SZNZ: Winter is the tenth
EP by American rock band
Weezer, and the last of four EPs in their SZNZ (pronounced "seasons") project. It was released digitally on December 21, 2022, coinciding with the
December solstice. It spawned a single, "I Want a Dog", released on December 9, 2022.
Background
Rivers Cuomo described the project's overall emotion as sadness. Cuomo said that the songwriting would be stylistically similar to
Elliott Smith featuring "lots of loss and despair".[3][4]
Weezer, under their Goat Punishment pseudonym, performed SZNZ: Winter in its entirety at The Troubadour in West Hollywood, California on September 19, 2022.[5]
Release
The lead single, "I Want a Dog", was released on December 9, 2022,[6] with a live performance of the song on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on December 16, 2022.[7]
SZNZ: Winter officially released on December 21, 2022, alongside a video for "Dark Enough to See the Stars".[8]
Anne Erikson at
Blabbermouth.net opined that the album "proves" that Weezer "can still churn out music that's as strong as their mid-1990s debut."[2] However, Michelle Dalarossa from Under the Radar was more critical of the album, stating "Unfortunately, the combination of Christmas kitsch and Weezer kitsch makes for a grating mishmash of tackiness, angst, and blown-out fuzz that ultimately falls flat." Nonetheless, Dalarossa notes instances of "knack for ear worm vocal melodies and exhilarating power-pop guitar riffs glimmer."[12]
^Robinson, Ellie (December 21, 2022).
"Weezer drop fourth and final 'SZNZ' EP, 'Winter'". NME. Retrieved February 8, 2023. ...the record's bulk comprising the angular power-pop sound that Weezer are synonymous with.
^
abcErikson, Anne.
"WEEZER SZNZ: Winter". Blabbermouth. Retrieved December 21, 2022. …writing songs with an adolescent outlook and guitar-driven, pop-rock approach.