It’s a little known fact that there’s an early connection between Keanu Reeves and Weezer (Picture: Getty)
If it wasn’t for Keanu Reeves and his band Dogstar, Weezer may have ended up with a completely different name.
After starting his acting career in the 80s, Reeves had a series of minor roles that led to his breakout turn in 1991’s Bill and Ted.
Suddenly a superstar, the avid music lover decided to take advantage of his newfound recognition and start the rock band he’d always wanted.
Reeves found his bandmates serendipitously, first bonding with eventual drummer Robert Mailhouse about his Detroit Red Wings sweater in a grocery store in 1991.
They began to regularly jam together, later onboarding singer/guitarist Gregg Miller in 1992.
Though Reeves would later say he felt terrible for his bandmates, who were all too aware that the band was mostly reduced to a movie star’s pet project in the eyes of the world (he added, ‘I guess it would have helped if our band was better’), they tour successfully after their inception.
Dogstar first got together in 1991 (Picture: Jim Bennett/WireImage)
Around a similar time, Rivers Cuomo moved to Los Angeles to try to find fame with his band Avant Garde (later called Zoom).
Eventually, the band split up, but Cuomo didn’t give up, and he soon met Patrick Wilson and Matt Sharp and formed a brand new band in 1992.
That unnamed band was slotted to open for Dogstar last minute in the same year.
They had occasionally been using the name Goat Punishment previously but weren’t happy with it, and when they booked a place opening for the band of a superstar actor, they knew they had to come up with something better fast.
It was, after all, their first real show.
Weezer played their first gig opening for Keanu Reeves’ band Dogstar (Picture: Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Dogstar’s drummer Rob Mailhouse remembered the Weezer show years later to Vice, saying: ‘But check this out. The first gig we did was at this place called Rodgies in Los Angeles – it was this dump-y, but very cool club – and Weezer opened up for us.’
He continued: ‘I’ll never forget them, really nice guys. I actually ended up becoming friends with the bass player and he played bass in another band I was in. There were maybe 60 people, most of whom were our friends, and the reaction was like (unenthusiastic) “yayyy”‘
But to Weezer, it seemed like a big deal, maybe even their big break. Afterall, they’d be on the same stage as Keanu Reeves.
The band chose the name under pressure ahead of the Dogstar gig (Picture: Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/GettyImages)
So they put their heads together and came up with a name that would become one of the most iconic in alt-rock history.
Cuomo recalled the nickname that his father had called him during childhood to his bandmates: Wheezer. “
In a later conversation with Conan O’Brien, he explained: ‘That’s what my dad called me when I was very young.’
Dogstar reunited in 2022 (Picture: Rune Hellestad/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)
He went on to say that his father had taken the pet name from the character of the same name in the comedy television series Our Gang, also referred to as The Little Rascals.
A character called Wheezer (played by Bobby Hutchins) was the ‘cool one,’ according to Cuomo’s Dad, who thought his son displayed a similar suaveness.
With the opening slot for Dogstar fast approaching, Cuomo dropped a letter from the name and gave it to the booking agent without much thought, assuming it would be easier enough to change it later.
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But the name stuck and quickly became synonymous with Weezer’s brand of slacker indie rock that would soon become a national craze.
‘I remember getting letters from my dad and it would always be, “to Weezer.” He didn’t use an “h,”‘ said Cuomo of the name to Rolling Stone.
‘It was definitely a very emotional name for me — and I don’t think for anyone else. For the other guys in the band, it’s just a weird word. I guess it even ties back to what I was saying about ‘Sliver.’ Just this feeling of being this helpless little kid that’s abandoned, or neglected. It was definitely the right name.’
And if it hadn’t been for the pressure of playing on a bill with Keanu Reeves, it may never have been the name the band chose.
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