blue Planet
Tour by Weezer
Voyage to the Blue Planet poster.jpg
Promotional poster for the tour
LocationCanada
United States
Associated album Weezer (Blue Album)
Start dateSeptember 4, 2024
End dateOctober 12, 2024
Legs1
No. of shows24
Supporting acts The Flaming Lips
Dinosaur Jr.
Producer Live Nation
Website Blue Voyage 2024
Weezer concert chronology

Voyage to the Blue Planet was a concert tour by American rock band Weezer that took place in 2024. The tour was held in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the band's self-titled debut studio album (commonly known as the Blue Album). The tour, which saw The Flaming Lips and Dinosaur Jr. serve as opening acts, took place in North America and consisted of 24 shows, with 22 in the United States and two in Canada. It was produced by Live Nation and was sponsored by Citigroup.

Contents

An anniversary tour was first teased by the band in December 2023 and officially announced in March 2024. While the band initially planned for 22 shows, two additional shows were added. The show featured an outer space aesthetic and a plot that featured the band traveling to the dying Blue Planet, which they saved by playing the entire discography of the Blue Album. Songs from other albums, including Pinkerton , the Green Album , and the Red Album , were also played during the tour. The tour received generally positive reviews from critics who praised the show's camp aesthetic and performance from the band.

Background and development

Weezer lead vocalist Rivers Cuomo in 2022 Rivers Cuomo.jpg
Weezer lead vocalist Rivers Cuomo in 2022

In December 2023, Steve Weintraub of Collider interviewed Weezer and asked the members of the band about plans to commemorate the 30th anniversary of their debut album Weezer (commonly known as the Blue Album), which was first released in May 1994. [1] Rivers Cuomo, the band's lead vocalist, said that, while there had not been a big commemoration for the album's 20th anniversary, the band intended to celebrate the 30th anniversary with "a really amazing deluxe package with a bunch of additional material" and "some kind of epic tour". [1] Cuomo added that their touring schedule was free after June 2024 indicating that an anniversary tour may happen in the following months. [1]

In February 2024, Cuomo made a post on his Facebook account with a link to "BlueVoyage2024.com" along with the caption "Are you prepared for the voyage?" [2] The website asked visitors to sign up for an email mailing list and said, "The voyage takes flight on March 11, 2024". [2] Several news outlets stated that the "Blue Voyage" could be a reference to an anniversary tour for the Blue Album. [2] [3]

On March 11, [4] Live Nation Entertainment announced that presale tickets for the tour, now known as the "Voyage to the Blue Planet", would be available to members of the band's mailing list starting on March 13. [5] The tour was scheduled to begin in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on September 4 and run for 22 shows, concluding in Inglewood, California, on October 11. [5] The tour would be produced by Live Nation and sponsored by Citigroup, with presale tickets also available to Citigroup card holders. [5] General admission tickets would open on March 15 and would be available through Live Nation's sister company Ticketmaster. [6] The rock bands Dinosaur Jr. and The Flaming Lips would serve as opening acts for the tour. [6] [4]

Separate from the tour, Weezer also planned to perform an anniversary concert at the Lodge Room in Los Angeles with Dogstar serving as their supporting act. [5] In June 2024, Weezer added another show in Palm Desert, California, on October 12, which would serve as the tour's final show. [7] Additionally, a second show was scheduled for September 15 in Washington, D.C. [8] [9] Following the tour, the band played the setlist during the Bumbershoot music festival in Seattle on August 30, 2025. [10] [11]

Concert synopsis

The show began with a breaking news alert announcing a voyage into outer space that segued into a countdown. [12] At the end of the countdown, the band appeared on stage, clad in astronaut gear, while a spacecraft lifted up, leaving behind white clouds. [12] Cuomo told the audience that they were embarking on a "very dangerous mission", [13] traveling 30 light years away to save the Blue Planet. [12] Over the course of the show, the band interacts with an alien known as Bokkus, who serves as the main antagonist for the band. [14]

Throughout the first part of the show, the band played songs from several different albums, including the Green Album ("Hash Pipe") and Red Album ("Pork and Beans"). [12] During several of the songs, visual motifs appeared on a large screen behind the band, such as red planets during the Red Album songs and palm trees during their performance of "Beverly Hills". [12] During "Perfect Situation", the screen on stage showed the band's spacecraft engaged in a fight with Bokkus, who damages the ship. [15] Following this, the band is interrupted by a CGI character on the screen who informed them that they were stranded in the "Pinkerton Asteroid Belt", [12] prompting the band to play several songs from their album Pinkerton , such as "Why Bother?". [15]

About halfway through the show, the band landed on the Blue Planet, [12] which was depicted as a dull and dying planet. [16] Cuomo planted a flag bearing the band's logo and announced, "One small step for Weezer, one giant leap for Weezer-kind". [15] Cuomo also stated that the way to save the planet was to sing the songs from the Blue Album , [16] which the band did, beginning with "My Name Is Jonas". [12] During this part of the concert, Bokkus battled with Cuomo and aliens named Weezoids—resembling Cuomo—appeared on the screen. [15] Additionally, Cuomo told the audience that both he and the audience themselves were aliens. [12] This announcement was followed by a playing of "Undone – The Sweater Song". [12] Weezer ended the concert with a playing of "Only in Dreams". [12] During the song's crescendo, confetti cannons erupted, after which the band thanked the audience, their opening bands, and their crew before departing the stage. [12] Overall, the show lasted about an hour and a half. [17] [15]

