2002.11.DD - Spin - Weez Your Illusions

WEEZ YOUR ILLUSIONS

Weezer made their bones touring this past summer with shredding guitar solos and garish pyro. But the erstwhile alt-rockers have officially become "made" metal gods, courtesy of capo Axl Rose. The Weez were handpicked by the ever-unpredictable Guns N' Roses leader to open his band's sold-out show at London Arena in August, Apparently Rose extended the invitation after studying Weezer's set at Japan's Summer Sonic 2002 Festival, where both bands performed.

"He was on the stage watching us while we were playing," guitarist Brian Bell says. "I was actually a bit nervous about that. After the show, Axl and Rivers (Cuomo) talked, and that's how it happened." No need to reread that last sentence—it says what you think it says. It makes our heads hurt, too, but Weezer were genuinely psyched by the one-off matchup. "It takes me back to the days when I lived behind Hollywood Boulevard in 1988, hearing Appetite blaring out of Z28s," Bell says. "The songs are as good today as they were yesterday."