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  • Record Label:
  • Release Date:
Rooney Image
Metascore
67

Generally favorable reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 24 Ratings

  • Summary: This is the debut LP for the Weezer-esque Los Angeles band led by Robert Carmine (otherwise known as the younger brother of actor/Phantom Planet bandmember Jason Schwartzman).

Top Track

I'm a Terrible Person
I'm a terrible person I'm a terrible person I'm a terrible person 'Cause I've made up my mind I'm a terrible person 'Cause I've led her on And I'm... See the rest of the song lyrics
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 8
  2. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. Rooney is the real deal, and this self-titled debut is perfect summer pop fun that aims to bring a little sophistication to the tried-and-true mainstream boredom, referencing the past and updating it for the present.
  2. Q Magazine
    80
    The feelgood hit of the summer? Quite possibly. [Sep 2003, p.110]
  3. Blender
    70
    Simple, charming and surprisingly innocent. [#17, p.143]
  4. An acceptably underwhelming, state of the art, guitar-centric pop record.
  5. The album's quirky appeal is reflective of Rooney's self-assuredness as musicians.
  6. Alternative Press
    60
    There are enough sparkly pop moments here to suggest Rooney could become, like the best Hollywood exports, a guilty pleasure. [Aug 2003, p.105]
  7. The band's performances are utterly competent yet numbingly risk-free.

See all 8 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 11
  2. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. JosephC
    Jan 30, 2007
    10
    This is a great album... I love every single song on it and its especially good to listen to in the summer. It has definetly been one of my This is a great album... I love every single song on it and its especially good to listen to in the summer. It has definetly been one of my favorite summer albums. Expand
  2. JoeyS
    Nov 30, 2003
    10
    I love Rooney!
  3. LucieM
    Jul 4, 2003
    10
    It seriously rocks. Rooney deserves way more than a 60!
  4. WinaP
    Apr 28, 2005
    10
    The Album rocks. seriously. What people take for granted, really, is that Rock n Roll isnt all the screaming and the yelling and The Album rocks. seriously. What people take for granted, really, is that Rock n Roll isnt all the screaming and the yelling and shit...it's also the harmonies, melodies; the whole sound. This is honestly one of the most honest, straight forward, yet strangely poetic records i have listened to. I mean, doesn't "I'm unbreakable" just say it all? Also, for David Raposa who said that they are bcoming "unsophisticated money machines", well bugger off, man! =p Just because their influences show in their music (which is the whole point of being influenced, isnt it?), that doesn't mean it isnt original, and just because they said "unsophisticated money machines" it doesn't mean that they're against making money, genius. it means that they're against the stupidity and mediocrity of the music produced by the likes of britney and justin and shit...and that THAT stuff is what sells. also, about wat he said on "blueside" no offense totally, but are you DEAF? yes, the chorus is what gets stuck in your head, but that doesn't mean that it over shadows the rest of the song. in my opinion it provides great transition and keeps the song from going flat-line. also, if you are so against the chorus getting stuck in people's heads, well then, maybe you should remember that that is the whole point of a chorus...it is the part that will be sung the most. the part that people are supposed to remember. DUH. This is the best record on earth. that is all i can say. this is also the epitome of the best thing you could give to The Cars, The Beatles and Led Zepplin...this proves that good music lives on. That they-the above mentioned- didn't all plunge into the industry without leaving a mark. It's the honest truth. i swear. Expand
  5. TimE
    Jan 25, 2005
    9
    The greatest pop songs you're likely to hear in a life time. It's fun, it's innocent and nearly Godhead!!!!
  6. [Anonymous]
    Apr 26, 2006
    8
    First time i heard Rooney, I dismissed them for another come and go band, much like most of today's bands. However, after hearing them First time i heard Rooney, I dismissed them for another come and go band, much like most of today's bands. However, after hearing them live at a free Berkeley concert in 2005, they started to break into my ears. A month after owing their album, I gotta say this 80's accented Weezer pop isn't quite a masterpiece, but it's so catchy it's difficult to resist. And becasue of that, it seems Rooney may transcend the MTV come-and-go game and become The Cars of the new milleneum. I wonder what Ric Ocasek and Rivers Cuomo have to say about these guys. I'm sure they'd be pleased. Expand
  7. MatthewC
    Apr 26, 2004
    6
    Although it is not intelligent rock, I didnt expect it to be. I knew I what I ws getting into when purchasing, a California pop album. But we Although it is not intelligent rock, I didnt expect it to be. I knew I what I ws getting into when purchasing, a California pop album. But we all love California pop even if it is not as clever or deep like some others. I do find this CD enjoyable, and the song "Stay Away" is just too catchy to leave my brain. Expand

See all 11 User Reviews