Critical reception

The tour received mostly positive reviews from critics. [18] [19] Evan Minsker of Rolling Stone , in a review of the premier show in Saint Paul, said that the band has " reached new heights as an arena band". [20] He particularly praised the camp approach employed by the band, saying that the show felt like a combination of an Iron Maiden concert and Disneyland's Star Tours attraction. [20] Reviewing the Boston show, Chris Stevens of Boston.com said he agreed with The Flaming Lips' lead vocalist Wayne Coyne in calling the show "effing mind blowing", further stating that the show was "all camp, all fun". [12] Reviewing the same performance, Aiden J. Bowers of The Harvard Crimson praised the band's performance, saying they were "at their best", and said that the last moments of the show "brought out some of Weezer's best musical work". [15] In a positive review of the Nashville show, Audrey Gibbs of The Tennessean said that Cuomo gave a "minimalistic but powerful performance". [17] Following the tour's conclusion, Weezer said that it had been their "best tour ever". [21]

Ethan Shanfeld of Variety gave an overall positive review of the tour, but criticized certain aspects. [16] This included the aesthetics, saying that at one point the show resembled a performance by The Wiggles, and song selection, criticizing the inclusion of a song from Pacific Daydream but none from the White Album . [16] James Sullivan of The Boston Globe gave a mixed review, saying, "For a famously eggheaded band that has always looked askance at the self-seriousness of rock ‘n’ roll cliches, the over-the-top space-age staging was an amusing joke that maybe extended itself a bit far." [13] Additionally, he said that by the time the band began its performance of songs from the Blue Album, "the kitschy video-game backdrop had worn a little thin". [13]

Broadcasts and recordings

A concert film was recorded of Weezer's performance on September 10 at the TD Garden in Boston. [22] It was livestreamed on Moment.co on October 13 and 14. [23] Additionally, The Flaming Lips recorded their September 4 performance at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. [20]

Set list

The following set list was obtained from the concert held on September 10, 2024, at the TD Garden in Boston. [12]

  1. "Anonymous"
  2. "Return to Ithaka"
  3. "Dope Nose"
  4. "Hash Pipe"
  5. "Pork and Beans"
  6. "Beverly Hills"
  7. "Burndt Jamb"
  8. "Island in the Sun"
  9. "Any Friend of Diane's"
  10. "Perfect Situation"
  11. "Run, Raven, Run"
  12. "Getchoo"
  13. "Why Bother?"
  14. "Pink Triangle"
  15. "You Gave Your Love to Me Softly"
  16. "Across the Sea"
  17. "My Name Is Jonas"
  18. "No One Else"
  19. "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here"
  20. "Buddy Holly"
  21. "Undone – The Sweater Song"
  22. "Surf Wax America"
  23. "Say It Ain't So"
  24. "In the Garage"
  25. "Holiday"
  26. "Only in Dreams"

Shows

List of concerts, showing date, city, country, and venue [5] [8] [24]
DateCityCountryVenue
September 4, 2024 Saint Paul, Minnesota United States Xcel Energy Center
September 6, 2024 Rosemont, Illinois Allstate Arena
September 7, 2024 Columbus, Ohio Nationwide Arena
September 8, 2024 Toronto, Ontario Canada Scotiabank Arena
September 10, 2024 Boston, Massachusetts United States TD Garden
September 11, 2024 New York City, New York Madison Square Garden
September 13, 2024 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Wells Fargo Center
September 14, 2024 Washington, D.C. The Anthem
September 15, 2024
September 17, 2024 Nashville, Tennessee Bridgestone Arena
September 18, 2024 Greenville, South Carolina Bon Secours Wellness Arena
September 20, 2024 Orlando, Florida Kia Center
September 21, 2024 Hollywood, Florida Hard Rock Live
September 27, 2024 Austin, Texas Moody Center
September 28, 2024 Houston, Texas Toyota Center
September 29, 2024 Dallas, Texas American Airlines Center
October 1, 2024 Loveland, Colorado Blue Arena
October 4, 2024 Seattle, Washington Climate Pledge Arena
October 5, 2024 Vancouver, British Columbia Canada Rogers Arena
October 6, 2024 Portland, Oregon United States Moda Center
October 8, 2024 Sacramento, California Golden 1 Center
October 9, 2024 San Francisco, California Chase Center
October 11, 2024 Inglewood, California Intuit Dome
October 12, 2024 Palm Desert, California Acrisure Arena

