Grammy Award-winning American rock band Weezer has been around for more than two decades. Shortly after the band formed in 1992, they headlined their highly successful studio albums. Weezer (Blue Album) and Pinkerton which are ranked among the best albums of the 1990s. dropping hits and albums one after another. The band released 11 albums between 1994 and 2017, with over 35 million albums sold worldwide.
Weezer has remained a 4-piece band since its formation in the early 1990s, although its original lineup has changed over the years. The group currently consists of 2 founding members, Rivers Cuomo and Patrick Wilson, as well as Brian Bell and Scott Shriner. Other founding members who have since left the band are bassist Matt Sharp and guitarist Jason Cropper.
Who are Weezer members?
1. Cuomo Rivers
Rivers Cuomo is one of the founding members and the leader of the Weezer group. He is the lead vocalist, lead guitarist, and main songwriter of the band. He also plays keyboards and drums from time to time.
He was born in June 1970 in New York, but he grew up in Pomfret, Connecticut. Indeed, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree as Cuomo’s father was a musician and drummer in his youth. At the age of eighteen, he moved to Los Angeles where he began his musical career. Cuomo played for different bands before deciding to form the band Weezer alongside three others on February 14, 1992. The band’s name, “Weezer,” was actually his childhood nickname.
Beyond his brilliant work with the band, Rivers Cuomo has also recorded several albums as a solo artist, including Alone: The Rivers Cuomo Home Recordings (2007), Alone II: The Rivers Cuomo Home Recordings (2008) and Alone III: The Pinkerton Years (2011). He also released an EP Cuomo and Friends: Living by Fingerprints in 2009. The multi-talented music star also worked on a Japanese-language album titled Scott & Rivers which he created in collaboration with author- singer-songwriter Scott Murphy.
Cuomo holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Harvard University. He got married on June 18, 2006 to his longtime girlfriend, Kyoko Ito. The couple have 2 children. Their first child was born in 2007, a daughter named Mia and they welcomed their second child in 2011, a son named Leo.
2. Patrick Wilson
Patrick Wilson is also a founding member of Weezer and the band’s primary drummer/percussionist since its inception. He is also a backing vocalist and sometimes plays guitar and keyboard. Wilson also writes songs for the band.
He was born Patrick George Wilson in February 1969 in Buffalo, New York. There, he began taking percussion lessons as a high school student, then teaching other students after gaining mastery of the instrument. Wilson moved to Los Angeles at age 21 after dropping out of college. He played for various groups in Los Angeles before joining the other founding members of Weezer in 1992 and has always been part of the group.
In addition to his work with Weezer, Patrick Wilson is also the lead singer of another rock band, The Special Goodness (TSG), which he formed in 1996. Wilson has released several albums with TSG, including Special Goodness (1998) , At Some Point Birds and Flowers Got Interesting (2001), Earth Air Sea (2003) and Natural (2012). Several members have joined and left the band at various times in the past, but Wilson remains its only regular member.
3.Brian Bell
Although not one of the original founding members, Brian Bell has been part of the group’s every success for as long as we can remember. He joined the band in 1993, a year after forming as a replacement for Jason Cropper. Bell plays rhythm guitar and keyboard. He is also a backup vocalist and occasional vocalist.
Born in 1968 in Iowa City, Iowa, Bell had an interest in music from an early age. He first learned to play the piano as a child, then began taking guitar lessons in high school. After graduating, he chose to move to Los Angeles to start his music career, instead of going to college. Prior to joining Weezer in 1993, Bell was a member of the music group Carnival Art and had released 3 studio albums and an EP with the group.
Beyond his successful career as a member of Weever, Bell also has other spin-off projects under his belt. He led alternative rock band Space Twins from 1993 to 2005. The band released 3 EPs No Show (1994), Osaka Aquabus (1997), Television, Music and Candy (1998) and an LP The End of Imagination (2003) over its 12-year period.
Brian Bell also founded another group, “The Relationship”, in 2006, under which he released two studio albums. The relationship (2010) and Clara Obscura (2017). The music star is also an occasional actor having scored his screen debut in the 2006 biopic Ouvrière. He also contributed to the film’s soundtrack by performing a cover of the song. Heroine what was originally made by The Velvet Underground.
4.Scott Shriner
Weezer’s longest serving bassist is Scott Shriner. He joined the band in 2001 following the sudden departure of his former bassist, Mikey Welsh. Shriner also plays keyboards, serves as backup vocals and occasional vocals. He also contributes to the composition of the group.
He was born Scott Gardner Shriner in July 1965 in the city of Toledo, Ohio. He served in the Navy, and after leaving the force, he began learning to play bass guitar under his high school teacher. He played for several bands in his hometown before finally moving to Los Angeles at the age of 25.
He attended the Musicians Institute in Hollywood, California and afterwards he played with several other music/indie bands. He first joined Weezer on an interim basis, but was soon made a full-time member of the group. Scott Shriner debuted on the band’s 4th studio album. Awkward (2002) and has since contributed to all of the group’s other recordings.
Scott Shriner is married to Jillian Lauren, a successful author and performer. They tied the knot in 2005 and together they have two adopted sons.
Other Weezer Members
The band Weever also has touring member KarlKoch joined the band in 2010. He plays keyboard, rhythm, bass and guitar. The former founding members of the group are Matt Sharp, bassist (1992-1998), Mikey Welsh, also bassist (1998-2001) and Jason Cropper, rhythm guitarist (1992-1993).
Among the group’s former touring members, Bobby Schneck, multi-instrumentalist (2000-2005), Josh Freese, percussionist (2009-2012), as well as Daniel Brummel, who plays rhythm and leads guitar and keyboard (2012-2014 ).
professionnal career
After the group was formed in February 1992, the first members of the group quickly got to work creating their first body of music. Their self-titled debut studio album Weezer (Blue Album) was released on May 10, 1994 and was both a critical and commercial success. The album has since achieved multi-platinum status and its success set the tone for what the band’s career would become in the long run.
The band cemented their status with the release of a second studio album Pinkerton in September 1996. Although the album initially received mixed reviews, it has garnered a cult following and rave reviews ever since. Pinkerton also achieved platinum certification in 2016, two decades after its release.
Starting in 1992, when Weever was founded, In 2017, the band released 11 studio albums, 2 compilation albums, one video album and 6 EPs. This beloved quartet is also working on their 12th studio album titled Weezer (Black Album) which is slated for release in March 2019.
Other facts about the group
Hiatus
Weezer went on hiatus in mid-1997 after the completion of their Pinkerton tour. The band’s bassist at the time, Matt Sharp, left the band as the other members focused on their side projects. Weezer lead singer and songwriter Rivers Cuomo also struggled with depression during this period, which crippled their efforts to create new material. The band then hired a new bassist before reuniting in April 2000, ending their two-year hiatus.
Awards and nominations
The Weezer’s have done a lot of brilliant work in their long musical career has earned the band a lot of accolades over the years. The group has received at least 4 Grammy nominations, including a 2009 win for Best Music Video for their single “Pork and Beans”. The band’s 11th studio album Pacific Daydream (2017) was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 61st Grammy Awards.
The group has also received at least 5 MTV Video Music Awards out of 8 nominations. Weezer has also been nominated for no less than 3 MTV Europe Music Awards.