Back to the Shack

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"Back to the Shack"
Back to the Shack cover
Single by Weezer
Album Everything Will Be Alright in the End
Released July 22, 2014
Recorded 2014, The Village, Los Angeles, CA
Length 3:06
Label Republic Records
Writer(s) Rivers Cuomo & Jacob Kasher Hindlin
Producer(s) Ric Ocasek
Status Officially released
Live debut February 14, 2014
Stream Play on spotify.png Spotify
Play on Apple Music.png Apple Music
Weezer singles chronology
"Hang On"
(2010)
"Back to the Shack"
(2014)
"Da Vinci"
(2014)
Everything Will Be Alright in the End track listing
"Ain't Got Nobody"
(1)
"Back to the Shack"
(2)
"Eulogy for a Rock Band"
(3)

"Back to the Shack" is the lead single and second track from Weezer's ninth studio album Everything Will Be Alright in the End.

Appearances

Overview

"Back to the Shack" is the comeback single for the band after a few years of radio silence post-Hurley. The song's lyrics are self-referential, pertaining to returning to the core fanbase after alienation in the late 2000s. The song was released as a limited edition 7 inch record in the UK with no b-side. In December 2017, an early version of the song was leaked, along with the rest of the album.

The liner notes for Everything Will Be Alright in the End groups songs by one of three themes. "Back to the Shack" is grouped under the category "The Panopticon Artist" (songs about Cuomo's relationships with his fans). The song contains numerous references to the band's past. The line "I forgot that disco sucks" seems to refer to Cuomo's past desire to chase pop trends, specifically on album's such as 2009's Raditude, while simultaneously alluding to the "Disco Sucks" slogan that came to prominence in the late 70s. The lyric about Rivers and Pat playing lead guitar and drums, respectively, refers to Weezer's enlistment of drummer Josh Freese during tours beginning in 2009 to allow Pat to play guitar and Rivers to focus on vocals and more freely interact with the crowd. Despite seemingly breaking away from the album's conceit surrounding the fictional band The Astronauts, the music video for the song features Weezer playing on the moon, with Cuomo apparently dressed in character, wearing a jumpsuit with a nametag that reads Sebastian. The music video also features the band moving in slow-motion, a possible reference to Weezer's first music video, for "Undone - The Sweater Song".

Songwriter and producer Jacob "Jkash" Kasher is credited as a co-writer on the song. This caused some backlash from fans, who viewed the use of outside collaborators as incongruous with the song's premise. On the All Things Weezer forums, Karl Koch commented:[1][2]


Karlifyhead.png
as i understand it, dude contributed by randomly singing out the title while hanging out on the couch listening to RC strumming the song. it doesnt take much to get half a songwriting credit.

...because it looks great on that guys resume if he co-wrote with RC, so of course he'd insist on credit. You think Ric needs to prove himself as a songwriter in 2014? Plus if a producer started saying "oh, since i helped you come up with that solo, now you have to pay me for producing and i want half that song too", he'd get a bad reputation pretty fast.

no i wasnt there, but im going off of RC's own brief description of how it went down. The takeaway: even if im missing some details, most of that song is RC.
- Karl Koch, All Things Weezer forum post


Music video

Official music video

The video for the song was directed by Warren Fu. It premiered on September 29, 2014 on noisey.vice.com.

Audio video

Personnel

Lyrics

Sorry guys, I didn't realize that I needed you so much
I thought I'd get a new audience, I forgot that disco sucks
I ended up with nobody and I started feeling dumb
Maybe I should play the lead guitar and Pat should play the drums

Take me back, back to the shack
Back to the strat with the lightning strap
Kick in the door, more hardcore
Rocking out like it's '94
Let's turn up the radio
Turn off those stupid singing shows
I know where we need to go
Back to the shack

I finally settled down with my girl and I made up with my dad
Had to go and make a few mistakes so I could find out who I am
I'm letting all of these feelings out even if it means I fail
'Cause this is what I was meant to do and you can't put that on sale

Take me back, back to the shack
Back to the strat with the lightning strap
Kick in the door, more hardcore
Rocking out like it's '94
Let's turn up the radio
Turn off those stupid singing shows
I know where we need to go
Back to the shack

We belong in the rock world
There is so much left to do
If we die in obscurity, oh well
At least we raised some hell

Take me back, back to the shack
Back to the strat with the lightning strap
Kick in the door, more hardcore
Rocking out like it's '94
Let's turn up the radio
Turn off those stupid singing shows
I know where we need to go
Back to the shack
Let's turn up the radio
Turn off those stupid singing shows
I know where we need to go
Back to the shack

See also

References

  1. karlophone "This isn't our website..." All Things Weezer. 26 July 2014. http://www.allthingsweezer.com/index.php?threads/this-isnt-our-website.29187/page-12#post-844086
  2. karlophone "This isn't our website..." All Things Weezer. 26 July 2014. http://www.allthingsweezer.com/index.php?threads/this-isnt-our-website.29187/page-14#post-844123