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- How moving to L.A. and working at Tower Records shaped a future hit
- When rock and metal started to sound the same: Cuomo’s realization
- Meeting Lars Ulrich: a candid backstage exchange
- Weezer, Metallica, and the Enter Sandman moment they almost played
- Why this little story matters for understanding musical influence
Weezer’s breakout single “Undone — The Sweater Song” has long lived in the same pop-leaning orbit as ‘90s alternative hits. Yet Rivers Cuomo says the song’s DNA draws from surprising places. A peek into his early listening habits reveals a path from the Velvet Underground to Metallica, and a backstage moment that made the connection impossible to ignore.
How moving to L.A. and working at Tower Records shaped a future hit
After leaving Connecticut, Cuomo landed in Los Angeles and took a job at Tower Records. The record-store grind exposed him to a wider sonic palette.
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- Sonic Youth’s experimental textures
- Pixies’ loud-quiet dynamics
- The Velvet Underground’s spare, melodic approach
It was during that period he tried writing in the spirit of the Velvet Underground. The jangly, looping riff that became “Undone” came from that experiment. Cuomo later developed the idea into one of Weezer’s most recognizable songs.
When rock and metal started to sound the same: Cuomo’s realization
Years after recording and touring, Cuomo noticed an odd similarity between the Sweater Song riff and a Metallica passage. The recognition didn’t come in the studio.
From metalhead roots to an accidental parallel
Cuomo grew up playing along to metal, and that training shaped his technique. Hearing the riffs side by side revealed that two very different bands had landed on near-identical melodic material.
The key difference was tonal: one riff sits in a major mode, the other leans darker. That shift changes the mood, but not the skeletal shape of the phrase.
Meeting Lars Ulrich: a candid backstage exchange
The similarity became personal when Cuomo ran into Metallica’s drummer at a festival in New York. He told Ulrich about the resemblance between the songs.
- They met backstage during a large festival appearance.
- Cuomo admitted the riffs were practically the same.
- Ulrich took the confession in stride; there were laughs rather than accusations.
Cuomo says the encounter was relaxed. Instead of hostility, there was mutual respect. That ease probably helped avoid any public dispute over influence.
Weezer, Metallica, and the Enter Sandman moment they almost played
Weezer had been covering Metallica’s Enter Sandman in recent sets. When the two bands shared staging, Cuomo and company asked if it was okay to play the song right before Metallica went on.
Ulrich’s reply carried a joke: if Weezer played Sandman, Metallica wouldn’t have to. Faced with that moment, Cuomo says they backed down.
- Weezer rehearsed Enter Sandman for a set.
- They asked Metallica permission backstage.
- They ultimately decided not to go through with it.
Cuomo framed the retreat with humor, calling it a chicken-out. Yet the exchange left room for the image of a thrash band tackling a softly strummed alt-rock song — a thought that amused fans and musicians alike.
Why this little story matters for understanding musical influence
The episode shows how genres bleed into one another. Musicians borrow phrasing, tone, and riff shapes without intending theft. Influence can look like coincidence when styles cross-pollinate.
For listeners, the takeaway is simple: familiar elements can resurface in new contexts. For artists, the story is a reminder that early tastes, even across disparate genres, shape creative instincts.
Photo by Jim Bennett/Getty Images
