It was ‘one small step for Weezer and one giant leap for Weezer-kind’ Tuesday at the Garden

Opening acts Dinosaur Jr. & The Flaming Lips left their mark as well.

Weezer, with Dinosaur Jr. and The Flaming Lips, TD Garden, Sept. 10, 2024

When Wayne Coyne, lead singer of opening band The Flaming Lips, said Weezer’s “Voyage to the Blue Planet” show was “effing mind blowing,” he was not wrong.

To call it otherworldly wouldn’t even be hyperbole, since the NASA-esque jumpsuit-suited band materialized on the TD Garden stage Tuesday night as their spacecraft lifted off, leaving behind swirling white clouds. At the same time, they launched the audience on what lead singer/guitarist Rivers Cuomo called a “very dangerous mission.”

It was all camp, all fun, and everyone was all-in as the alt-rock band played out the space-themed odyssey that included traveling 30 light years away to save the Blue Planet — by celebrating their Blue Album, released 30 years ago. The space party was set in motion when breaking news announced an imminent space voyage, and a countdown clock ticked off the band’s liftoff, the heady crowd counting it down in unison.

The mood was enhanced by planets large and small that dropped into and out of the concert’s hemisphere. The stage was littered with space rocks and backed by a giant porthole that showed the band’s journey through space via special effects, to a wonderful degree of success. Pink palm trees flashed by when they launched into the always-a-crowd-pleaser “Beverly Hills,” and TVs floated past when they sang “Any Friend of Diane’s is a Friend of Mine.” And there was plenty of space stuff too.

The band moved through the music seamlessly with little chatter, like they’d been playing together for decades, which they have been.

And the clues baked in to the eras-spanning tour — not to be confused with that other Eras Tour — were not lost on the crowd. When a red planet appeared at the start of the first set, the crowd knew what to expect and roared when the band launched into “Troublemaker,” from the Red Album, then flowed into the Green album for “Hashpipe,” and back to Red for “Pork and Beans.”

Bass player Scott Shriner started the show playing a translucent double-necked bass that was totally (inter)stellar. He and Cuomo and guitarist/vocalist Brian Bell traded riffs and shredding duties effortlessly, often lining up, playing in synch (but not NSYNC, to be clear) while Patrick Wilson kept perfect time and was often a blur on drums.

Hands double-tapped in the air all over the arena for “Island in the Sun,” before a spacecraft-flying CGI creature told Cuomo they were stranded in an asteroid belt.

“What asteroid belt?” Cuomo asked. “Why, the Pinkerton Asteroid Belt of course,” was the response, which set off a chain reaction of cheers across the arena as the band hurled into “Why Bother,” off what else but the “Pinkerton” album.

Midway through the show, Cuomo announced they’d arrived at the Blue Planet but they needed to perform the Blue Album to save it from certain destruction. It was the set everyone had clearly been wildly anticipating.

“One small step for Weezer, one giant leap for Weezer-kind,” Cuomo said before they jumped into the album’s opening track “My Name is Jonas,” followed up by “No One Else” and, of course, “Buddy Holly.”

(If you want to see the quartet talk about their iconic Blue Album and how the songs came to be, stop by Weezer Live/Spotify THIRTY on YouTube, it’s a fun watch.)

Cuomo then admitted he was actually an alien (and so are all of you, he told the raucous sea of fans), and when he followed that up with “Undone – The Sweater Song,” he was matched lyric for lyric by a whipped-up crowd that couldn’t wait for more. In fact, the crowd pretty much took over for “Say It Ain’t So,” but it couldn’t drown out Bell’s screaming guitar solo.

Cuomo only seemed to step away from the space-themed scripted repartee of the show when a bit of crowd surfing broke out during “Only In Dreams.”

“In 30 years that’s the first time I’ve seen a mosh pit for that song,” he said.

The music built to a chest-pounding crescendo as confetti cannons fired blue bits of stardust that hung in the air as the crowd chanted “Weezer, Weezer,” and they took a bow and left the planet, but not before thanking their flight crew, opening bands, and the fans.

As much fun as the goofy setting amid some serious music was, the best thing about the show was the fact that Weezer is undeniably fun — so brilliantly cohesive as a band and loyal to their music and their fans. And their fans, from the very young wearing noise canceling headphones to the teens and tweens (wasn’t that a school night?) dancing along with mom and dad, to the older fans also swaying and yelling lyrics into the atmosphere — they gave the love right back. You couldn’t help but get caught up in the rush and the thrash and the joy of it all.

Weezer fans were just as appreciative of the opening acts as well, each of which was met with the familiarity of head bobbing and sing-alongs.

For Dinosaur Jr., playing the Garden was a homecoming. The Amherst, Massachusetts, band was an interesting pairing for Weezer, with its hard-driving, psychedelic, ear-splitting set. To the woman two rows in front who handed me a pair of earplugs halfway through the set — I love you. They played a loud, proud, and tight 30 minutes with little chatter, save an intro and a good-bye. But J Mascis spoke plenty with his guitar shredding, as did Murph on drums and bass player Lou Barlow, who crashed about the stage, never standing still for more than a few seconds.

The Flaming Lips brought their own sense of camp, with inflatables and a laser light show that should have come with a “could induce seizures” warning. Coyne admitted they were a little out of their element, having never played a venue as big as TD Garden, but Boston was not unfamiliar to them. He rattled off a list of memorable spots they gigged at over the years, including The Rat, T.T. the Bears, Middle East, Paradise Lounge, The Orpheum, and, just last year, Boston Calling.

A divinely lush, yet also amped up and slightly magical version of Madonna’s “Borderline” was a standout for the band, but it was “She Don’t Use Jelly” and the “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah” song that got the crowd singing along and head-banging in time with two ginormous inflated pink robots and a couple of large eyeballs.

The Flaming Lips ended their set with Coyne encouraging folks to turn to the one they came with or the stranger next to them and tell them they love them, before launching into “Do You Realize,” which he sang standing under a blow-up rainbow.

Shout-out to the stranger next to me who assured me he loved me. Right back at you — and at Weezer too. How could you not after a Voyage to the Blue Planet?

Setlist for Weezer at TD Garden, Sept. 10, 2024

• Anonymous
• Return to Ithaka
• Dope Nose
• Hash Pipe
• Pork and Beans
• Beverly Hills
• Burndt Jamb
• Island in the Sun
• Any Friend of Diane’s
• Perfect Situation
• Run, Raven, Run

Pinkerton Asteroid Belt:

• Getchoo
• Why Bother?
• Pink Triangle
• You Gave Your Love to Me Softly
• Across the Sea

Weezer (the Blue Album):

• My Name Is Jonas
• No One Else
• The World Has Turned and Left Me Here
• Buddy Holly
• Undone – The Sweater Song
• Surf Wax America
• Say It Ain’t So
• In the Garage
• Holiday
• Only in Dreams