If you have followed Weezer’s career from Weezer (The Blue Album) to Make Believe, it is quite noticeable that the band’s sound and style are purposely inconsistent. This does not necessarily mean its quality or message has deteriorated, but it’s always a surprise to find out what tangent the band is riding on for the moment.

On the band’s latest album, Weezer (The Red Album), Weezer embarks on a 10-track journey that hopes to right the wrongs its previous album, Make Believe, stumbled upon.

Pop-friendly tracks like “Troublemaker” and “Pork and Beans” revel in the guitar strong and simple lyric combination that Weezer has created in the past (“Buddy Holly” and “Hash Pipe,” for example).

On “Pork and Beans,” lead vocalist Rivers Cuomo takes a stab at current music trend setters when he ironically states, “Timbaland knows the way to reach the top of the charts / Maybe if I work with him I can perfect the art.”

Unlikely vocals from guitarist Brian Bell on “Thought I Knew” and bassist Scott Shriner on “Cold Dark World” display a very potent reason why Cuomo is the lead singer. On the latter, Shriner’s lyrical content becomes so odd and careless to the point that he sounds utterly corny.

Drummer Patrick Wilson rounds out the circus event, as his singing on “Automatic” is fit for an open mic night.

Weezer attempts to create a musical picture with “Dreamin’,” but it misses the mark. Cuomo’s catchy chorus carries the record through five minutes of head-scratching boredom. At best, it’s an average song with quirky breaks in between.

The album-ending “The Angel and the One” is a powerful track that comes just a little too late. Nevertheless, this doesn’t take away from its reflective perspective. As the song builds to epic proportions, Cuomo belts out, “I’m flying up so high, my purple majesty displaying / I’ve reached a higher place that no one else can make a claim in / I’ll take you there my friend / I’m reaching out my hand, so take it.”

Weezer (The Red Album) is by far the worst in their series of color-coded titles. The scarcity in quality material from these past two albums is troublesome, and it seems that Weezer’s only way to prevent a complete downhill spiral is to come back stronger than ever on its next project. For the band’s sake, let’s hope its relevance is still intact when that time comes.