Weezer

Hurley

Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo has been retreating further and further into a bubble of superficial pop songcraft ever since his band returned from hiatus in 2001, and any hardcore fans still waiting for a reprise of the messy, heart-on-sleeve emotionalism of 1996’s classic Pinkerton won’t find much encouragement in Hurley, Weezer’s eighth album. For the second album in a row, Cuomo has collaborated with a cadre of professional songwriters, and although Hurley rocks a little harder than last year’s Raditude, it’s still pretty coldly calculated, and Cuomo’s facility with a hook is increasingly struggling to keep up with the vapidity of his lyrics and song structure. You may come away from Hurley humming the hooks to “Trainwrecks” or “Smart Girls,” but they won’t mean anything to you.