A lot easier than trying to make small talk with insular music fans (especially when you're one of them), we're turning my appearance today at the Star Tribune's State Fair booth into a throwdown for Weezer fans. Starting at 5 p.m., we will be hosting a trivia contest on all things Rivers, "Buddy Holly," "Hash Pipe," etc. Well, maybe not the latter. We will be giving away a variety of CDs to fans most in-the-know. The Strib booth is located at the end of the big ramp to the grandstand, where Weezer is the headliner tonight. Click here for the map.
Here's an answer to one of the questions as a thanks for reading us online (and because it seems like news worth getting out there before the show): Josh Freese is once again on tour with the band this summer, filling in for original drummer Patrick Wilson. Wilson now plays guitar so frontman Rivers Cuomo can run around the stage more like his hero, David Lee Roth. Freese has also played with Nine Inch Nails, Guns N' Roses, Paul Westerberg, the Vandals and A Perfect Circle, the latter of whom he sorta ditched this summer to continue with Weezer.
Tonight's locally reared opening band, Motion City Soundtrack, are high-energy rockers signed to Columbia Records who toured with Weezer two winters ago (when Rivers had that bus accident). They are definitely worth getting there at 7:30 to see. Plenty of tickets will be available at the gate -- and since it's a general admission show, there's really no point in buying through Ticketmaster.
