Watch Weezer Play Metal-Inspired New Single ‘The End of the Game’ on ‘Kimmel’

Weezer may not be a metal band, but the group took its cues from ’80s hair metal in a late night performance of their new song “The End of the Game.” Appearing on Jimmy Kimmel’s stage the same day as releasing the single, the band played the rollicking track with some brightly colored heavy metal imagery.

The song itself, which will appear on Weezer’s forthcoming new album Van Weezer, which isn’t expected until next May, also has some hard-driving musical influences. Frontman Rivers Cuomo told Beats 1 host Zane Lowe that the new songs are all about the electric guitar. “It’s like The Blue Album but with more riffs,” Cuomo said. “Metal, hard rock riffs. But it’s still pretty catchy pop rock.”

He added that the album includes at least a hundred guitars. “This is all from playing shows, and we just noticed over the last few years there’d be these moments during the show where I’d accidentally bust out a few harmonics or a whammy bar dive or a little tapping just because I can’t control myself,” the singer said. “And we noticed like unlike in decades past, now the audience would go ballistic whenever they’d hear even a hint of that style. So I started doing it more and more. And soon I’m just like shredding through the whole show and we’re like, ‘Jeez, we should make an album like this.’”

Along with the new single, Weezer also announced the band will be joining Green Day and Fall Out Boy on next year’s Hella Mega stadium tour, which will kick off June 13th, 2020 in Paris, France. The tour hits North American the following month with a show on July 17th at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park. The trek wraps up August 29th at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. All three bands played a preview show at Los Angeles venue The Whiskey A Go Go last night.

via:: Rolling Stone