For anyone who knows Weezer from radio-friendly hits like “Beverly Hills” or “Island in the Sun,” you’ll love their latest album, “Weezer (The White Album).” For anyone who loves Weezer from their eponymous debut album, and not much since, you’ll love this album. This isn’t to say this album is perfection, but considering where the it’s goals seemed to be set, it may not be far from it.

Weezer started out as a beloved alternative rock act in the nineties, it gave a voice to the introspective, somewhat geeky, crowd. Their garage-rock sound mixed with ironic lyrics tapped into the hole left by fans of punk-rock who felt uninterested by grunge, and their beloved first album was met with critical acclaim as well as commercial success.

The lead singer and principal songwriter of the group, Rivers Cuomo, followed up their first hit album with a deeply personal and deeply misunderstood album called “Pinkerton.” “Pinkerton” was met with mainly negative reviews, and a poor sales performance.

In retrospect, Rivers seemed to take this reaction to heart, as a message that he needed to change Weezer’s attitude immediately. Little did he know that the now 20 year old album has become a cult classic, and is considered to be the band’s best work.

Thus, Weezer began to polarize their fan base, going for a more pop-friendly sound that seemed like a far-cry from their original angst-driven rock songs. But now Weezer has put out this album, and they seemed to have found the perfect solution, an appeasement to fans that won’t alienate the general audience.

“The White Album’s” first lead-up single was a track called “Thank God for Girls”, a track that begins with River’s giving an almost staccato-like delivery as he’s accompanied by a keyboard. The preliminary sparseness of the song quickly turns into a much higher production song. The catchy chorus seems reminiscent of one of their first successes “Buddy Holly”, a similar satirical track. The mix of pop ballad with irony is what made Weezer a success in the first place, and the return to form was much welcomed when they released this single.

“Thank God for Girls” sets the tone for most of the album. “California Kids”, a song that similarly tows the line between the band’s two distinct eras, opens up the album.

In fact Cuomo seems to be attempting to tread the same ground that “Pinkerton” did. The song “King of the World” is a strikingly specific tune about how him wanting to be able to never let his wife feel sadness, unless she wants to. The song contains numerous personal details of their marriage, while also being an accessible love song about wanting to see the person you love happy.

The production of the album has the same dichotomy of universal but specific. When you listen to how the songs flow from one to the next you wonder how each song will stand on its own. The seamlessness of the album made me have to check that it was a different song a couple of times.

Overall, “The White Album” isn’t revolutionary or genre defining. It serves as a return to form for Weezer, giving die-hard fans a follow-up to the clever songwriting and punky sound, while keeping a commercially viable catchiness that doesn’t sacrifice