References

  1. 1 2 3 DeVore, Britta (December 14, 2023). "Weezer Teases New 'Blue Album' Deluxe Edition and Tour for 30th Anniversary". Collider . Valnet. Archived from the original on March 2, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 Johnson, Josh (February 28, 2024). "What's Weezer's "Blue Voyage"?". WSUE . Archived from the original on March 7, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  3. "Weezer are teasing the 'Blue Voyage': "Are you prepared?"". Kerrang! . February 28, 2024. ISSN   0262-6624. OCLC   32328241. Archived from the original on February 19, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  4. 1 2 DeVille, Chris (March 11, 2024). "Weezer Announce Blue Album 30th Anniversary Tour With The Flaming Lips & Dinosaur Jr". Stereogum . Archived from the original on January 12, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Weezer Announces 'Voyage to the Blue Planet' 30th Anniversary of the Blue Album Tour in Celebration of Their Legendary Self-Titled Debut". Live Nation Entertainment . March 11, 2024. Archived from the original on February 18, 2025. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
  6. 1 2 Pointer, Flisadam (March 12, 2024). "How To Buy Tickets for Weezer's 'Voyage to the Blue Planet' Tour". Uproxx . Archived from the original on March 27, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  7. Johnson, Josh (June 24, 2024). "Weezer adds new date to 30th anniversary 'Blue Album' tour". WSUE . Archived from the original on July 2, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  8. 1 2 Thomas, Briana (August 29, 2024). "61 Things to Do in DC This September: Festivals, Concerts, Art". Washingtonian . ISSN   0043-0897. OCLC   37264488. Archived from the original on April 19, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  9. Thomas, Briana (September 9, 2024). "38 Things to Do in the DC Area This Week and Weekend". Washingtonian . ISSN   0043-0897. OCLC   37264488. Archived from the original on April 21, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  10. Oxley, Dyer (May 7, 2025). "Weezer to bring intergalactic concert to Seattle for Bumbershoot 2025". KUOW-FM . Archived from the original on May 9, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  11. Kurp, Josh (May 7, 2025). "Bumbershoot 2025 Lineup Includes Janelle Monáe, Weezer, Bright Eyes". Uproxx . Archived from the original on May 16, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Stevens, Chris (September 11, 2024). "Review & setlist: It was 'one small step for Weezer and one giant leap for Weezer-kind' at the Garden". Boston.com . Archived from the original on January 5, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  13. 1 2 3 Sullivan, James (September 11, 2024). "Weezer takes fans on a space-age voyage with rockin' TD Garden show" . The Boston Globe . ISSN   0743-1791. OCLC   66652431. Archived from the original on September 23, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  14. Britt, Ryan (September 15, 2024). "Weezer's New Tour Brings Back a Bizarre Sci-Fi Villain". Inverse . Bustle Digital Group. Archived from the original on February 18, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bowers, Aiden J. (September 17, 2024). "Weezer Concert Review: A Faithful, Outlandish Homage to a Cosmic Musical Career". The Harvard Crimson . ISSN   1932-4219. OCLC   6324327. Archived from the original on October 6, 2024. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
  16. 1 2 3 4 Shanfeld, Ethan (September 13, 2024). "Weezer Brings 'Blue Album,' Aliens and Alt-Rock Bliss to Madison Square Garden". Variety . Penske Media Corporation. ISSN   0042-2738. OCLC   60626328. Archived from the original on January 26, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  17. 1 2 Gibbs, Audrey (September 18, 2024). "Blast off, Nashville: Top moments from Weezer's out-of-this-world 'Voyage to the Blue Planet' show". The Tennessean . Gannett. OCLC   1329007170 . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  18. Sophia, Kat (October 16, 2024). "Review | Weezer's Voyage to the Blue Planet". Santa Barbara Independent . Archived from the original on February 21, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  19. Lawler, Colette; Joanen, Linnea (September 12, 2024). "Keepin' it weezy: "Voyage to the Blue Planet" tour review". The Mac Weekly . OCLC   5160147. Archived from the original on June 12, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  20. 1 2 3 Minsker, Evan (September 5, 2024). "Weezer's Blue Album Tour Turns Their Hits Into Glorious Sci-Fi Camp" . Rolling Stone . Penske Media Corporation. ISSN   0035-791X. OCLC   969027590. Archived from the original on May 3, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  21. "Weezer reflects on Voyage to the Blue Planet tour: "Our best tour ever!". KUPD . October 14, 2024. Archived from the original on July 2, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  22. Carter, Emily (September 27, 2024). ""Grab your popcorn": Weezer announce Voyage to the Blue Planet Tour concert film". Kerrang! . Photography by Joe Lemke. ISSN   0262-6624. OCLC   32328241. Archived from the original on May 28, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  23. Kaufman, Gil (September 27, 2024). "Weezer Releasing Live Movie: 'Weezer's Voyage to the Blue Planet: The Concert Film'". Billboard . Penske Media Corporation. ISSN   0006-2510. OCLC   732913734. Archived from the original on September 29, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  24. Albani-Burgio, Paul (June 24, 2024). "Weezer announces Palm Springs-area show with Flaming Lips, Dinosaur Jr". The Desert Sun . Gannett. OCLC   26432381. Archived from the original on June 24, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.

Further reading