1.) An American alterna… Read Full Bio ↴There are two bands charting as The Rentals:
1.) An American alternative rock band fronted by Matt Sharp, former bass player for Weezer. The Rentals have released four LPs, Return Of The Rentals (1995), Seven More Minutes (1999), Lost in Alphaville (2014), Q36 (2020) and four EPs, The Last Little Life EP (2007), The Story of a Thousand Seasons Past (2009), It's Time to Come Home (2009), and The Future (2009). The 2009 EPs make up the musical end of the Songs About Time project, which also includes daily photos and weekly short films entitled Resilience (2011).
Band members on Return Of included Patrick Wilson (also of Weezer) on drums, Rod Cervera (guitar), Tom Grimley (moog), Petra Haden (violin, vocals), and Cherielynn Westrich (vocals, moog). Petra's triplet sister, Rachel Haden, appears as an additional vocalist. After Sharp left Weezer, Wilson's studio replacement on the drums was Kevin March and Mike Fletcher was the band's most frequent touring drummer. Maya Rudolph, of Saturday Night Live fame, also briefly toured with the band as a keyboardist. They are known for their quirky Moog-driven melodies. The single "Friends of P" off their first album was a modern rock radio hit, peaking at #7 on Billboard's Modern Rock Chart and #92 on the Billboard Hot 100. After touring for Seven More Minutes the band disbanded.
Yet on October 24, 2005, the tenth anniversary of the band's formation, Matt Sharp announced he was bringing back The Rentals after a six year absence. The new lineup includes founding member Rachel Haden on bass/vocals, Sara Radle on vocals/multiple instruments, Ben Pringle (from Nerf Herder and now Yearbook Pictures) on synths/multiple instruments, Lauren Chipman on viola/synth/vocals, and Dan Joeright on drums. Sharp stated on his website that "there are no current plans" for ex-Rental Cherielynn Westrich "to be involved in the future of The Rentals."
Sharp states: The essential elements of The Rentals will be there. Our fascination with vintage synthesizers, violas, violins, female harmonies and all the rest will continue. But, I'm guessing, we'll most likely veer off the path that would lead us into the realm of becoming our own tribute band.
2.) A late '70s Boston area Punk band featuring Jeff Hudson, Jane Hudson, and Pseudo Carol. As a trio, they released the songs "Gertrude Stein", "Low Rent", "New York", "I Got A Crush On You" and "Elephants".
In 1980, Jeff & Jane joined The MANHATTAN PROJECT, followed by the Electro-Punk act simply known as Jeff & Jane Hudson in 1981.
Last Romantic Day
The Rentals Lyrics
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It's the right view
Central Park right in front of you
There's a misstep
There's a missed phrase
She's the wrong gal
It's the wrong day
(The last romantic day)
It's the wrong day
(It's the last romantic day)
It's the first date in the daytime
Boy you show your age in the bright lights
She's got bad form and a short fuse
In the sunshine she's a cold muse
(The last romantic day)
Whatcha gonna do
(It's the last romantic day)
Welcome to the brand new day past the golden age
The Technicolor fantasy slowly fades to grey
Welcome to the brand new you on the last romantic day
So I bow in and I bow out
Take a white flag
Wave it all about
It's too much now
Too too too soon
Too too much
Too too much for you
(The last romantic day)
Too too much for you
(It's the last romantic day)
And it's going away
(The last romantic day)
And it's going away
(It's the last romantic day)
It's almost over
It's almost over
And it's going away
Yeah, well it's going away
It's almost over
The Rentals' "Last Romantic Day" is a song about a first date that goes wrong on what is supposed to be the perfect day. In the first verse, the singer describes a beautiful day in Central Park, but there's a misstep or a missed phrase that makes the girl he's with the wrong choice for the day. The chorus repeats the line "It's the last romantic day" like a warning that something important is coming to an end. The second verse portrays the characteristics of the person he's with as having "bad form and a short fuse" - not exactly the kind of person you want to spend a romantic day with while enjoying the vibrant nature that Central Park has to offer.
The bridge of the song suggests that this day might be the beginning of something new, as the singer welcomes the "brand new day" past the golden age, and the "brand new" version of himself. However, both the day and the relationship seem to be falling apart, as the song is filled with lines like "it's too much now, too too too soon," and "it's almost over, and it's going away." Overall, the song has a bittersweet tone to it, as the hope of the beginning is overshadowed by the reality of a failed romance.
Line by Line Meaning
It's a bright day
It's a sunny and optimistic day
It's the right view
The scenery is perfect
Central Park right in front of you
The iconic park is visible from the location
There's a misstep
There's a mistake that occurred
There's a missed phrase
Some words were not spoken
She's the wrong gal
The girl he's with isn't the one he's looking for
It's the wrong day
For whatever reason, it's not the right day for this
It's the first date in the daytime
This is their first daytime date
Boy you show your age in the bright lights
The bright daylight reveals his flaws and insecurities
She's got bad form and a short fuse
She has a bad attitude and is easily angered
In the sunshine she's a cold muse
Despite the cheery atmosphere, she's not inspiring him
Welcome to the brand new day past the golden age
This is a new era after a previous period of greatness
The Technicolor fantasy slowly fades to grey
The colorful fantasy world is disappearing
Welcome to the brand new you on the last romantic day
He's accepting the new version of himself on this final day of romance
So I bow in and I bow out
He's accepting the situation and gracefully leaving
Take a white flag
He's surrendering and giving up
Wave it all about
He's waving the white flag for all to see
It's too much now
The situation has become overwhelming
Too too too soon
Things are moving too quickly
Too too much
There's too much pressure or stress
Too too much for you
It's too much for the other person to handle
And it's going away
The romance is ending
(The last romantic day)
This is the final day of romance
Whatcha gonna do
What will happen next?
(It's the last romantic day)
This is the final day of romance
It's almost over
The end is near
Yeah, well it's going away
The romance is fading away
Contributed by Aaliyah K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Michael Skinner
I LOVE this song. They are fantastic live. Welcome back Rentals!
Null
I like to look at it like this concerning Weezer vs The Rentals. I grew up listening to Weezer but I matured to The Rentals. Why these guys haven't gotten bigger is beyond me considering the "indie" scene pretty much sounds like The Rentals now
Pedro Plasencia
Great performance! I love how the sound grows and grows with the instruments in the beginning till the musicroom is filled
mahal3680
Awesome song...from an awesome band!!
Jackyapplejones
Pretty much the best song ever.
dukermoon
Yep. The girls shred in this band. I couldn't believe how spot on the violin (viola??) was live. Usually that instrument has a hard time translating in a club sound system. The Rentals sounded great. Yes. Matt Sharp was essential to Weezer. Rivers is amazing but the combination of the two was total magic. I am sure they butted heads and that is probably part of the mojo that was the first two Weezer records. However, 7 More Minutes might be a more important album to me.
The Rentals
THE RENTALS new album Q36 is out now! Available everywhere you listen to music.
STREAM Q36 ON SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2La8Kv1JLHki1IpUkZDUH8?si=YHgA3u5tQLeXEKm9Ei6cvQ
Q36 ON APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/us/album/q36/1509863328
mustard puddle
oh hi there
Patrick Garrett
This is so fucking brilliant. Makes me want to play in the Rentals!
shawn zvara
Arguably the most original band ever !!!